Gary George Wetzel joined the Army in February 1966, shortly after turning 18. After initially serving as a heavy-equipment instructor, he volunteered for Vietnam and arrived there later that year. Wanting to serve in aviation, Wetzel eventually joined the 173rd Assault Helicopter Company, 11th Combat Aviation Battalion, 1st Aviation Brigade. He became a helicopter door gunner. By January 1968, Wetzel had already survived being shot down four times. Then came January 8. Near Ap Dong An in South Vietnam, Wetzel's helicopter was part of an insertion force that landed under devastating enemy fire. Seconds after touching down, the aircraft was struck. Wetzel and crew chief Bart Jarvis attempted to help their wounded aircraft commander, Tim Artman, when two enemy rockets exploded only inches away. The blasts hurled Wetzel into a rice paddy. His left arm was effectively destroyed, while his right arm, chest and left leg were also severely wounded. But Wetzel continued fighting. Despite massive blood loss, he staggered back toward his helicopter and returned to his machine gun. According to his official Medal of Honor citation, Wetzel's gun was at that moment the only weapon placing effective fire on the enemy. He remained at his position until he had destroyed an enemy automatic-weapons emplacement that had been inflicting heavy casualties and preventing American troops from advancing. Then, rather than concentrating on his own wounds, Wetzel again tried to reach his wounded aircraft commander. He lost consciousness from blood loss. When he awakened, he continued crawling toward his fellow crewmen. Wetzel eventually reached Jarvis and helped him attempt to move Artman toward the protection of a nearby dike before losing consciousness again. Artman did not survive. Wetzel did. His left arm was amputated at a field hospital, and he spent approximately six months recovering in hospitals before leaving the Army in June 1968. On November 19, 1968, President Lyndon B. Johnson placed the Medal of Honor around Gary Wetzel's neck during a White House ceremony. He was only 21 years old. His citation remembered not only his determination under fire, but his repeated attempts to help his fellow crewmen despite wounds that could easily have killed him. We remember Gary G. Wetzel and the helicopter crews who repeatedly flew into dangerous landing zones to carry soldiers, ammunition and supplies across the battlefields of Vietnam. #MedalOfHonor #USArmy #TheVietnamWar