Army Chief Warrant Officer 3 Andrew L. McAdams, 27, of Cheyenne, Wyoming died Jan. 10, 2014 at Bagram Airfield, in Parwan province, Afghanistan, of injuries sustained in an aircraft crash.

Chief Warrant Officer Andrew L. McAdams was assigned to Detachment 53, Operational Support Airlift Command, Joint Force HQ, Wyoming Army National Guard, Cheyenne, Wyoming and was serving during Operation Enduring Freedom.

Andrew was a 2004 graduate of Cheyenne’s EastHigh School. He dreamed of flying helicopters even in high school and worked a side job to pay for his pilot’s license. He was so determined to leave the classroom for the cockpit he took double credits throughout his first three years of high school to avoid a senior year of classes.

“He didn’t want to hang around any longer than he had to,” said Sonja Turner, McAdams’ high school English teacher. “He had other things to do.” Andrew would get free flights around the country because he had signed up for the National Guard. “There aren’t many Andrews in the world,” Turner said. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone so precociously mature.” “Andrew was a good student and hard worker,” Math teacher Tolly McFarland “The thing I remember most is his love for flying.”

Some notable quotes from his memorial wall: Andrew’s cousin William McCollom wrote: Andrew was a great friend and an awesome cousin. He would always ask me how to improve his mom’s computer to be able to play flight simulator, and I don’t know how many times we would break that computer.

Justin-Melissa King wrote: I remember the time I couldn’t find my ID in Kuwait and I spent hours blaming Andrew, because he was always getting into things, only to find out you Randy, forgot to tell me you stapled it to the ceiling! Ugh, the Mc Whites were something else. You two really helped the deployment fly by.

Arin Schlensker wrote: You will always be remembered as the funny, outgoing, laughable, loving… Well the list goes on… Person you are! There are many memories that we all have of you, like helping the theater arts class of 1998-1999 with dresses for the play. In which you modeled all of them for us. Thanks for being you!!

Landon Brown wrote: I know it sounds cliché but Andrew was seriously one of the nicest people I have ever met. I knew him for most of my life and I honestly cannot remember EVER hearing him talk down to someone or talk rude to someone. He was a genuinely nice and caring person.

Andrew leaves behind his wife, Carol and a three-month-old daughter. His mother, father and brother also live in Cheyenne.

Release No: NR-033-14

January 16, 2014

DoD Identifies Army Casualties

The Department of Defense announced today the death of two soldiers who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

They died Jan. 10, at Bagram Airfield, in Parwan Province, Afghanistan, of injuries sustained when the aircraft they were aboard crashed. The incident is under investigation.

Killed were:

Chief Warrant Officer Andrew L. McAdams, 27, of Cheyenne, Wyo., assigned to Detachment 53, Operational Support Airlift Command, Joint Force Headquarters, Wyoming Army National Guard, Cheyenne, Wyo.

Sgt. Drew M. Scobie, 25, of Kailua, Hawaii, assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 487th Field Artillery, Wahiawa, Hawaii Army National Guard, Oahu, Hawaii.