KILLEEN, Texas (AP) - More than 2,500 troops and other mourners packed a church Friday to honor seven Fort Hood soldiers killed when their helicopter plummeted to the ground after apparently striking cables supporting a TV transmission tower.
The victims of Monday's crash near Waco included Brig. Gen. Charles ``Ben'' Allen, an assistant division commander from Lawton, Okla., and six comrades from the 4th Infantry Division who had returned home safely after serving in the Iraq war.
Among them was Capt. Todd T. Christmas, 26, of Wagon Mound, N.M.
``Words can never express the sacrifice, duty and sense of loss we feel today,'' said Maj. Gen. James D. Thurman, the division's commander. ``It would be false to pretend that these deaths did not hurt us. ... We honor them not to dwell on our grief but to remember their courage.''
The crash into the 1,800-foot tower's cables occurred on a foggy morning in rural McLennan County, about 20 minutes into the two-hour flight. The tower's flashing red warning lights were not working at the time.
Also killed were Col. James M. Moore, 47, of Peabody, Mass., and Chief Warrant Officer 5 Douglas V. Clapp, 48, of Greensboro, N.C.
Moore was commander of the 4th Infantry's Division Support Command, Christmas was aide de camp to Allen, and Clapp was a senior automotive maintenance officer.
They were going to the Red River Army Depot near Texarkana to check on repairs to 225 Humvees being readied for Iraq.
The three-man flight crew died as well. Chief Warrant Officer 2 David H. Gardner Jr., 32, of Mason City, Iowa, and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Mark W. Evans Jr., 27, of Jacksonville, Fla., were the Black Hawk's pilots. Spc. Richard L. Brown of Stonewall, La., was its mechanic.
``They were extremely talented aviators and one great crew chief,'' said Col. Donald MacWillie, the division's top pilot. ``We'll pick ourselves up again and press forward despite the pain.''
Gardner and Evans were former enlisted men - Evans initially served in the Navy - who later were chosen for flight school. In fall 2003 both men deployed to Iraq, where each flew dozens of missions in the war zone.
Chief Warrant Officer 2 Kenneth McClendon, a Mineral Wells native, attended flight school with Evans and served in Iraq at the same time.
McClendon said after the service that he had been thinking about his friend's last day. To prepare for the 6:30 a.m. flight, Evans probably left home with his wife and two young children still asleep.
``He may not have seen his wife before he left or kissed his kids before he left,'' McClendon said.
Friday's service at the Christian House of Prayer was conducted in military fashion.
At the pulpit in the cavernous church stood the Army's standard tribute to fallen soldiers: a pair of black boots, an M-16 rifle with bayonet pointing down and a helmet with 4th Infantry insignia balanced on the rifle butt. A set of dog tags from each soldier killed dangled from the M-16's grip.
There was a 21-gun salute and a bugler playing ``Taps'' ended the ceremony.
Thurman spoke briefly about all seven soldiers, praising their service and telling a little about each out of uniform. He also promised each family that their soldier will never be forgotten.
Moore was an avid golfer who was elated this fall when the Boston Red Sox won their first World Series in 86 years, the general said.
And when the 4th Infantry was operating near Baghdad, Moore skillfully oversaw supply and maintenance under difficult conditions.
``I heard about his exploits in Iraq,'' Thurman said. ``By sheer force of will he made things happen.''
Christmas, a Texas A&M University graduate, was described as a rising star who loved the Army almost as much as he loved Aggie football. Clapp was lauded as being in a league of his own when it came to his job performance.
``He was clearly the best maintenance officer in the division,'' Thurman said.
But Thurman had the strongest memories about Allen, a friend since the mid-1990s.
``Ben and I go back some years,'' he said. ``We trained together, rode side by side. We laughed together and we had fun. ... Ben was a positive force. You felt good simply by being around Ben Allen.''
12/03/04 16:29 EST

George