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The remains of Casey Frankoski and John Grassia arrived at Albany County’s Army aviation facility in Latham at around 3 p.m. Monday, March 18.
Gov. Kathy Hochul and other local leaders stood in silence as flag-draped caskets carrying the 28-year-old Frankoski and 30-year-old Grassia were loaded into waiting hearses.
“The service and sacrifice of Casey Frankoski and John M. Grassia III will never be forgotten,” Hochul said on X. “My heart is with their families and loved ones during this difficult time.”
Photos on social media showed countless law enforcement and community members lining the procession route as a police escort brought Grassia, a New York State Police trooper and Rotterdam native, to the Glenville Funeral Home.
Frankoski, who was from the city of Rensselaer and graduated from Columbia High School, was taken to Lyon’s Funeral Home in Rensselaer.
Monday’s emotional scene came more than a week after their UH-72 Lakota helicopter crashed while flying over the US-Mexico border near Rio Grande City, Texas on Friday, March 8.
According to the Joint Task Force North, Frankoski, Grassia, and a US Border Patrol agent all died in the crash. Jacob Pratt, of Rensselaer, was the sole survivor and remains hospitalized in critical condition.
A GoFundMe campaign to assist Pratt with medical bills had raised over $110,000 as of Tuesday, March 19.
An investigation is underway to determine what caused the aircraft to go down.
Meanwhile, tributes continue to pour in for both fallen soldiers. State Sen. Jake Ashby, whose 43rd District covers all of Rensselaer County, shared a photo of Frankoski, Grassia, and Pratt on Facebook and said he would remember the fallen pair as “full of promise, full of life, and dedicated to the country they loved.”
Frankoski, a former volunteer firefighter, enlisted in the Army National Guard in October 2016 and was appointed Chief Warrant Officer in 2019, her obituary said. She trained to become a Black Hawk helicopter pilot and spent nearly a year deployed to Kuwait as a mission planner.
Among the many honors she received were the Army Achievement Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, and the Armed Forces Service Medal.
“Casey was dedicated to serving the United States,” reads her memorial.
Writing in his obituary, Grassia’s family said they take solace in knowing that he died “doing what he loved most: flying and protecting those he loved."
A native of Niskayuna, Grassia enlisted in the Army National Guard at the age of 18 before he graduated from Schalmont High School in 2012. After training, he served in Kuwait as a helicopter repairer.
He went on to earn his bachelor of science degree in informatics and cyber security from the University at Albany, later working as a cybersecurity analyst for the New York State Department of Homeland Security.
In 2022, Grassia “proudly” became a New York State Police trooper, relatives said.
“J's journey in this world was marked by an unwavering commitment to service and adventure,” reads his memorial. “He was a true American hero.”
Funeral services for Frankoski are set for 11 a.m. Friday, March 22, at St. John The Evangelist and St. Joseph Church in Rensselaer.
Grassia will be laid to rest at 11 a.m. Tuesday, March 26, at St. John the Evangelist Church in Schenectady.
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