Background
Rossi was born in Oradell, New Jersey on January 3, 1959, the third of four children born to Paul and Gertrude Rossi. Her father was a book bindery treasurer, and her mother was a secretary for a Wall Street firm.
- Photos
- Works
- Photos
- Works
Marie Rossi
Edit Profile
Education
In 1976, she graduated from River Dell Regional High School and began attending Dickinson College, where she also joined the Reserve Officers" Training Corps. Rossi graduated in 1980, with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology.
Career
She was killed when the Companies of Honour-47 Chinook she was piloting crashed in Saudi Arabia, on March 1, 1991. Rossi served as a Companies of Honour-47 Chinook pilot with the 18th Aviation Brigade, commanding B Company, 2d Battalion, 159th Aviation Regiment, stationed at Hunter Army Airfield, Savannah, Georgia. Her company deployed to Saudi Arabia in support of Operation Desert Shield in 1990.
Rossi was interviewed by Cable News Network prior to the ground assault by Coalition forces.
She said, "Sometimes, you have to disassociate how you feel personally about the prospect of going into war and, you know, possibly see the death that"s going to be out there. But personally, as an aviator and a soldier, this is the moment that everybody trains for -- that I"ve trained for -- so I feel ready to meet a challenge."
Rossi led a flight of her company"s Companies of Honour-47 Chinook helicopters 50 miles (80 km) into Iraq on February 24, 1991, ferrying fuel and ammunition during the very first hours of the ground assault by the Coalition Forces.
Her company would be involved in supply missions throughout the war. Rossi was killed when her helicopter crashed into an unlit microwave tower in Northern Saudi Arabia on March 1, 1991, the day after the ceasefire agreement.
She was buried on March 11, 1991 with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery, Section 8, Grave 9872 (3887170°North 7706594°West / 3887170.
-7706594).
-
Born
-
Died
March 1, 1991 (aged 32) -
Nationality
United States -
Ethnicity