Dennis Noah
HOME OF RECORD:
St. Louis, Missouri
AWARD BY DATE OF ACTION:
September 10, 1967
Silver Star
AWARDED FOR ACTIONS
DURING Vietnam War
Service: United States Navy
Rank: Hospital Corpsman Second Class
Company: Hotel
Battalion: Second
Regiment: Fifth Marines
Division: 1st Marine Division (Rein.), FMF
GENERAL ORDERS:
CITATION:
The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Hospital Corpsman Second Class Dennis L. Noah (NSN: B-509318), United States Navy, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity while serving as the Senior Corpsman of Company H, Second Battalion, Fifth Marines, FIRST Marine Division (Rein.), FMF, in the Republic of Vietnam, on 10 September 1967. During Operation SWIFT, the First Platoon of Company H, with Petty Officer Noah attached, conducted a security patrol separated from the company by 1,000 meters.
The platoon came under heavy close range small arms, machine gun, and mortar fire from a numerically superior enemy and was temporarily pinned down. Without hesitation, Petty Officer Noah, with total disregard for his life, crawled among the dead and wounded Marines on the field of fire to render aid to many severely wounded Marines within 10 meters of the entrenched enemy. Although he was painfully wounded, he repeatedly crawled from one wounded Marine to another and administered medical aid while shielding each Marine from enemy fire with his own body.
Petty Officer Noah remained in an exposed position for more than four hours, dragging bodies of dead Marines in front of the wounded to give them cover. After his medical supplies were depleted, he packed open wounds and fashioned tourniquets with pieces of utility uniforms. When one enemy soldier crawled forward and attempted to capture a wounded Marine, Petty Officer Noah shot him in the face at close range.
Upon the arrival and attack by the remainder of Company H, while still under direct enemy fire and within 40 meters of impacting friendly fire, he and others evacuated all wounded Marines to relative safety. He then immediately organized a casualty collection point, prioritized the wounded, and arranged for emergency helicopter evacuation of the casualties.
By his bold initiative, undaunted courage, and unwavering dedication to duty, Petty Officer Noah reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.
CITATION:
The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Private First Class Elton Armstrong (MCSN: 2424349), United States Marine Corps, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action while serving as a Machine Gunner with Company H, Second Battalion, Fifth Marines, FIRST Marine Division (Rein.), FMF, in connection with operations against the enemy in the Republic of Vietnam.
On 11 May 1969, during a search and destroy operation near An Hoa in Quang Nam Province, Private First Class Armstrong’s platoon came under a heavy volume of fire from a hostile force occupying well-concealed bunkers. Reacting instantly, he pinpointed a major source of enemy fire coming from one bunker and, with complete disregard for his own safety, moved across the hazardous area toward it. Although he became the target of concentrated hostile fire and hand grenades, he dauntlessly initiated repeated assaults against the formidable stronghold and, resolutely maintaining a dangerously exposed position, enabled his companions to execute an enveloping maneuver which resulted in the destruction of the emplacement.
His heroic and timely actions inspired all who observed him and were instrumental in his comrades’ accounting for four North Vietnamese soldiers killed, the capture of three individual weapons, and the destruction of an enemy machine gun. By his courage, bold initiative, and unwavering devotion to duty in the face of grave personal danger, Private First Class Armstrong contributed significantly to the accomplishment of his unit’s mission and upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval Service.