My Friend
Bruce Smith
K.I.A.
11/02/2003










JOHNSTON, Iowa (AP) _ One Iowa National Guard member was killed and three were injured in an attack on a U.S. helicopter in Iraq, Guard officials announced Tuesday. Chief Warrant Officer Bruce A. Smith, 41, of West Liberty, died at a field hospital in Iraq. ``Smith was one of two pilots on board when a surface-to-air missile attacked them and brought them down,'' Col. Robert King, Guard spokesman, said in a news conference at Camp Dodge. The other pilot, 1st Lt. Brian Slavenas, 30, of Genoa, Ill., also was killed. The three injured soldiers _ Sgt. Gerald Santos, 35, of Davenport; Sgt. Paul Fisher, 39, of Marion; and Spc. Chad Baetke, 31, of Bettendorf _ were being treated at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center near the Ramstein Air Base in Germany. All four Iowans were assigned to Detachment 1 Company F 106th Aviation out of Davenport, a medium-lift helicopter unit that transports personnel, equipment and supplies. They were taking soldiers out of the area for home leave when their helicopter was attacked near Fallujah, Iraq. Army officials said Tuesday they could confirm 15 soldiers killed in Sunday's Chinook helicopter shoot-down in Iraq, not 16 as has been widely reported since the attack. Two other crew members from Iowa were treated at the scene and rejoined their unit. King said Smith had joined the National Guard in April 1980, before his high school graduation in Columbus Junction. An instructor on the aircraft, Smith had 2,000 hours of experience with the Chinook and Huey Army helicopter. He had never had a flight accident. ``I know that Bruce was a professional pilot ... in my mind, I am very positive he did everything he could to lessen that attack on his passengers,'' King said. ``We're proud of our soldiers ... we send them off as heroes. That's what they are,'' King said. Smith, a father of two, was a career officer in the Guard. ``I am very proud of my husband, for his service to our country. He touched a lot of lives in his unit and in our local schools. He will be sorely missed by all of us,'' his wife, Oliva Smith, said in a statement. Gov. Tom Vilsack said he spoke to Smith's family, and ``I conveyed to her the heartfelt condolences of all Iowans ... The example he set in his life of duty, service and honor will be his legacy.'' Kathy Schneider, a neighbor, said Bruce Smith was a wonderful man who coach his kids' athletic teams and attended all of their events or had his wife videotape them so he could watch later. She said Smith was passionate about everything he did, including being a soldier. ``He's always upbeat and his morale is always good. He recognized he had a job to do and he was over there doing the best that he could,'' Schneider said. Repeated phone calls to the Smiths' home were met with busy signals Tuesday morning. Santos' family hung up on a reporter. Although Chad Baetke's father, Marlo declined comment, his uncle, Rondo Baetke, said his nephew liked working on helicopters and was dedicated to the Guard. ``He enjoyed that quite a bit,'' Rondo Baetke said. ``He's always been a good, hard-working kid.''  

 

"and so it begins..."