Marine With a Purpose Honored
Helicopter Pilot Served 2 Tours in Iraq Before Fatal Crash

By Arianne Aryanpur
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, June 15, 2006; B03
 

Marine Capt. Nathanael J. Doring was a career military man. After serving two tours of duty in Iraq, he was scheduled to come home in April, his family said.

But he requested to stay longer to be close to his wife, Lisa, a Marine captain also stationed in Iraq. Her tour of duty was to conclude in the fall, and until then, Doring was to work in a noncombat capacity.

The highly skilled helicopter pilot from Apple Valley, Minn., died May 30 of injuries sustained in a crash near Taqaddum on May 27. He was 31.

Cpl. Richard A. Bennett, 25, of Girard, Kan., also died in the crash. Both were assigned to Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 169, Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, I Marine Expeditionary Force, based at Camp Pendleton, Calif.

Yesterday, Doring's wife and about 70 other mourners gathered under an overcast sky to honor him as he was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery. He was the 243rd person to die supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom to be interred there.

A military band escorted the mourners, which included many uniformed Marines, to the grassy plot in Section 60, Grave Site 8398, where Doring's white headstone was placed.

Lt. Ron Nordan, a Navy chaplain, delivered the sermon, and mourners bowed their heads as he offered a prayer. When the bugler played taps, the Marines stood at attention and saluted. Then, the U.S. flag that draped Doring's coffin was folded and given to his wife as she wiped away tears. She hugged it to her chest, then placed it on her lap, holding a single red rose over it.

Doring's uncle, Rich Gamble, told the Associated Press last month that his nephew was determined and focused.

"He did what he did with a purpose," Gamble said. "Things did not happen to him, necessarily. He decided where he went."

Doring graduated from Apple Valley High School in 1993 and received a degree in electrical engineering from the Milwaukee School of Engineering. He joined the Marines immediately after graduating from college, according to news reports.

Doring was gregarious and proud to serve his country, recalled Cpl. Martin R. Harris, who met him in 2004. "The first time I talked to him, we talked for two hours," Harris said.

Doring was among 24 pilots in his squadron to be awarded Air Medals in 2004, granted for missions completed in a combat zone during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Doring was an AH-1W Super Cobra pilot. He flew helicopters over troops at high speeds, providing fire support.

The aircraft are "kind of like the F-18s of the helicopter world," Harris said, adding that Doring knew everything about them.

"He was confident in his stance and confident in the abilities of himself and his unit together," he said.

The Patriot Guard Riders, a motorcycle group that attends some military services to pay respect to the fallen, created an online forum for Doring last month.

Rider Bruce L. Clements wrote: "Rest in peace Marine. . . . You'll be remembered as an American Hero always."