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ANDREW MATYAS
Home Of Record:
CAMDEN
County:
Camden
Status:
Killed In Action
Rank:
LTC
Branch Of Service:
Air Force
Country Of Incident:
SVN
Date of Casualty:
February 18, 1968
Date of Birth:
September 21, 1922
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ANDREW MATYAS
LTC - O5 - Air Force - Regular
Length of service 22 years
His tour began on Sep 29, 1967
Casualty was on Feb 18, 1968
In PHONG DINH, SOUTH VIETNAM
HOSTILE, GROUND CASUALTY
ARTILLERY, ROCKET, or MORTAR
Body was recovered
Panel 40E - Line 10
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 Andrew
Matyas was born on September 21, 1922. His home of record is Camden, NJ. He
had two brothers, Edward and William, and three sisters. Andrew graduated
Camden High School in 1946. He attended Rutgers University and by 1949 had
earned B.A. and M.A. degrees in political science.
Matyas enlisted in the US Air Force and attained the rank of Lieutenant
Colonel (LTC.) In Vietnam, he was assigned to the 22nd Tactical Air Support
Squadron, 505th Troop Carrier Group, 7th Air Force. He flew as a spotter of
enemy forces.
During World War II, he flew combat missions with the 8th Air Force in
Europe. Recalled to duty in 1952 during the Korean War, he was assigned for
a year a Thule, Greenland. Later, he flew B-47s with the 307th Bomb Wing out
of Lincoln, NE.
Matyas was killed in action on February 18, 1968, during a mortar attack on
the Binh Thuy air base in the Mekong Delta region of South Vietnam.
In the service since World War II, Matyas was awarded over two dozen medals
including, the Air Medal, Bronze Star and the Purple Heart. He was survived
by his wife, Anna, and two daughters, Mary Ellen and Lynn Ann.
There is a memorial at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, NJ, dedicated to
the graduates who were killed or missing in action from the Vietnam War.
Matyas’ name is listed among those killed in action.
Sources: Various websites and NJVVMF.
MESSAGES LEFT ON THEWALL-USA
** Note that some of these
messages are from years ago and their contact information may not be good
anymore **
Roy Spencer
Vietnam Veteran-Air Force Pilot
FAC Hero
Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Matyas was from Camden, New Jersey and born on 21
February 1922. He was 45 and married when he died. He was a Bomber Forward
Air Controller assigned to the 22nd Tactical Air Support Squadron at Binh
Thuy. He was assigned to fly O-1 aircraft but he served only 17 days in
combat. He is another FAC who was killed by rocket, mortar or artillery
attack on the ground. Lt. Col. Matyas was a bomber pilot with 22 years of
service who had served in WW II, Korea and Vietnam. He earned the Bronze
Star w/V, the Air Medal with three clusters and the Purple Heart. His body
was recovered and his name is located at 40E 010 on the Vietnam Memorial.
Feb 18, 2008
Malcolm Kirby
mlkdrk@earthlink.net
USAF Veteran-191st photo recon.
Rest in Peace, my Brother
You will not be forgotten...
Feb 18, 2008
Bill Gallenstein
USAF Veteran
Zephyrhills FL 33541 USA
A very proud cold war USAF veteran remembers you on this day. My God bless
you and your family always. I salute you, Thank you
Jul 17, 2007
If you would like
to add a story, comment, or contact, please email
CCVietnamKIA@gmail.com
Col. Matyas Rites Set
Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday
at McGill's Funeral Home in Dover, N.H., for Air Force Lt. Col. Andrew
Matyas, former Lincoln resident who died Feb. 18 in South Vietnam.
Col. Matyas, who flew as a spotter of enemy forces,
was killed during a mortar attack on the Binh Thuy air base in the Mekong
Delta region of South Vietnam.
During service in World War II, the Korean War, and
in Vietnam, Col. Matyas had received 24 service ribbons and decorations,
including the Air Medal, the Bronze Star, and the Purple Heart.
During WW II he flew combat missions with the 8th
Air Force in Europe. Recalled to duty in 1952 during the Korean War, he was
assigned for a year at Thule, Greenland. Later, he flew B-47s with the 307th
Bomb Wing in Lincoln. He and his family lived in Lincoln from 1957 to 1963.
Col. Matyas, a native of Camden, N.J., was assigned
to Air Force Headquarters in Alexandria, Va., in 1963, and had been
stationed in Vietnam since October.
Survivors include his wife, Anna; daughters Mary
Ellen and Lynn Ann; brothers Edward, Somederdale, N.J., and William,
Collingswood, N.J.; sisters Mrs. William Rapp, Morestown, N.J.; Mrs. Richard
Stasiewiez and Mrs. Benjamin Stridick, both of Cherry Hill, N.J.
Memorial services will be held Thursday at Fort
Belvoir in Alexandria, Va.
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