Marine received Navy Cross...52 years after acts of heroism

How a bloody Ka-Bar knife fight during the Vietnam War got this Marine a Navy Cross 52 years later

Marine Corps Times
By: Shawn Snow
April 8, 2019

For his heroism under fire, Stogner was finally awarded the Navy Cross nearly 52 years after his actions saved the life of his machine gunner and other Marines in his company.

Lance Cpl. James H. Stogner was a young 18-year-old Marine ammo humper serving with a machine gun team in Vietnam.

Marines on patrol in Vietnam in March, 1967. James Stogner, the fourth Marine Marine in the patrol, was awarded the Navy Cross for heroism during the Vietnam War. (Courtesy photo)

On the evening of April 5, 1967, as the sun set, Stogner and machine gunner Cpl. Eli Fobbs along with other Marines assigned to Company C, 1st Battalion, 9th Marines were tasked to push across a tree line and hedgerow towards a village suspected of hiding North Vietnamese Army, or NVA, troops.

But on this mission, NVA troops were lying in wait to ambush the Marines.

Stogner continued to crawl and moved undetected towards Fobbs’ screams, where he found four NVA soldiers kicking and abusing his comrade.

Stogner killed one of the NVA troops quietly with his Ka-Bar as the enemy soldier moved towards vegetation Stogner was hiding in, and a second NVA soldier was killed in similar fashion.

With two NVA soldiers remaining, Stogner stormed the position armed with his knife, thrusting it into one of the men’s chests as hand to hand combat ensued.

All four NVA troops were killed as Stogner slung Fobbs over his shoulder and grabbed his M60 machine gun, carrying him to friendly lines through a hail of gunfire and grenade explosions.
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Marine almost melted barrel with fierce shooting, after his leg was blown off?

‘Fighting for his guys’ lives’ in Afghanistan: Marine got off over 400 rounds after having his leg blown off
Military Times
By: J.D. Simkins
4 hours ago

After nearly melting the barrel from sending over 400 rounds toward enemy positions, Gustafson finally acquiesced to the requests of other Marines to tend to his wounds when he swapped his place in the turret with another Marine.

Then-Lance Cpl. Brady Gustafson is presented the Navy Cross, the Marine Corps' second highest award for valor. (Pfc. Michael T. Gams/Marine Corps)

Brady Gustafson and the Marines from 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment were rolling through the village of Shewan, Afghanistan, in July 2008 when they suddenly noticed villagers shrinking away from the convoy of mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles, an ominous sign of what was to come just moments later.

With the streets virtually clear of civilians, all hell broke loose as an estimated 100 Taliban fighters attacked the convoy with rocket-propelled grenades and machine-gun fire, part of a calculated, multiple angle ambush.

Gustafson’s MRAP was quickly struck by an RPG that ripped through the hull and exploded inside. The blast shredded his lower leg and sent an inferno up through the turret, where he was manning the mounted M240B machine gun.
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Inspirational Hero Marine Sgt. Maj. Bradley A. Kasal

James C. Roberts wrote in The Washington Post about heroes who should be wearing the Medal of Honor around their necks.

The fact that not a single living Iraq War veteran has received the Medal of Honor is a serious injustice to the 1.5 million Americans who served in that conflict.

This story brought to mind the fact our National Media stations, calling their programs "news" need a refresher on what they used to find important enough to cover. 

The one group, who represent what can be achieved when people work together, are those who risk their lives side by side no matter what. Would be great if the news stations would remember that when all they want to cover is political divisions in this country.

When you read about Marine Sgt. Maj. Bradley A. Kasal, you'll wish you saw the report on your news station.

"Emblematic is the story of Marine Sgt. Maj. Bradley A. Kasal. On Nov. 13, 2004, then-1st Sgt. Kasal entered an enemy-occupied building in Fallujah, a death trap our troops had dubbed “Hell House,” to assist fellow Marines who were pinned down by a superior enemy force. Under withering fire, Kasal killed an insurgent immediately; then, while dragging a wounded Marine to safety, he was struck with seven rounds of small-arms fire. Severely wounded, Kasal used the few bandages he had to treat his injured comrade rather than himself."

