Fallen Soldier: Chris J. Scherkenbach

Army Chief Warrant Officer 4 Chris J. Scherkenbach, 40, of Jacksonville, Florida, was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), Hunter Army Airfield, Georgia. He was killed in action during Operation Red Wings in Afghanistan when the MH-47 Chinook helicopter he was piloting was shot down by an enemy rocket-propelled grenade on June 28, 2005.

CWO4 Scherkenbach graduated from high school in 1985 and later graduated Magna Cum Laude from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University with a Bachelor of Science in Professional Aeronautics. In 1987, Chris enlisted in the U.S. Army as a communication specialist and was stationed in Germany. In 1989, he was accepted into the Warrant Officer Program in Fort Rucker, Alabama and the following year, became a qualified pilot through rotary wing training. He toured Korea as a Chinook helicopter pilot, a position he was particularly proud of, and toured there before returning to the 159th Aviation Regiment. In his final assignment, he was part of an elite rescue mission consisting of eight soldiers and eight U.S. Navy SEALs deployed to save four SEALs captured or killed by Taliban forces.

CWO4 Scherkenbach was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart, the Bronze Star Medal, the Air Medal with “V” device, Meritorious Service Medal, Master Army Aviator Badge and Combat Action Badge. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery and is survived by his wife, Michelle, and daughter, Sarah.