Staff Sgt. William D. Cleveland, Jr. - Peoria AZ
N 33° 34.629 W 112° 14.389
12S E 384937 N 3715961
This tree, dedicated to Ssgt. Cleveland, is located in a landscaped traffic island at the entrance to the Peoria Municipal Complex. 8401 W. Monroe St., Peoria. He was one of the crew members killed in a firefight in the "Black Hawk Down" incident.
Waymark Code: WMH7G0
Location: Arizona, United States
Date Posted: 06/03/2013
Views: 9
This inscribed stone, placed in 1994 by the local VFW Post, rests at the base of a beautiful Palo Verde tree.
"Staff Sgt. William D. Cleveland Jr. and Staff Sgt. Thomas J. Field were severely wounded on Oct. 3, 1993, when their "Super 64" Black Hawk helicopter was shot down over Mogadishu, Somalia. They died in a firefight between the four-man crew and a crowd of Somalis that surrounded the broken aircraft. Durant, who was held prisoner for 11 days, was the only member of the crew to survive. Co-pilot Ray Frank also died.
Cleveland, 34, was born in Phoenix and joined the Army in 1978. He served two tours in Germany, where he met his wife, one tour in South Korea and two tours at Fort Lewis, Wash. He served in combat operations in Panama and Southwest Asia.
Field, 25, was born in Lisbon, Maine, and joined the Army in 1987. He also served in combat operations in Panama and Southwest Asia.
Cleveland, Field and Durant were part of the 160th Special Operations Group in October 1993, when they joined a task force of 160 men that went to Mogadishu to capture two leaders of Somali warlord Mohammed Farah Aideed's clan. Aideed controlled the area of Mogadishu where 24 Pakistani troops in a U.N. force were killed in an ambush a few months earlier.
The mission, Operation Gothic Serpent, was successful, but a rocket-propelled grenade hit the tail of Durant's helicopter, which crashed. Two men from another Black Hawk were killed when they tried to protect the downed helicopter. Durant was severely beaten and captured.
The downing of the helicopter and Durant's capture were detailed in Mark Bowden's book, "Black Hawk Down," and the movie of the same name.
Cleveland's wife, Christine Cleveland, said she was honored by the Army's gesture.
"I'm happy for him," she said. "I'm just sorry he can't be here."
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