A seriously injured 1st Sgt. Brad Kasal, center, is carried by fellow Marines from a house in Fallujah, Iraq. (Lucian Read)

"When the insurgents lobbed a grenade at them, Kasal rolled on top of the wounded Marine, absorbing the impact of the blast and suffering 43 shrapnel wounds. He refused to leave the house until all of the other Marines were safe. A photograph taken of Kasal staggering from the house, pistol in hand, supported by fellow Marines, his uniform soaked in blood, became an iconic image of the Iraq War." read more here

Mr. Roberts, thank you for telling this story. I saw this picture a long time ago and always wondered what happened to him.

Humble Heroic Marine Received Navy Cross

Marine Who Braved RPG Fire to Save Commander Receives Navy Cross

Military.com

Hope Hodge Seck

September 14, 2017

"I understand that this places me in a category of Marines that I would have never imagined to be a part of. I firmly believe that I was an ordinary Marine placed in an extraordinary situation." Eric Smith

Eric Smith, a native of Waxahachie, Texas, was presented by Maj. Gen. Paul Kennedy, head of Marine Corps Recruiting Command, with the The Navy Cross. (U.S. Marine Corps/Sgt. Courtney White)

A Marine veteran who left the service as a staff sergeant had his Silver Star award upgraded to the prestigious Navy Cross in a ceremony Thursday presided over by a two-star general.

Eric Smith, a native of Waxahachie, Texas, was presented by Maj. Gen. Paul Kennedy, head of Marine Corps Recruiting Command, with the military's second-highest valor award in recognition of his heroic actions while serving in Ramadi, Iraq, in 2004.

The medal was upgraded to the Navy Cross as part of an awards review initiated by the Pentagon in early 2011 to ensure that troops serving in wars after Sept. 11, 2001, were properly recognized for their heroism.

Smith's Navy Cross is the 40th presented to a Marine since the Sept. 11 attacks, officials said.

"I'm honored and humbled to be singled out against a sea of deserving Marines," he said. "The significance of this award is not lost on me, and I will wear it with pride."

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MOH for Chesty Puller?

Is it time to give Chesty Puller the Medal of Honor?
Marine Times
By: Jeff Schogol
February 19, 2017

More than 300 Marines have earned the Medal of Honor since award’s inception in 1861. But missing from that list is perhaps the most legendary Marine, whose memory still looms large in the lore of the Corps: Lt. Gen. Lewis B. “Chesty” Puller.

Lieutenant General Lewis "Chesty" Puller

The image of Puller’s iconic frown and his memorable quips about combat have come to define what it means to be a Marine for generations. Puller once told his troops, when surrounded by enemy fighters in Korea: “All right, they’re on our left, they’re on our right, they’re in front of us, they’re behind us ... they can’t get away this time.”

Puller earned five Navy crosses, the nation’s second-highest honor for valor. At least two serious attempts have been made to get one of Puller’s awards upgraded to the Medal of Honor, but they failed. Even today, Marine veterans and devotees still grumbled that Puller deserves to be recognized with the nation’s highest honor and the book has not been closed on the matter.

“Marines still today in boot camp chant his name. They all still do know about him and they should keep his spirit alive,” said Kim Van Note, president of the Basilone Memorial Foundation, a charity named for one Marine Medal of Honor recipient who served under ­Puller’s command at Guadalcanal, ­Gunnery Sgt. John Basilone.
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A Fake Marine Live On TV News Camera--With Wife

Stolen Valor: Busting A Fake Marine Live On TV News Camera. He claimed to have the Navy Cross, on top of everything else.

