WELCH ARTHUR J

CPT Arthur "AJ" J. Welch was a VHPA member who died after his tour in Vietnam on 10/05/2022 at the age of 78.1
Mount Dora, FL
Flight Class 70-44
Date of Birth 08/17/1944
Served in the U.S. Army
Served in Vietnam with B/1/9 CAV 1 CAV in 71-72, H/16 CAV in 72, F/9 CAV in 72
Call sign in Vietnam SWAMP FOX
This information was provided by Obit - Spouse

More detail on this person: COL (Ret) Arthur J. Welch passed away on October 5th, 2022. He began his career in the United States Army in 1967 after graduation from the University of South Carolina. Upon graduation from Infantry Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning, Georgia, in August 1968, he attended the Armor Officer Basic and Organizational Maintenance Officer Courses at Fort Knox, Kentucky. Active duty assignments included duty as an Armored Cavalry Platoon Leader in Germany, Flight School and AH-1G Cobra transition, and Vietnam where he served with the 1st Air Cavalry Division (Airmobile). He left Active Duty in 1973 after serving as an Aerial Weapons Platoon Commander with the 1/17 Air Cavalry, 82nd Airborne Division. Colonel Welch continued his military career in the Reserve Components serving in assignment of increasing responsibility in both the National Guard and the Army Reserve. In a career spanning thirty-eight years, he held command positions for over twenty-seven of those years. Commands included Armored Cavalry, Brigade Headquarters and Division Headquarters units along with Special Forces Military Intelligence units at the company/troop level. Commands also included two Strategic Military Intelligence Detachments (DIA), a Military Intelligence Battalion, and culminated with command of a Training Support Brigade. Upon retirement from his career with General Motors and the military, Colonel Welch worked as a Site Leader for a military contractor in Hohenfels, Germany, providing validation scenarios for units deploying to Kosovo, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Colonel Welch held a Bachelor's Degree in Military History from the University of South Carolina, and a Master's Degree in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Wisconsin. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Patricia, and his son, Sean, a playwright in New York City.

This information was last updated 11/11/2022

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Date posted on this site: 10/13/2025