Major John Joseph Duffy

Meet Major John Joseph Duffy, who on April 14th, 1972, was serving with the US Advisory Team 162 assigned to the 11th Airborne Battalion of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam when they were attacked at Fire Support Base Charlie, Kontum Province, Republic of Vietnam. The North Vietnamese had been attacking the Firebase in human waves for two continuous weeks, but on the 14th they used T-34 tanks and PT-76 armored personnel carriers to break through the beleaguered battalion’s defenses. From Major Duffy’s Distinguished Service Cross citation;

Beginning with the morning of the 14th and continuing for a period of approximately twenty-four hours, Major Duffy repeatedly made heroic contributions to the defense of the fire base. When attempts at resupplying the base were still being considered, Major Duffy exposed himself to the effects of the continuous bombardment the base experienced as he targeted anti-aircraft weapons and adjusted airstrikes on them. When the resupply attempts were abandoned Major Duffy moved about the base, continuing to expose himself to the enemy fire, treating and finding shelter for wounded Vietnamese defenders. During the early evening initial ground assault, Major Duffy ignored the massive small arms fire as he adjusted gunships and artillery on the advancing enemy formations. When the enemy finally gained control of a portion of the base and advanced to within ten meters of his position, Major Duffy had the supporting gunships make a run directly on him. Eventually the fire base had to be abandoned. Major Duffy was the last man off the base, remaining behind to adjust the covering gunships until the last possible moment. After the Battalion Commander was wounded, Major Duffy assumed command and lead (sic) the formation through the night. Finally, when the battalion was ambushed and the unwounded soldiers abandoned their wounded comrades, Major Duffy remained with the wounded and eventually was able to arrange for their extraction.

On top of the DSC, Major Duffy was awarded the Soldiers medal while in Vietnam for an action that I can’t find. But that means his heroics extended past the battlefield. Doug Sterner tells me that Major Duffy also earned eight Purple Hearts (the only American living today who can make that claim) and 4 Bronze Star Medals all for Valor and eight Air Medals for Valor.

You can read more about the battle at Armchair General.

Category: Historical