Navy Cross Recipient Staff Sgt. Cliff Wooldridge Leaving Corps

Hero Marine who killed Taliban fighter with his hands leaves the Corps
KCEN
Jeff Schogol
Marine Corps Times
September 01, 2016

After shooting four enemy fighters, then-Cpl. Wooldridge ran out of ammunition and ended up in a life-and-death struggle with a man who tried to pull the pin on a grenade attached to Wooldridge’s vest.

Navy Cross recipient Staff Sgt. Cliff Wooldridge, who killed a Taliban fighter in hand-to-hand combat, has left the Marine Corps after spending nine years in the service.

Sgt. Clifford Wooldridge, receives the Navy Cross on May 18, 2012 for combat actions in Helmand province, Afghanistan, while attached to 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, in 2010. Photo Credit: Photo by Cpl. Sarah Anderson.

“I enjoyed my time in the Marine Corps,” Wooldridge told Marine Corps Times. “It’s had a huge impact on my life. I’m going to miss the men I’ve served with and miss being in the fight with them.”

Wooldridge, 28, said his last day in the Marines was Tuesday. He said his time in the Corps made him appreciate life and not take it for granted.

“It made me a man and I am forever grateful for the men who mentored me and led by example,” he said.
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Marines Honor Fallen Hero Cpl. Michael Ouellette

Marines honor fallen corporal who kept fighting after IED blast
Marine Corps Times
By: Charlsy Panzino
August 30, 2016

A new headquarters building at the Marine Corps' Advanced Infantry Training Battalion will honor a fallen noncommissioned officer who earned the Navy Cross during the battle that took his life.

Marine officials will dedicate the new facility named for Cpl. Michael Ouellette at Camp Geiger, North Carolina, on Wednesday. The infantry squad leader was posthumously awarded the service's second-highest valor award for actions during a 2009 deployment to Afghanistan with 3rd Battalion, 8th Marines.

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LONDONBERRY, N.H. (Nov. 10, 2010) Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) the Honorable Ray Mabus presents the Navy Cross to the family of Cpl. Michael Ouellette during a ceremony at the Marine Reserve Support Center in Londonderry, N.H. Ouellette, assigned to 3rd Battalion, 8th Marines, died March 22, 2009 during a firefight in the Now Zad district of Helmand Province, Afghanistan. The Navy Cross is the highest medal for valor awarded by the Navy and is second only to the Medal of Honor. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Kevin S. O'Brien/Released)

MOH: Marine Jumped on 2 Grenades But Only Received Navy Cross?

Medal of Honor being sought for Lebanon Marine
The Lebanon Reporter
By Rod Rose
Aug 20, 2016

“He jumped on a hand grenade: It turned out to be a dud,” Regan said. Soon a second grenade landed among the Marines. Bogan jumped on that grenade, which exploded beneath him.

Navy Cross Presentation: Marine Cpl. Richard E. Bogan (right) received the Navy Cross in a 1968 ceremony

Richard E. Bogan was a U.S. Marine Corps private first class, when he received the Navy Cross after jumping on a hand grenade in what was then the Republic of South Korea’s Thua Thien Province. The Navy Cross is the second-highest decoration for heroism awarded by the U.S. Navy and the Marine Corps. It is presented only for extraordinary valor in combat.

Bogan, a 1967 graduate of Lebanon High School, was 41 when he died in a single-car crash in December 1990.

Now, Gerry Regan, a Marine who was there when Bogan jumped on that grenade, is working to have the Navy Cross award replaced — with the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest military honor.

Regan is recently retired, but has been active in Marine Corps organizations since he was discharged from the Corps following his service in Vietnam. He is a former president of the 1st Battalion, 5th Marines branch of the 1st Marine Division Association.

Nikki Baldwin, Bogan’s daughter, met Regan in 2008 at a Marine Corps reunion, she said recently. She is appreciative of Regan’s efforts to earn the Medal for her father.

