Army Warrant Officer 1st Class Kesterson was assigned to the 9th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Kentucky. He died when a pair of Black Hawk helicopters collided in mid-air over a residential suburb in Mosul. It appears that one of the aircraft was hit on the tail wing by a rocket-propelled grenade. Kesterson was piloting one of the aircraft, which was carrying a rapid response team to help ground troops under fire. Erik joined the Marines right after he graduated from Vernonia High School in 1993. Up until that time he was mostly into cars. He was very mechanically inclined and spent most of his time working on a 1967 Charger. He spent eight years in the Marines as a crew chief and gunner on Huey and Cobra helicopters. Shortly before leaving the Marines, he was crew chief on a Huey that crashed in California. After the helicopter burst into flames, Erik pulled out seven men and was awarded the Marine Corps Medal of Heroism. After the Marines, he worked for McMinnville-based Evergreen Airlines selling aircraft parts, but September 11 drew him back into the military. The Marines wouldn't let him fly, so he enlisted in the Army's warrant officer program and received his wings last July. One of Erik's hobbies was building full-size replicas of World War I fighter planes. Five of the planes he built with his father have been cleared to fly by the Federal Aviation Administration. Erik was remembered for his adventurous spirit and sense of humor, but it was his steadfast patriotism and sense of duty that was most often cited. He was a wonderful, clean-cut, love-America kid. Erik's father was presented his Purple Heart and Bronze Star medals.∼Chief Warrant Officer Erik C. Kesterson had already completed an eight-year tour of duty with the Marines when the Sept. 11 attacks compelled him to sign on with the Army. "He was very patriotic and believed in this country. He's a good man," said his father, Clayton Kesterson. Kesterson, 29, was killed Nov. 15 when the Black Hawk helicopter he was piloting collided with another helicopter in Iraq. He grew up mostly in Vernonia, Ore., and was stationed at Fort Campbell. M.J. Kesterson said her son inspired confidence. "This was a bright, ready-to-go young guy," she said. "I didn't have a thought this would go badly." As a Marine, Kesterson pulled seven men from a burning helicopter that had crashed. He was awarded the Marine Corps Medal of Heroism. One of his hobbies was building full-size replicas of World War I fighter planes. Five of the planes he built with his father have been cleared to fly by the Federal Aviation Administration.