On September 2, Deputy Chief of Mission Andrew Johnson, U.S. Defense Attaché to Armenia Colonel Matthew Crowe, and other U.S. Embassy Yerevan representatives joined residents of Sasnashen to honor the 17 U.S. Air Force airmen who lost their lives near the village on September 2, 1958, after their aircraft was shot down by Soviet aircraft.
In 1993, Martin Kakosyan, with the support of local villagers, erected a memorial to the fallen airmen. For more than three decades, the community has gathered there to honor their memory and keep their story alive.
We are grateful to Mr. Kakosyan, his family, and the people of Sasnashen for honoring the fallen airmen, preserving their memory, and passing their story on to future generations.