She provided The Lebanon Reporter a copy of a letter that could be critical evidence in Regan’s efforts, as well as other documents about her father’s service.
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Marine Gets Navy Cross Then Hulbert Trophy For Leadership

This Navy Cross recipient just won an award named for one of the baddest Marines ever
Marine Corps Times
Lance M. Bacon
April 23, 2016

“Amateurs train until they get it right; professionals train until they can’t get it wrong.” Chief Warrant Officer 3 Anthony Viggiani, the 2015 Hulbert Trophy recipient

The Marines' top general selected Chief Warrant Officer 3 Anthony Viggiani as the next Hulbert Trophy recipient a decade after the gunner's leadership on the battlefield earned him the nation's second-highest valor award.

With bloodstains visible on the lower portion of his left trouser leg, then-Sgt. Anthony Viggiani pauses to look at the camera moments after a fierce firefight with anti-coalition militia in central Afghanistan. Viggiani, now a chief warrant officer 3, was selected as the 2015 Gunner Henry Lewis Hulbert Trophy for Outstanding Leadership.
(Photo: Gunnery Sgt. Keith A. Milks/Marine Corps)

Viggiani will be receive the Gunner Henry Lewis Hulbert Trophy for Outstanding Leadership for his contributions at Advanced Infantry Training Battalion, School of Infantry – West, where he trains Marines responsible for creating the next generation of infantrymen. The annual accolade is presented to the infantry weapons officer who "most exemplifies outstanding leadership, courage and technical, tactical and doctrinal expertise within the Marine gunner community," according to the award criteria.

The Hulbert Trophy is named for Capt. Henry Lewis Hulbert, a prior-enlisted Medal of Honor recipient who served in Samoa and World War I and is considered the Marine Corps’ first gunner. He was killed in action during the famed battle of Blanc Mont Ridge, France, on Oct. 4, 1918. Hulbert was 51 when he died, and was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross for actions in Chateau-Thierry, France, on June 6, 1918, when he "constantly" braved enemy fire "without regard for personal danger, thereby assuring the delivery of supplies."
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WWII Iwo Jima Marine First Lt. John Wells Passed Away

Marine who led WWII charge up Mount Suribachi on Iwo Jima dies 
Marine Corps Times 
By Matthew L. Schehl 
February 17, 2016

Wells, meanwhile, persuaded a corpsman to donate morphine to him, escaped from the hospital ship and joined his men shortly after the flag raising.

John Keith Wells of Abilene, Texas, left, chats with then-Gov. Rick Perry during a brunch that Perry hosted in Wells' honor in 2006. A first lieutenant in World War II, Wells commanded 3rd Platoon, Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 28th Marines, 5th Marine Division, during the Battle of Iwo Jima. The unit became the most decorated platoon to fight in a single engagement in the history of the Marine Corps.
(Photo: Harry Cabluck/AP)

The Marine who led the charge to place the first American flag above Iwo Jima has died.

First Lt. John Wells, 94, died Feb. 11 at the Arvada Care Rehabilitation Center in Arvada, Colorado.

Wells received the Navy Cross, Bronze Star and Purple Heart after leading his Marines in a frontal assault up the slopes of Mount Suribachi during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II.

He didn’t make it to the top after taking multiple enemy rounds, but continued to command, leading his men to victory. His platoon raised the first flag atop the mountain, hours before the iconic photo of the second flag raising was captured.

“He was a very warm, sensitive, spiritual man, all the way to age 94,” Connie Schultz, Well’s daughter, told ABC affiliate Denver 7. “He honored and loved the Marine Corps with all his heart and soul. He loved his family, and his last words were, ‘My family.’ ”
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Over 1,000 Awards Under Review by DOD for Iraq and Afghanistan

DOD to review 1,100 Iraq, Afghanistan medals to determine if they were awarded appropriately
Stars and Stripes
Tara Copp
January 6, 2016

WASHINGTON — The Department of Defense will review more than 1,100 Distinguished Service Cross, Navy Cross, Air Force Cross and Silver Star recommendations to determine whether the medals were awarded appropriately or should be upgraded to a Medal of Honor, the Pentagon said Wednesday.

