Army Chief Warrant Officer 2 Lawrence S. Colton

Died April 11, 2004 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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32, of Oklahoma City, Okla.; assigned to the Army’s 1st Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; killed April 11 when his helicopter was shot down in Baghdad.

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Oklahoman killed when helicopter shot down in Iraq

Associated Press

OKLAHOMA CITY — One of the two helicopter pilots killed in Iraq on Sunday was an Oklahoman, military officials said Tuesday.

Chief Warrant Officer Lawrence Colton, 32, of Oklahoma City, and Chief Warrant Officer Chuck Fortenberry, 38, of Woodville, Texas, were both killed Sunday when their helicopter was shot down near Baghdad.

Both pilots were with C Company, 1st Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment based at Fort Hood, Texas.

The pilots were providing air support for a fuel convoy when their Apache helicopter was shot down by ground fire.

An investigation into the incident is under way, the Department of Defense said in a news release.

Colton, a Killeen, Texas, resident, was born in Guthrie and joined the Army in 1992. He had been stationed at Fort Hood since December 2000.

Colton’s father, Loren Nix, said his son was “a hell of a good guy.”

Nix said the family would not be making any other comments.

“Right now we don’t want to talk,” he said. “We’re just trying to get him home.”

Shannon Daughtry, Colton’s ex-wife, said he was a successful cross country runner and won medals at his Midwest City high school.

She said his picture still hangs on the wall at Carl Albert High School.

“He’s been in the military for 12 years,” she said. “He definitely planned on being a lifer.”

Colton leaves behind a wife in Texas and an 11-year-old son from his marriage with Daughtry.

Colton seemed to enjoy his military career. He was quoted in a recent news release from the 122nd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment describing conditions in Iraq.

“Life’s not so bad here,” Colton said. “We get some mortars here and there, but they’re not that effective.

“We’ve got good flying and good maintenance. We’re well-suited for the mission here,” Colton said, in the news release published Monday.

It’s unclear when Colton made those comments.

Colton was based in Camp Cooke, Iraq, a frequent target for mortar and rocket attacks.