McMahon and Judge
Charles McMahon (born May 10, 1953) and Darwin Lee Judge (born February 16, 1956), two American Marines, were the last two U.S. servicemen killed in the Vietnam War. They died in a rocket attack on April 29, 1975, while providing security for the Defense Attache Office, at the Tân Sơn Nhứt Airport in Saigon [1]. The American evacuation of Saigon was complete by the next day, April 30, 1975.
Corporal Charles McMahon was from Woburn, Massachusetts. Lance Corporal Darwin Judge was an Eagle Scout and was from Marshalltown, Iowa. Judge was 19 years old at the time of his death.
Both men were members of the Marine Security Guard Battalion at the American Embassy. They were killed in artillery fire from several approaching NVA infantry divisions closing in on Saigon. Their bodies were left behind but were returned to their families the next year for burial. Judge never received the Purple Heart he deserved and was not given Marine burial honors until 25 years later [2].
The first U.S. casualty in Vietnam was Flying Tiger John T. Donovan who was killed on May 12, 1942, but American involvement in Vietnam was not considered official at that time and as such his name does not appear on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial [3]. The first two official caualties were U.S. Army Major Dale R. Buis and Master Sergeant Chester Charles Ovnand who were killed 17 years before McMahon and Judge on July 18, 1959.
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