President Obama Awards the Medal of Honor
On Monday, July 18, 2016, President Barack Obama awarded the Medal of Honor to Lieutenant Colonel (Ret) Charles Kettles, U.S. Army, for conspicuous gallantry. Lt. Col. (Ret), Kettles received the Medal of Honor for his actions while serving as a Flight Commander assigned to 176th Aviation Company (Airmobile) (Light), 14th Combat Aviation Battalion, Americal Division. He led a platoon of US-1Ds to provide support to the 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, during an ambush by a battalion-sized enemy force in the Republic of Vietnam, on May 15, 1967. After leading several trips to the hot landing zone and evacuation the wounded, he returned, without additional aerial support, to rescue a squad-sized element of stranded soldiers pinned down by enemy fire. He is credited with saving the livers of 40 soldiers and four of his own crew members.
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