“Although there is no indication that members were inappropriately recognized, the secretary determined that unusual Medal of Honor awards trends reported by the recent Military Decorations and Awards Review justified a review,” the Pentagon said in a prepared statement. “The secretary directed the review as a cautionary measure on behalf of the servicemembers who have performed heroically in combat.”

A defense official who briefed reporters on the review said only awards given after Sept. 11, 2001, were under review. The official also said there are approximately 1,000 Silver Stars and approximately 100 service crosses under review.

Of those 1,100, the official said no medals were at risk of being downgraded. Instead, the review will look at two things: recommendations that did not result in a medal to determine whether one was merited and medals awarded to determine whether the honors should be upgraded.
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Just to give you an idea, this is from Vietnam

Vietnam War Medal of Honor
• There are 54 Living Recipients who performed actions in the Vietnam War.
• There are 205 Deceased Recipients who performed actions in the Vietnam War.

USS Sgt. Rafael Peralta Destroyer

Mother of Marine christens Navy destroyer bearing her son's name 
Associated Press
By DAVID SHARP
Oct. 31, 2015

BATH, Maine (AP) — First in English, then in Spanish, the mother of a fallen Marine who shielded his comrades from an insurgent's grenade christened a new Navy destroyer in his honor.

Rosa Peralta smashes a bottle of champagne to christen the USS Raphael Peralta, the 35th Arleigh Burke Class Missile Destroyer to be built by Bath Iron Works, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2015, in Bath, Maine. The warship is named for Rosa Peralta's son, Sgt. Raphael Peralta, who was killed in action on Nov. 15, 2004, while clearing houses in the city of Fallujah, Iraq, during Operation Al Fajr. Frederick J. Harris, president of General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, at left, and Rosa Peralta's daughter, Icela Peralta Donald, center, and son, Ricardo Peralta, join her on the platform.(AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

Rosa Peralta asked God to bless the ship named for her son, Sgt. Rafael Peralta, and to keep the crew safe before smashing a bottle of Champagne on the ship's bow Saturday.

The ceremony at Bath Iron Works to christen the future USS Rafael Peralta paid homage to the slain Marine, who gave the ultimate sacrifice in service of a country to which he emigrated as a boy. He is believed to be the first serviceman born in Mexico to have a naval warship named in his honor.

Peralta was denied the Medal of Honor but awarded the Navy Cross, the nation's second highest award for valor, after former Defense Secretary Robert Gates ruled the Marine lost consciousness after he was mortally wounded and his body smothered a grenade in Iraq in 2004, saving other lives. But the prevailing belief among the military is that Peralta pulled the grenade against his body to protect his fellow Marines during close combat with insurgents in Fallujah on Nov. 15 that year.

"He believed more about the goodness of America than most Americans, to the point of fighting and sacrificing everything for what America stands for," Gen. Robert Neller, the Marine Corps commandant, said as he quoted from Peralta's former commanding officer from the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marines, the Hawaii-based "Lava Dogs."
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Vietnam Veteran Jim Webb Considers Independent Run for Presidency

Jim Webb drops out of Democratic presidential primary 
CNN By
Dan Merica
October 20, 2015

"Some people say I am a Republican who became a Democrat, but that I often sound like a Republican in a room full of Democrats or a Democrat in a room full of Republicans," Webb said. "Actually, I take that as a compliment."

Washington (CNN)Jim Webb ended his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination at a press conference Tuesday, telling reporters he will consider an independent bid.

Speaking at the National Press Club in Washington, Webb argued the Democratic Party has moved away from "millions of dedicated, hard-working Americans."

"For this reason, I am withdrawing from any consideration of being the Democratic Party's nominee for the presidency," he said.

