Dyess airmen remembered 10 years after Afghanistan crash

ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) – Dyess Air Force Base honored fallen Dyess Airmen for the 10th Anniversary of the TORQE 62 crash.

On October 2 at 1:46 p.m., the exact moment the aircraft went down, families gathered to remember 10 years later. For Yvette Harris, still grieving her son, the tribute stands as a lasting source of comfort.

33rd United States President Harry S. Truman once said: “Our debt to the heroic men and valiant women in the service of our country can never be repaid. They have earned our undying gratitude.”

Recently, Dyess Air Force Base showed its gratitude to Dyess Airmen who gave the ultimate sacrifice 10 years ago in Afghanistan.

On October 2, 2015, Captain Jordan Peterson, Captain Jonathan Golden, Staff Sergeant Ryan Hammond, Senior Airman Quinn Johnson-Harris, Senior Airman Nathan Sartain, Airman First Class Kcey Ruiz, and five military contractors lost their lives after their C-130 J Super Hercules, Callsign TORQE 62, crashed while departing Jalalabad Airfield in Afghanistan shortly after takeoff.

Ten years later, family, friends and airmen from all over the country gathered at the Dyess Museum to honor these fallen service members. Mother to Senior Airman Quinn Johnson-Harris, Yvette Harris, spoke to one of her fondest memories of her son.

“My faith is first, and I know that before Quinn got deployed, he talked to our pastor, and he said, Pastor, let me get this thing right before I go,” Harris recalled. “So he renewed his faith commitment and committed to God. He came out of that room with the pastor, and he said, ‘I’m ready. I’m ready for whatever comes my way.'”

Many lent their voices to commemorate these fallen individuals, which included current and former commanders, Congressman Jodey Arrington, and retired Colonel and Former Commander of the 317th Airlift Group, Stephen Hodge, whose strong words echoed throughout the memorial and the hearts of those in attendance.

“Ten years later, as we carry their memory forward, the grief is still there for many of us. It may not be as sharp, but it never fully goes away. And that’s okay. It means their lives matter. It means their service mattered. It means their friendship mattered. Their love for us, and our love for them, mattered. And it’s real. They most certainly earned their stitch on our flag,” Hodge expressed.

Though these brave individuals gave everything in service to their country, even ten years later, their memory lives on in a special memorial plaque that was designed to shed sunlight through a port in the memorial that only shines completely on all of the names featured on the plaque on the day of the accident, October 2nd, at exactly 1:46 p.m., the moment the aircraft went down. For still grieving family members like Yvette Harris, this symbol serves as comfort in remembering her son.

“The military mission is never to be forgotten. That’s one thing when young men die for our country, that they’re never forgotten,” Harris said. “Even in this city of Abilene, to see who came out, to know that nobody’s forgotten, that’s amazing.”