A short biography of Richard L. Etchberger
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Richard Loy Etchberger (Dick) was born in 1933 in Reading, Pennsylvania to Donald and Kathryn. He grew up with his older brother, Robert, in Minersville, PA and the family later moved to Hamburg, PA.
His father ran a small general store and his mother was a typical homemaker of the day. Both Dick and Bob worked at the store through their years at Hamburg High School. |
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While in high school, Dick captained the Hamburg High School basketball team and in his senior year, was elected the 1951 Class President.
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Dick joined the United States Air Force in October 1951 and completed his basic training at Sampson Air Force Base in New York. He then attended tech school at Keesler Air Force Base in Mississippi where he was trained in electronics. This would lead him to a career in radar bomb scoring. |
Stationed in Utah in the mid-1950's, Dick began working with mobile radar operations including those mounted on rail cars. While stationed in Utah, Dick met his wife Kay and stepson Steve.
They soon began a family. Son Richard was born in Salt Lake City just prior to an assignment to Morocco where their second son Cory was born. Duty assignments followed to areas throughout the United States from 1956-1965.
In 1965, Dick and the family moved to Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines for a 2-year assignment. During this period, he spent considerable time setting up radar facilities in Southeast Asia.
Because of his leadership skills and technical expertise, he volunteered in 1967 for a Top Secret CIA mission during the Vietnam War at Lima Site 85 in Laos.
After helping to run a Top Secret radar installation in neutral Laos for over 6 months, the site came under attack on March 11, 1968 from North Vietnamese soldiers who had scaled the surrounding cliffs.
While most of his crew lay dead or wounded, Dick Etchberger gallantly held off the advancing enemy while helping his comrades escape onto a hovering rescue helicopter only to be fatally wounded by enemy ground fire after he had made it safely aboard the helicopter. For his actions, he was posthumously awarded the Air Force Cross in a private Pentagon Ceremony.
Why was his family told he had died in a helicopter accident?
Why did his wife, Catherine, not tell her own sons what really happened until 18 years after his death?
Why did it take 42 years for his heroic actions to be finally recognized by the United States government?
The full account of Chief Etchberger's life, Air Force career, and extraordinary heroism are all documented in the compelling book, At All Costs, by author Matt Proietti.
Because of his leadership skills and technical expertise, he volunteered in 1967 for a Top Secret CIA mission during the Vietnam War at Lima Site 85 in Laos.
After helping to run a Top Secret radar installation in neutral Laos for over 6 months, the site came under attack on March 11, 1968 from North Vietnamese soldiers who had scaled the surrounding cliffs.
While most of his crew lay dead or wounded, Dick Etchberger gallantly held off the advancing enemy while helping his comrades escape onto a hovering rescue helicopter only to be fatally wounded by enemy ground fire after he had made it safely aboard the helicopter. For his actions, he was posthumously awarded the Air Force Cross in a private Pentagon Ceremony.
Why was his family told he had died in a helicopter accident?
Why did his wife, Catherine, not tell her own sons what really happened until 18 years after his death?
Why did it take 42 years for his heroic actions to be finally recognized by the United States government?
The full account of Chief Etchberger's life, Air Force career, and extraordinary heroism are all documented in the compelling book, At All Costs, by author Matt Proietti.
