Fernando Apodaca Sr. was born on May 2, 1945. He served in the Heavy Mortar Platoon, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment, as a Specialist 4th Class and Mortarman during Vietnam War era.

On August 18, 1971, a U.S. Army CH-47A Chinook (tail number 66-19023) transporting troops from Ludwigsburg to the Grafenwöhr training area crashed near Pegnitz, Germany, when a decommissioned rotor blade was mistakenly reinstalled and failed mid-flight. The aircraft broke apart in the air, killing all 37 aboard, including 33 soldiers and 4 crew members, marking the deadliest peacetime U.S. military accident in
West Germany since World War II.

SP4 Apodaca was among the passengers on board and now rests at Fort Bliss National Cemetery, El Paso, El Paso County, Texas, USA.

Source of information: www.chinook-helicopter.com, www.findagrave.com