Memorial held in honor of 4 airmen killed during MAFFS 7

Saturday marks five years since four North Carolina National Guard airmen died fighting a wildfire in South Dakota.

The men were fighting the wildfires from the air using modular airborne firefighting systems or MAFFS 7.

[PAST COVERAGE: Airmen killed in plane crash to be laid to rest]

Only the most experienced and most proficient in the air wing take part in MAFFS missions.

Senior Master Sgt. Robert Cannon, Maj. Joseph McCormick, Maj. Ryan David and Lt. Col. Paul Mikeal died after their C-130 aircraft hit a microburst and crashed to the ground, reports said.

Channel 9 attended the special memorial service held on Friday to honor their service.

There was a lot of raw emotion as the families of the four airmen who died hugged and shed tears, five years after their loved ones died.

The families were able to see a memorial that once stood at the crash site in South Dakota. It now stands at the Charlotte base.

The wife of the late Lt. Colonel Paul Mikeal said her children remind her so much of her husband, and that keeps her going.

"I knew I had a gem of a man," Marlo Mikeal said. "He was not only a wonderful husband, he was an amazing father and the people at the guard loved him."

This could be the final year of a formal service to honor the airmen because the base is going through a mission change from C-130s to C-17s.

Mikeal said despite that, it means the world to the families that the guard has kept their memories alive.

"It's hard, but I'm so grateful that the guard has taken time to remember these wonderful men, and the sacrifices that they made and have honored them this way," Mikeal said.

One of the newest honors is a firetruck dedicated to fallen firefighters that bears the names of MAFFS 7, as they're recognized for their work trying to stop the wildfire. The base chaplain said it reminds the families that their heroes will never be forgotten.

"When they show back up here and they see the C-130s and they see the No. 7 in places, and they see names on the walls it brings it back," Lt. Col. Debra Kidd said.

A street sign will be coming soon to the base to honor the airmen.

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