This is a VERY interesting story. Chief Master Sergeant (CMS) Richard Etchberger was born March 5, 1933 and was killed in action March 11, 1968. Interestingly, he wasn't awarded the Medal of Honor until September 21, 2010.
That should pique your curiosity. Which brings us to his story which is quite fascinating. I will try to summarize it, but, I strongly recommend you clicking the link and read it. I'll still be here when you get back. President Reagan's statement of "Where do we find such men?" applies in triplicate to Chief Etchberger.
A quick summary, a radar station was built in Laos which could direct US aircraft to bombing targets in North Vietnam regardless of time of day or weather. Obviously, the North Vietnamese weren't happy about it, so they launched an attack against the site.
During the attack Chief Etchberger was killed. As I mentioned, the details of the attack can be found in the link above.
Then politics got involved. Because the site was in Laos and although "approved" by the Laotian government, it was a secret. Since it was a "secret" and the US wasn't supposed to have troops in Laos and even though his actions were "above and beyond the call of duty", Chief Etchberger was awarded the Air Force Cross, USAF's second highest award. His sons had no knowledge about how their father died having been told he died in a helicopter accident. In the early 2000's, USAF veterans began lobbying to have the medal upgraded. In 2008, Michael B. Donley, Secretary of the Air Force approved the upgrade which was also approved by Congress in 2009 and presented to his 3 sons in 2010.
And, IMHO, it was well deserved.
Chief Etchberger's Medal of Honor Citation
The President of the United States of America, authorized by act of Congress, March 3, 1863, has awarded, in the name of the Congress, the Medal of Honor to Chief Master Sgt. Richard L. Etchberger, United States Air Force, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life, above and beyond the call of duty.
Chief Master Sgt. Richard L. Etchberger distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism on March 11, 1968, in the country of Laos. While assigned as Ground Radar Superintendent, Detachment 1, 1043rd Radar Evaluation Squadron. On that day, Chief Etchberger and his team of technicians were manning a top-secret defensive position at Lima Site 85 when the base was overrun by an enemy ground force. Receiving sustained and withering heavy artillery attacks directly upon his unit's position, Chief Etchberger's entire crew lay dead or severely wounded. Despite having received little or no combat training, Chief Etchberger single-handedly held off the enemy with an M-16, while simultaneously directing air strikes into the area and calling for air rescue. Because of his fierce defense and heroic and selfless actions, he was able to deny the enemy access to his position and save the lives of his remaining crew. With the arrival of the rescue aircraft, Chief Etchberger without hesitation repeatedly and deliberately risked his own life, exposing himself to heavy enemy fire, in order to place three surviving wounded comrades into rescue slings hanging from the hovering helicopter waiting to airlift them to safety. With his remaining crew safely aboard, Chief Etchberger finally climbed into the evacuation sling himself, only to be fatally wounded by enemy ground fire as he was being raised into the aircraft.
Chief Etchberger's bravery and determination in the face of persistent enemy fire and overwhelming odds are in keeping with the highest standards of performance and traditions of military service. Chief Etchberger's gallantry, self-sacrifice, and profound concern for his fellow men, at risk of his life, above and beyond the call of duty, reflect the highest credit on himself and the United States Air Force.
A lot of things were done wrong in Vietnam and a lot of good folks were killed because of that. Chief Etchberger, IMHO, was one of the best. I'm glad President Reagan stood up for him and hope he took it out on the chickens of a fecal nature (you know what I mean) that wouldn't stand up for the Chief when it happened.
Rest in peace Chief!
References
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Etchberger
https://www.af.mil/Medal-of-Honor/Etchberger/
https://www.cmohs.org/recipients/richard-l-etchberger
Chief Etchberger has been a hero of mine for a long time.
ReplyDeleteSarge,
DeleteYep, mine also.
juvat
Courage and heroism doesn't know borders juvat, forty two years for the family to be officially recognized for the heroism their father displayed that day and then in a secret ceremony.
ReplyDeleteNylon, you summed that up pretty well. Thank you President Reagan!
Deletejuvat
So many men I have never heard of, Juvat. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteTHBB,
DeleteQuite a few I haven't heard of either. I've been choosing from that list. We'll get to the better known heroes soonish, but I think the ones that didn't get all the tickertape parades should get moved to the top of the list, So I have.
juvat
Another great hero. A well deserved award, albeit too long delayed because "secrecy" protecting the indefensible.
ReplyDeleteThanks for yet another inspiring lesson.
JB.
Yeah, that kinda grated on me also. It's not like the bad guys didn't know they were there. Who was President when this came down? Oh yeah, last name was Johnson. I looked it up in the Name Dictionary. Johnson was the name given to Fecal Chickens. Yeah, born and raised in Texas, definitely NOT a Texan!
DeleteYou might surmise that I didn't and don't like him.
juvat
How do these guys get the fortitude and pure physical stamina to do these things?
ReplyDeleteJoe, I have no idea. Although sitting Air Defense Alert, I learned a bit about that sort of thing. We were on 10 minute alert at Osan, meaning we had to be airborne in 10 minutes, day or night. The powers that be would add fake missions that we were supposed to protect if the NK's decided to interfere on our side of the border. Most of the time the missions were fake, however, a real incursion happened often enough that you could never be sure. We'd scramble on the horn sounding. Racing to the jet, jumping in and starting the starboard engine while the crew chief strapped you in. As soon as that was done he jumped down, removed the ladder and gave the signal to start the port engine. As soon as that got started, all switches (except weapons) were turned on, and the chocks pulled. We taxied to the runway at a fairly good clip and were cleared on the runway and for takeoff in one radio call from Tower. Afterburner take off was, well, exciting. Getting the gear up immediately after leaving the ground as the acceleration was fast enough to blow the gear doors off. Bad juju! We'd pull the aircraft into a very steep climb and contact our radar controller. Up to this time, we had no knowledge whether this was practice or real..Fortunately I never had to fly a "real" mission, but, the run up to the code word was pretty heart pounding. Took a lot out of you. Now add in somebody actually trying to kill you, day in, day out, until you got your 25 missions and then you got to go home. A significant number of Bomber Crew are buried in various American Cemeteries in Europe. So, Fortitude and physical stamina was extraordinarily important aspects to have on a routine mission. Even more so, on a "real one". God bless them all, Heroes all!
Deletejuvat
Crusty Old TV Tech here. Heard of Chief Etchberger from an old 'Nam era radar troop, long ago. This award was definitely appropriate, even if 42 years late. Another reason to despise Johnson.
ReplyDeleteAmen on your last two sentences!
Deletejuvat
This came about after I retired. I was AF Ground Radio/Satellite. A Viet Nam buddy SATCOM buddy that turned me onto his heroism.
ReplyDelete