MSgt. Roy Benavidez

At Loc Ninh, Benavidez learned that a 12-man Special Forces patrol—some of them close friends—was trapped by a North Vietnamese battalion. Armed only with a knife and a medical bag, he voluntarily joined a rescue helicopter. Over six hours of intense combat, he carried or dragged wounded comrades to safety, directed airstrikes, recovered classified materials, and fought off enemy soldiers despite 37 separate bullet, shrapnel, and bayonet wounds. Initially awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, his decoration was upgraded to the Medal of Honor in 1981 after eyewitness confirmation.

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