LT Ligons attended Officer Candidate School (OCS), class 17-66, Fort Sill, Oklahoma and graduated in July 1966. He next served as a Tactical Training Officer at Fort Sill before his deployment to Vietnam. His assignement in Vietnam was to Headquarters and Headquarters Battery (HHB), 1st Battalion, 30th Artillery. He was serving as a Forward Observer with the 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) when the Chinook helicopter that he was in crashed at Phu Cat Air Force Base on approach to landing on the way to the 1967 Bob Hope Christmas show. Lt Ligons was pulled from the wreckage, but died because of his injuries. Photo below of Ligons graduating from school" Photo of Ligons from 30th Artillery Article on Crash

Records show: "Individual died from injuries received while passenger on miliary aircraft on routine flight when tail section exploded. Aircraft crashed and burned." The Aircraft had 5 crew members and 28 passengers on board. The 8th Cav had been in contact with the enemy for several grueling days and were being rewarded by being flown to Phu Cat. One passenger, the Platoon Sergeant of the platoon in which aircraft 66-19006 was assigned, was aboard the aircraft and reported that a blade came off the aft head and the aft transmission and pylon was dislodged from the airframe. The aircraft fell to the gound from about 200 feet, tail first. It landed on it's tail, then continued down onto it's belly. At that time, the forward transmission left the airframe. The aircraft came to rest upright and two small fires were extinguished. The accident occurred in Binh Dinh Province. Warrant Officer K Bastion, from the Service Battery, 7th Battalion, 13th Artillery also witnessed the crash. He was awarded the Soldier's Medal for heroism not involving actual conflict with an armed hostile force. Upon seeing the crash, he rushed to the scene and despite great danger to himself, he climbed aboard, thereby covering himself with highly flamable aviation fuel, but he assisted in the removal of injured personnel. After removal of the seriously injured, still at the risk of his life, He remained in the immediate vicinity of the aircraft, assisting medical personnel with the evacuation of the injured from the scene. Of the 33 persons on board the helicopter, all had an injury of some sort and 8 were killed. Those killed in the accident were: CPT Michael Edward Berdy, HHC 2/8 Cav, New York, NY SP4 William H Campbell III, C/228th ASHB, Flt Eng, Burlington, MA SSG Allen D Ford, Charlie 2/8 Cav, Pueblo, CO SP4 Barry Stuart Kyle, HHC 228th ASHB, Bradford, MA 1LT Daryl Lee Ligons, Charlie Btry, 1/30 Arty, Los Angeles, CA CPL James Lee Russ Jr, HHC, 2/8 Cav, Youngstown, OH 1LT Thomas Milton Van Zandt, Charlie 2/8 Cav, Austin, TX SGT Stephen Michael Vuga, Charlie 2/8 Cav, Pittsburgh, PA Full details and photos can be viewed here -- The Virtual Wall

Photo from Oakland Tribune, April 19, 1968, showing mother receiving Bronze Star medal for posthumous award for Lt. Ligons.

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