As families of the fallen filed in, a pianist played “Wind Beneath My Wings.”

It was the beginning of ceremony both solemn and uplifting, as members of the 145th Airlift Wing of the N.C. National Guard memorialized four colleagues Tuesday in a cavernous hangar usually used to tend transports and host unit celebrations.

About 1,500 people packed the Charlotte base, including families, friends and colleagues of the four airmen killed July 1 when their plane crashed while dropping fire retardant on a wildfire near Edgemont, S.D.

Lt. Col. Robert Carver spoke first.

“It is tradition before a military event to ensure that each member of a unit is present and accounted for,” he said. Then he began reading names.

Lt. Col Paul Mikeal.

Maj. Joe McCormick.

Maj. Ryan David.

Senior Master Sgt. Robbie Cannon.

Each name on the roll call was answered by an escort for each of the four families, rising and walking in a funereal pace to the stage. Each removed a black shroud from a large portrait of the airman they represented.

There was a silence in the room, the kind of stone silence only 1,500 people can make.

Then Gov. Bev Perdue spoke.

“These proud, proud airmen all knew – they really did know and understand, as did their families – the risk and reward. Time after time after time, they strapped themselves in that seat for their next mission to protect people they didn’t know or would never know in places far from our homes,” she said.

She said the plane they flew is named the Hercules, appropriately named after the adventuresome mythological character known for his strength.

Memories, one by one

The airmen died fighting the White Draw Fire in the southwestern corner of South Dakota. Two other crewmen, Chief Master Sergeant Andy Huneycutt and Sgt. Josh Marlowe – loadmasters who were riding in the rear of the aircraft when it crashed – are hospitalized.

Remains of the four airmen are expected to be returned to Charlotte on Wednesday from the military’s mortuary in Dover, Del.

In the hangar, close acquaintances eulogized them, starting with the aircraft’s commander.

Lt. Col. Jim Pearson spoke of Mikeal, 42, of Mooresville.

“He exuded excellence in everything he did as an aviator, friend and family man. I had the pleasure of seeing Paul excel in all three areas.”

Maj. James Bodolosky spoke of McCormick, 36, of Belmont.

“He was always sharpening me and I was always sharpening him. And I will miss him dearly.”

Maj. Toshio Sameshima spoke for David, 35, of Boone.

“Ryan had a spirit that made everything around him glow brighter. … He reminded me of how to live life – as though there were no bad days.”

First Lt. Michael Nix spoke for his brother-in-law, Cannon, 50, of Charlotte.

“When it was business, it was business. When work was done, he went right home to spend time with his family. It was a blessing to see how he loved his family.”

Capt. Jeff Kidd, one of the unit’s chaplains, told the crowd what one of the family members said of their airman this week. “You earned your wings to fly in the sky and now you earned your wings to soar among the heavens.”

On to the memorial

One by one, the families left the hangar. David’s widow, Jenny Ellerbe, held their infant, Rob, alert and peaceful in her arms.

They went to a memorial section of the base. Flags were held by members of the Patriot Guard Riders, a group of civilians and veterans who honor fallen military personnel.

Bagpipers from the Charlotte Fire Department played “Amazing Grace,” and two C-130s based at an Air Guard unit in Charleston, W.Va., roared over, one peeling off ceremoniously as it passed overhead.

Four names had been inscribed on a monument of unit members who have passed on. And they were read once more, slowly.

Lt. Col. Paul Mikeal.

Maj. Joe McCormick.

Maj. Ryan David.

Senior Master Sgt. Robbie Cannon.

“They will not be forgotten,” said Brig. Gen. D. Todd Kelly.