"The very nature of our democracy is under siege due to the power structure and the money that finances both political parities," Webb said, adding later that it is "time for a new Declaration of Independence -- not from an outside power but from the paralysis of a federal system that no longer serves the interests of the vast majority of the American people."

Webb, who said he couldn't see himself endorsing any other candidate, said he is considering an independent run and will spend the "next couple of weeks talking to people, people I have not felt comfortable talking with as a Democratic Party candidate."
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Jim Webb Was Right Last Night About A Lot

Some folks seem to think that Jim Webb had a Miss Rhode Island moment in the debate last night when she was asked what the prefect date was.

Naturally the question was not about a date on the calendar but the kind of date she would want to have with a man.

In Webb's case, they seem to forget, when a veteran like Webb thinks about an enemy, it would only be natural for him to think of a real one that was trying to kill him and the Marines he was risking his life with.

Here’s What Happened to Jim Webb’s ‘Enemy’ in Vietnam
Wall Street Journal
Washington Wire
Daniel Nasaw
October 14, 2015

Toward the end of Tuesday night’s Democratic debate in Las Vegas, CNN moderator Anderson Cooper asked the candidates which enemy they had made of whom they were most proud.

Four candidates listed Washington interest groups, and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton threw in “Iranians” and “Republicans.” But Mr. Webb, a decorated Marine veteran of the Vietnam War, said, “I’d have to say the enemy soldier that threw the grenade that wounded me, but he’s not around right now to talk to.”

In July 1969, Mr. Webb was a 23-year-old Marine lieutenant leading a platoon through an area of South Vietnam the Americans called the Arizona Valley, on a search-and-destroy mission in hostile territory.
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Good time to clear up a few other things like the fight Webb had to take on because Senators like McCain said the GI Bill was "too generous" for the troops.

Barack Obama/Jim Webb vs John Mccain - Veteran GI Bill


Female veterans are a bit upset too but here's the real story behind women in combat from Webb. Oh, by the way it is from 2006.


Oct 10, 2006
Jim Webb (D-VA) sets the record straight regarding Women in the military.


I watched as much of the debate as I could but since I get up at 4:30, I didn't see all of it. From what I just got caught up with it is apparent that CNN and the rest of the media have decided who they want to be on the ballot. Too bad for them that the election is a year away and Americans are paying attention.


Webb has also been criticized about complaining for not enough time to talk. Turns out he was right.

Jim Webb’s Complaints About Debate Speaking Time, in 150 Words

Our graphics team did a rundown on how many words each candidate spoke during the event, and Mr. Webb finished fourth of the five, at 2,766 words. For comparison’s sake, Hillary Clinton spoke the most, at 5,452 words.

And if you didn't see the movie Miss Congeniality, Miss Rhode Island won.

Vietnam Veteran Takes Debate Stage Tonight

Jim Webb, wild card candidate, steps into the spotlight
Washington Post
By Rachel Weiner
October 13, 2015

Former Virginia senator Jim Webb launched his presidential campaign in July, but it's understandable if you didn't know that: for the past four months, he's kept a low profile, and the polls have reflected it. Tuesday's debate offers his first, best chance to break out of the very low single digits.

Webb is hoping to appeal to Democrats who may feel alienated by both former secretary of state Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders -- in particular, working-class white male voters; he wrote an entire book about the Scots-Irish roots of rural Appalachia. The former Republican's own background is in the military and the Reagan administration; he is far more focused on foreign policy than many of his Democratic rivals -- and the only Democratic candidate opposing President Obama's nuclear agreement with Iran.

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Jim Webb,
Former Senator from Virginia, has been a combat Marine, a counsel in the Congress, an assistant secretary of defense and Secretary of the Navy, an Emmy-award winning journalist, a film-maker, and the author of ten books.

