[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 65 (Monday, April 23, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E510-E511]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 HONORING THE SACRIFICE OF WARRANT OFFICER FIRST CLASS REGINALD DAVID 
                                 CLEVE

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JASON SMITH

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, April 23, 2018

  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the 
sacrifice of U.S. Army Warrant Officer First Class Reginald David Cleve 
of Farmington, MO, missing in action since March 22, 1971.
  The 23-year-old Mr. Cleve was a member of the 176th Aviation Company, 
14th Aviation Battalion, 10th Aviation Group and the 23rd Infantry 
Division. He was the commander aboard a UH1H ``Huey'' aircraft in a 
group of five helicopters conducting an emergency re-supply mission on 
that day. With a crew of

[[Page E511]]

four, the helicopter was flying low above Savannakhet province in Laos. 
The helicopter took intense enemy fire and was shot down. No rescue 
mission was conducted because of the heavy concentration of enemy 
troops. Mr. Cleve's remains have never been recovered. His family was 
left to wonder whether he might have survived and been taken prisoner. 
But Mr. Cleve never returned home. He and his crew remain numbered 
among the nearly 600 Americans who disappeared in Laos.
  Today, 47 years later, his sacrifice is honored at Jefferson Barracks 
National Cemetery. At another ceremony in his hometown on March 24, 
2018, his name will be etched on a memorial at the St. Francois County 
Courthouse.
  It is with great appreciation and respect to honor the service and 
sacrifice of Warrant Officer First Class Reginald David Cleve today 
before the United States House of Representatives.

                          ____________________