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Chester
Kmit
Kmit
SP4 · · 11C20 · Indirect Fire Infantryman
KIA
In-Country Service
1968-05-13 –
Home of Record
Williamsburg, Hampshire County, MA
Character of Service
Honorable
Archive Status
Active
Casualty records (Honor States, Virtual Wall, Wall of Faces), a 1st Cav Div Association newsletter tribute, a Daily Hampshire Gazette article, plus CPT Henry Colavita's memoir, "Company Grade: Memoir of an Angry Skipper" (Hellgate Press, 2015), ch. 10, "Homeless on Saint Barbara" — the first firsthand account of the action that killed him. If you served with or knew Chester Kmit, please use the contribute form to share what you remember.
1968-05-13
Arrived
Arrived in Vietnam — May 13, 1968
SP4 Chester Kmit began his tour with D Company, 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division, Republic of Vietnam.
1969-02-05
Incident
Killed in action — February 5, 1969
SP4 Kmit was killed instantly, walking point, when D Company was ambushed crossing a creek in its AO near FSB/LZ Saint Barbara, Tay Ninh Province — an action the company later nicknamed "Colavita Creek," which also took the life of CPL James Edmonds. His body could not be recovered immediately due to the ongoing situation and a subsequent stay-in-place order; he was recovered two nights later once a secure landing zone could be established. He was 23 years old and nearing the end of his tour. See events/operation-sheridan-sabre-1969-02-05/ for the full account.
1969-02-05
Casualty record
Tay Ninh Province, III Corps, RVN — a creek crossing in D Company's AO near FSB Saint Barbara (confirmed grid XT275684, 11.4748/106.1651 — see locations/fsb-st-barbara/), nicknamed "Colavita Creek" by the company afterward. The exact grid of the creek crossing itself, relative to that base, is not established.
Did You Know Chester, or Serve Alongside Chester?
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