Mr. Webb graduated from the Naval Academy in 1968, receiving a special commendation for his leadership contributions. First in his class of 243 at the Marine Corps Officer’s Basic School, he served as a rifle platoon and company commander in Vietnam and was awarded the Navy Cross, the Silver Star Medal, two Bronze Star Medals, and two Purple Hearts. He graduated from the Georgetown University Law Center in 1975.

Mr. Webb served in Congress as counsel to the House Committee on Veterans Affairs from 1977 to 1981. In 1982 he led the fight to include an African American soldier in the Vietnam Veterans memorial on the National Mall. In 1984 he was appointed Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs, and in 1987 became Secretary of the Navy.

BOOKS
I Heard My Country Calling (2014)
Fields of Fire (1978)
A Sense of Honor (1981)
A Country Such as This (1983)
Something to Die For (1991)
The Emperor’s General (1999)
Lost Soldiers (2001)
Born Fighting (2004)
A Time to Fight (2008)

Navy Upgrades Silver Star to Navy Cross for Vietnam Veteran

Navy awards Vietnam veteran with highest honor thanks to secret recording
WADB 9 News
By Rick Portier
Updated: Oct 12, 2015

"Ken picked those two Marines up," said Donovan. "One by the web belt in his left hand, and he had the other Marine over his shoulder. And he was struggling to get back."

That's the way it was recorded by both the U.S. Navy and the Marine Corps for nearly 50 years. For his bravery, Altazan was awarded the Silver Star in 1970.

BATON ROUGE, LA (WAFB)
The Silver Star is the third-highest honor the Pentagon can bestow on a Marine, just below the Navy Cross and the Medal of Honor. A mysterious letter and a secret recording of a medical evacuation mission in A Shau Valley, Vietnam almost 50 years ago has the Navy reconsidering a local veteran's medal.

The recording, which was made by a fighter pilot circling high above the firefight outside the village of Me Hiep, tracks the radio conversations between medevac helicopters, fire support aircraft, and ground troops calling for evacuation from the area on May 9, 1969. Marines on the battlefield were severely outnumbered by the Viet Cong. The job of getting them out fell to helicopter pilot Major Pat Donovan and his crew chief Sgt. Ken Altazan in a mission that became 5-Mike.

"The Marines were mixed up with the enemy. They're all in the same area. We can't come in and the Hueys cannot provide air cover. What are we gonna do, and we decided to go we're going in," said Donovan.

"When we landed, we took no fire. It seemed like everything was gonna go," remembered Altazan, who was halfway through his second tour. It was his job as crew chief to help co-ordinate the rescue, which was no easy feat with a dozen injured Marines scattered across nearly three acres of rice paddys.

"The bad guys knew they were there, and they were being shot at," Altazan said. "Quite a few were hit coming to the aircraft."

A couple of weeks ago, 48 years after he completed Mission 5-Mike, Altazan received a phone call from a major at the Pentagon. "He said 'I assume you got our letter by now.' I said, 'No sir, I hadn't gotten a letter.'" That's when Altazan learned his Silver Star would be upgraded to the Navy Cross.
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Huge Navy Ship Named After Huge Marine Legend

New Navy ship honors Marine legend
760 KFMB
By Heather Hope
Aug 12, 2015

It'll take 60-days to get to Virginia, but the ship has to go through Mexico, then Chile and Brazil because its too big to fit through the Panama Canal.

SAN DIEGO (CBS 8) - The USNS Lewis B. Puller is the first mobile landing platform or MLP that has a forward staging base variant. It's unique in nature in that both civilian crews and the Navy will be on board.

Stretching 785 feet long and 164 feet wide, the USNS Lewis B Puller is a sight that can't be missed.

"It's an honor to be made after probably the most famous general in Marine Corp History," said, Capt. Brain Mershon, Lewis B. Puller.

It is named after Chesty Puller, the only Marine to receive the Navy Cross Five times.

This ship lives up to its title.

"The mission of this ship is anti mine warfare and so it's considered a first in class," said Capt. Mershon.

