[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 81 (Thursday, May 9, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3666-S3667]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





     DUSTOFF CREWS OF THE VIETNAM WAR CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL ACT

  Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, now, I ask unanimous consent that the 
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs be discharged from 
further consideration of S. 2825 and the Senate proceed to its 
immediate consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 2825) to award a Congressional Gold Medal to the 
     United States Army Dustoff crews of the Vietnam War, 
     collectively, in recognition of their extraordinary heroism 
     and life-saving actions in Vietnam.

  There being no objection, the committee was discharged, and the 
Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. SCHUMER. I ask unanimous consent that the Cornyn substitute 
amendment at the desk be considered and agreed to; that the bill, as 
amended, be considered read a third time and passed; and that the 
motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 2066) in the nature of a substitute was agreed to, 
as follows:

                (Purpose: In the nature of a substitute)

        Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
     following:

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Dustoff Crews of the Vietnam 
     War Congressional Gold Medal Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       The Congress finds that--
       (1) a United States Army Dustoff crewman, including a 
     pilot, crew chief, and medic, is a helicopter crew member who 
     served honorably during the Vietnam War aboard helicopter air 
     ambulances, which were both nondivision and division assets 
     under the radio call signs ``Dustoff'' and ``Medevac'';
       (2) Dustoff crews performed aeromedical evacuation for 
     United States, Vietnamese, and allied forces in Southeast 
     Asia from May 1962 through March 1973;
       (3) nearing the end of World War II, the United States Army 
     began using helicopters for medical evacuation and years 
     later, during the Korean War, these helicopter air ambulances 
     were responsible for transporting 17,700 United States 
     casualties;
       (4) during the Vietnam War, with the use of helicopter air 
     ambulances, United States Army Dustoff crews pioneered the 
     concept of dedicated and rapid medical evacuation and 
     transported almost 900,000 United States, South Vietnamese, 
     and other allied sick and wounded, as well as wounded enemy 
     forces;
       (5) helicopters proved to be a revolutionary tool to assist 
     those injured on the battlefield;
       (6) highly skilled and intrepid, Dustoff crews were able to 
     operate the helicopters and land them on almost any terrain 
     in nearly any weather to pick up wounded, after which the 
     Dustoff crews could provide care to these patients while 
     transporting them to ready medical facilities;
       (7) the vital work of the Dustoff crews required consistent 
     combat exposure and often proved to be the difference between 
     life and death for wounded personnel;
       (8) the revolutionary concept of a dedicated combat life-
     saving system was cultivated and refined by United States 
     Army Dustoff crews during 11 years of intense conflict in and 
     above the jungles of Southeast Asia;
       (9) innovative and resourceful Dustoff crews in Vietnam 
     were responsible for taking the new concept of helicopter 
     medical evacuation, born just a few years earlier, and 
     revolutionizing it to meet and surpass the previously 
     unattainable goal of delivering a battlefield casualty to an 
     operating table within the vaunted ``golden hour'';
       (10) some Dustoff units in Vietnam operated so efficiently 
     that they were able to deliver a patient to a waiting medical 
     facility on an average of 50 minutes from the receipt of the 
     mission, which saved the lives of countless personnel in 
     Vietnam, and this legacy continues for modern-day Dustoff 
     crews;
       (11) the inherent danger of being a member of a Dustoff 
     crew in Vietnam meant that there was a 1 in 3 chance of being 
     wounded or killed;
       (12) many battles during the Vietnam War raged at night, 
     and members of the Dustoff crews often found themselves 
     searching for a landing zone in complete darkness, in bad 
     weather, over mountainous terrain, and all while being the 
     target of intense enemy fire as they attempted to rescue the 
     wounded, which caused Dustoff crews to suffer a rate of 
     aircraft loss that was more than 3 times that of all other 
     types of combat helicopter missions in Vietnam;
       (13) the 54th Medical Detachment typified the constant 
     heroism displayed by Dustoff crews in Vietnam, over the span 
     of a 10-month tour, with only 3 flyable helicopters and 40 
     soldiers in the unit, evacuating 21,435 patients in 8,644 
     missions while being airborne for 4,832 hours;
       (14) collectively, the members of the 54th Medical 
     Detachment earned 78 awards for valor, including 1 Medal of 
     Honor, 1 Distinguished Service Cross, 14 Silver Star Medals, 
     26 Distinguished Flying Crosses, 2 Bronze Star Medals for 
     valor, 4 Air Medals for valor, 4 Soldier's Medals, and 26 
     Purple Heart Medals;
       (15) the 54th Medical Detachment displayed heroism on a 
     daily basis and set the standard for all Dustoff crews in 
     Vietnam;
       (16) 6 members of the 54th Medical Detachment are in the 
     Dustoff Hall of Fame, 3 are in the Army Aviation Hall of 
     Fame, and 1 is the only United States Army aviator in the 
     National Aviation Hall of Fame;
       (17) Dustoff crew members are among the most highly 
     decorated soldiers in United States military history;
       (18) in early 1964, Major Charles L. Kelly was the 
     Commanding Officer of the 57th Medical Detachment (Helicopter 
     Ambulance), Provisional, in Soc Trang, South Vietnam;
       (19) Major Kelly helped to forge the Dustoff call sign into 
     history as one of the most welcomed phrases to be heard over 
     the radio by wounded soldiers in perilous and dire 
     situations;
       (20) in 1964, Major Kelly was killed in action as he 
     gallantly maneuvered his aircraft to save a wounded United 
     States soldier and several Vietnamese soldiers and boldly 
     replied, after being warned to stay away from the landing 
     zone due to the ferocity of enemy fire, ``When I have your 
     wounded.'';
       (21) General William Westmoreland, Commander of the 
     Military Assistance Command, Vietnam from 1964 to 1968, 
     singled out Major Kelly as an example of ``the greatness of 
     the human spirit'' and highlighted his famous reply as an 
     inspiration to all in combat;
       (22) General Creighton Abrams, successor to General 
     Westmoreland from 1968 to 1972, and former Chief of Staff of 
     the United States Army, highlighted the heroism of Dustoff 
     crews, ``A special word about the Dustoffs . . . . Courage 
     above and beyond the call of duty was sort of routine to 
     them. It was a daily thing, part of the way they lived. 
     That's the great part, and it meant so much to every last man 
     who served there. Whether he ever got hurt or not, he knew 
     Dustoff was there.'';
       (23) Dustoff crews possessed unique skills and traits that 
     made them highly successful in aeromedical evacuation in 
     Vietnam, including indomitable courage, extraordinary 
     aviation skill and sound judgment under fire, high-level 
     medical expertise, and an unequaled dedication to the 
     preservation of human life;
       (24) members of the United States Armed Forces on the 
     ground in Vietnam had their confidence and battlefield 
     prowess reinforced knowing that there were heroic Dustoff 
     crews just a few minutes from the fight, which was 
     instrumental to their well-being, willingness to fight, and 
     morale;
       (25) military families in the United States knew that their 
     loved ones would receive the quickest and best possible care 
     in the event of a war-time injury, thanks to the Dustoff 
     crews;
       (26) the willingness of Dustoff crews to also risk their 
     lives to save helpless civilians left an immeasurably 
     positive impression on the people of Vietnam and exemplified 
     the finest United States ideals of compassion and humanity; 
     and
       (27) Dustoff crews from the Vietnam War hailed from every 
     State in the United States and represented numerous ethnic, 
     religious, and cultural backgrounds.

     SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.

       (a) Presentation Authorized.--The Speaker of the House of 
     Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate 
     shall make appropriate arrangements for the presentation, on 
     behalf of Congress, of a single gold medal of appropriate 
     design in honor of the Dustoff crews of the Vietnam War, 
     collectively, in recognition of their heroic military 
     service, which saved countless lives and contributed directly 
     to the defense of the United States.
       (b) Design and Striking.--For purposes of the presentation 
     referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury 
     (referred to in this Act as the ``Secretary'') shall strike a 
     gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions, 
     to be determined by the Secretary, in consultation with the 
     Secretary of Defense.
       (c) U.S. Army Medical Department Museum.--
       (1) In general.--Following the award of the gold medal in 
     honor of the Dustoff Crews of the Vietnam War, the gold medal 
     shall be given to the U.S. Army Medical Department Museum, 
     where it will be available for display as appropriate and 
     available for research.
       (2) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that 
     the U.S. Army Medical Department Museum should make the gold 
     medal awarded pursuant to this Act available for display 
     elsewhere, particularly at appropriate locations associated 
     with the Vietnam War, and that preference should be given to 
     locations affiliated with the U.S. Army Medical Department 
     Museum.

     SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS.

       The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of 
     the gold medal struck under section 3, at a price sufficient 
     to cover the costs thereof, including labor, materials, dies, 
     use of machinery, and overhead expenses.

     SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS.

       (a) National Medal.--Medals struck pursuant to this Act are 
     national medals for

[[Page S3667]]

     purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.
       (b) Numismatic Items.--For purposes of sections 5134 and 
     5136 of title 31, United States Code, all medals struck under 
     this Act shall be considered to be numismatic items.

     SEC. 6. AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS; PROCEEDS OF SALE.

       (a) Authority To Use Fund Amounts.--There is authorized to 
     be charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprise 
     Fund such amounts as may be necessary to pay for the costs of 
     the medals struck under this Act.
       (b) Proceeds of Sale.--Amounts received from the sale of 
     duplicate bronze medals authorized under section 4 shall be 
     deposited into the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund.

  The bill (S. 2825), as amended, was ordered to be engrossed for a 
third reading, was read the third time, and passed.

                          ____________________