Hoskins native Thomas Scheurich, who died in 1968 during the Vietnam War, will be buried tomorrow (Friday) at Arlington National Cemetery.
Born in Norfolk in 1933, Scheurich enlisted with the Navy in 1953, a day before the Korean War Armistice was signed. During his career, he was promoted to Lieutenant in 1962 and Lieutenant Commander in 1964.
Thomas Edwin Scheurich (Photo Courtesy of the Navy Personnel Command Public Affairs Office)
Scheurich’s final mission was on March 1, 1968; when the Grumman A-6A Intruder that he was flying with LTJG Richard Lannom was hit by ground fire and went down near the Gulf of Tonkin. Both men were classified as Missing in Action, and during this time, Scheurich was promoted to captain and Lannom was promoted to lieutenant. Both men were declared Killed in Action in 1977. A Vietnamese recovery team excavated a crash site on Tra Ban Island, which recovered aircraft wreckage, alongside material evidence and possible bone tissue in late 2017. Lannom’s remains were identified by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency in October 2018, and Scheurich’s remains were identified in April of this year.
Scheurich was awarded the Purple Heart, the Air Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal, the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, and the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Campaign Medal. He was awarded the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal twice, and recieved two Navy Unit Commendations.
