Photo courtesy of Don Robinson
Winter Training Norway January 1984
Jim Hunter & Snake Rainey
Photo courtesy of Don Robinson
Desert Training Jordan 1983
Snake Rainey
Photo courtesy of Don Robinson
435th TAW Combat Control Team
Rheinmain Germany 1983
Standing: Capt. Vrosh, UNK, Mal Ringlieb, Don Robinson, Steve Plumer, Barry Cummings, Snake Rainey, Dave Caster, Sanders, Derek Lyske, Don East & Billy Moore
Kneeling: Jim Golden, Jeff Hitchcock, Jeff Quesenberry, Scott Poppeli, & Pat Lewton
18 killed in crash of Air Force plane
28 February 1984
BORJA, Spain (UPI) - A U.S. Air Force transport plane on a training mission crashed into a snow swept mountain in Spain while attempting an emergency landing, killing all 17 Americans aboard and a Spanish officer, officials said Wednesday. The wreckage of the plane, a Hercules C-130 turbo-prop, was found by a search team about 12 hours after it crashed Tuesday evening about two miles northwest of the village of Borja, Air Force officials said. The plane was part of the 435th Tactical Airlift Wing based at Rhein Main Air Base near Frankfurt, West Germany, and was flying a parachute drop training mission. During the training maneuvers, the plane was based at the air base at Zaragoza in northeastern Spain. The cause of the crash has not been determined. The plane went down after the pilot issued a distress call and said he was attempting an emergency landing. Lt. Col. William Johnson, spokesman at the Air Force's European headquarters at Ramstein, West Germany, said rescue workers recovered all the bodies from the wreckage. The Americans were not identified pending notification of relatives. They included 10 Air Force officers, six combat controllers and an air rescue specialist. The Spanish victim was identified as Capt. Francisco Guardiola Davo, 30.
