Their Story
Remembering Hershel Daniel McCants Jr.
Chief Warrant Officer 3 Hershel Daniel "Dan" McCants Jr. served in the U.S. Army as a combat engineer, Special Forces engineer sergeant and aviator. From Medford, Oregon, he began his Army service in 1991. Shannon described him as a dedicated soldier who loved his country.
After completing the Special Forces Qualification Course, Dan served with the 1st Special Forces Group at Fort Lewis, Washington. He attended the Warrant Officer Aviation Basic Course at Fort Rucker, Alabama, in 2001 and completed Green Platoon in 2005.
He also served as an aeromedical evacuation pilot at Fort Lewis. As an MH-47E Chinook pilot, he served with B Company, 2nd Battalion, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. His Army career brought together service in Special Forces and special operations aviation.
Dan died on February 18, 2007, when his Chinook helicopter crashed in southeastern Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom. He was 33.
Shannon and her family remember him with love.