Going up each flight off stairs, an inside look at this MLP is amazing.

Its flight deck is designed to carry some of the largest helicopters in the Navy.
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Vietnam Veteran Jim Webb Explains What Average Citizen Can Never Understand

To Kill a Man A short story
Politico
By JIM WEBB
July/August 2015

Webb says, that the average civilian can never understand. As he wrote in his 2014 memoir, “I and my fellow combat veterans stand on one side of a great impassable divide, with the rest of the world on the other.”

Long before James Webb became secretary of the Navy or a U.S. senator—or even potentially a 2016 Democratic presidential candidate—he was a 23-year-old Marine fighting in Vietnam’s An Hoa basin, west of the city of Da Nang, as part of the Fifth Marine Regiment.

During his tour as a rifle platoon and company commander, Webb was awarded the Navy Cross, the Silver Star, two Bronze Star Medals and two Purple Hearts for his actions in combat.

An enemy grenade left him with shrapnel lodged in his head, arm, leg and back. Recounting his gritty combat tour during some of the war’s darkest days—in one eight-week period, his rifle platoon suffered 51 Purple Hearts among those killed or wounded—he told an interviewer in 1988, “My greatest feeling in Vietnam was that I was a pawn.”

And when he thought of the other things, he could never forget those who had died and those who had suffered more than he had. These were the true moral paragons, whether or not they ever considered it or knew it. Some had taken blasts of shrapnel. Some had been ripped by gut shots from enemy rifles and machine guns. Some had lost limbs. Some had returned with minds pushed so far over the edge by it all that they could not fully come back, even when they were home, and never would.

All these years later, he still regarded them as his people, his friends, indeed his lifelong comrades, but it had not really started out that way.

The bonds that brought them together and kept them close were powerful and permanent and overwhelming, but they were consequential, not intentional. read more here

ABC US News | World News

Jim Webb, Vietnam Veteran Runs for President

UPDATE From China
Former senator and Vietnam veteran Jim Webb to run for president in long-shot bid against Clinton
South China Morning Post

Webb’s opposition to the Iraq War – his son Jimmy served in the conflict – played a central role in his surprise Senate election in 2006 against a Republican challenger. While he chose not to seek re-election after one term, his military and foreign policy credentials could allow him to become a debate stage foil to Clinton, who served as President Barack Obama’s secretary of state.

But he opposed President George W Bush’s decision to invade Iraq in 2003 and was recruited by Democrats to challenge Republican Sen. George Allen in 2006. Webb’s campaign was helped by an anti-Iraq war fervor. click link for the rest

Democrat Jim Webb joins 2016 White House race
FOX News
July 2, 2015

Considered a moderate-to-conservative Democrat who supports gun rights and is strong on defense, Webb contends his candidacy would appeal to a wide swath of voters who feel disenfranchised by Washington politics.

Former Virginia Sen. Jim Webb is jumping into the race for president, becoming the latest Democrat to try for a primary upset over frontrunner Hillary Clinton.

In a message to supporters obtained by Fox News, and later posted on his website, Webb says: "After many months of thought, deliberation and discussion, I have decided to seek the office of the Presidency of the United States."

Webb's entry brings the total number of Democratic presidential candidates to five. Clinton continues to dominate the field, though Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders lately has been gaining in the polls.

But Webb, 69, is cut from a far different political cloth than the independent, socialist-leaning Vermont senator.

A highly decorated Vietnam veteran and former secretary of the Navy under the Reagan administration, Webb had been seriously mulling a presidential run since establishing an exploratory committee in November 2014.

Webb, who is also a war novelist, served under Reagan from 1984 to 1987 but quit after refusing to reduce the size of the Navy during budget talks. He was a U.S. Marine Corps platoon and company commander in Vietnam, earning a Navy Cross, the Silver Star, two Bronze Star Medals and two Purple Hearts for his actions in combat.

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