In 1967, Lt. Charles Seymour Kettles risked his own life to save that of 44 soldiers by repeatedly helicoptering in and out a dangerous war zone in a damaged aircraft.
He received the distinguished Congressional Medal of Honor almost 50 years later on July 20, 2016. The Michigan native died Monday.
Kettles was assigned to 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division and upon hearing members of the 101st had suffered mass causalities in an intense firefight, he volunteered to lead a flight of six UH-1D helicopters to evacuate the wounded.
Kettles refused to leave the zone until all the helicopters were loaded to capacity and with knowledge of heavy enemy in the area, returned a third time with only one flyable helicopter to rescue the remaining troops.
Without any air support, the enemy concentrated all their efforts on Kettles, shattering both front windshields. Despite the intense damage, he maintained control of his aircraft and refused to leave until all the remaining soldiers entered the aircraft.
In the video below, Kettles shares his experience in Vietnam with the Veterans History Project.
Michigan Representative, Debbie Dingell (D-Mich), released a statement about Kettles saying, “LTC Charles Kettles exemplified the best of American values—courage, dedication, and selflessness…Kettles was a pillar of our community and served as a trusted mentor to veterans after returning home from Vietnam. His true calling was serving others, and we are all better for knowing him and learning from him.”
Kettles was originally awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his heroism and decades later the award was upgraded to the Medal of Honor.
Want to get more connected to the great stories and resources Connecting Vets has to offer? Click here to sign up for our weekly newsletter.
