Captain Charles Daniel Foley US Army
Air Medal w/ Oak Leaf Clusters
Charles Daniel Foley was born on November 29, 1943 to Benedict and Marjorie Foley. He was raised in Hobbs and in 1961 graduated from Hobbs HS. He attended NMMI, ENMU and the University of Arizona from 1961 to 1964. In the fall of 1964 he enrolled at NMSU studying Engineering. In the summer of 1967 he left school to enlist in the US Army. After completion of the infantry officer basic course he attended rotary officer flight training where he earned his wings. By July of 1969 Charles was in country flying the UH-1H “Huey” helicopter as part of C Company, 227th Assault Helicopter Battalion, 11th Aviation Group, 1st Cav Division. At that time the 227th was stationed at Lai Khe, a base due north of Saigon in III Corps. Lt Foley was flying UH-1H Huey’s. Company C’s mission was troop insertion and extraction. On 1 May, 1970 US Troops entered Cambodia in what is known as the Cambodian Incursion. The objective of the campaign was the defeat of the approximately 40,000 North Vietnamese and Viet Cong troops who were located in the eastern border regions of Cambodia.
Cambodia's official neutrality and military weakness made its territory effectively a safe zone where Vietnamese communist forces could establish bases for operations over the border. On 23 May 1970, Captain Foley was flying right seat for another combat assault mission into Cambodia. Inserting ground troops in an area of Cambodia known as Parrot’s Beak, approximately 30 miles from Song Be, Vietnam, the air crew observed that the troops were immediately engaged by a numerically superior enemy force. They instinctively responded to the situation. In a voluntarily action, they returned to base camp to pick up reinforcements. Returning to the landing zone, they were able to safely insert the fresh troops, but, before they could clear the area, their aircraft was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade killing Captain Foley instantly. Today Captain Charles Daniel Foley rests in the Lovington Cemetery. He was 26 years old at the time he gave his life in duty to his nation.