U.S. Rep. Joseph Heck (R-NV) convened a hearing on Thursday that explored a measure led by U.S. Rep. Mark Amodei (R-NV) to establish a memorial for Vietnam War helicopter pilots.
Heck, the chairman of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel, heard testimony about Amodei’s Vietnam Helicopter Crew Memorial Act, H.R. 4298, during the hearing.
“Today, the subcommittee meets to hear testimony on two important but diverse subjects: the eligibility of TRICARE beneficiaries to enroll in Health Savings Accounts, or HSAs, and the placement of a memorial within Arlington National Cemetery to honor helicopter pilots and crewmembers who died while flying helicopters in combat in Vietnam,” Heck said on Thursday.
Amodei said that he understands that the primary mission of the Arlington National Cemetery (ANC) is to conduct burials, but nothing says that memorials cannot be placed at ANC.
“In the last 27 years, there have been four memorials constructed at ANC,” Amodei said. “Many times you hear the argument, ‘Well, oh my God, if you let this one in, they’re all coming in.’ The bar is pretty high, and it should be very high. But I have to tell you, ANC is a phenomenal and unique national treasure. This application is a phenomenal and unique memorial request.”
Amodei added that the requested memorial would take up approximately five square feet at ANC, which would amount to “a thousand casualties per square foot.”
“That’s not the type of thing that’s going to crowd out burials at ANC,” Amodei said.