[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 9]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 12909]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




      HONORING THE DISTINGUISHED SERVICE OF LTC CHARLES S. KETTLES

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                        HON. K. MICHAEL CONAWAY

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 15, 2016

  Mr. CONAWAY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize a recent Medal of 
Honor recipient, LTC Charles S. Kettles. LTC Kettles will be honored at 
the Fort Wolters Historical Park's Medal of Honor Day in Mineral Wells, 
Texas on September 17, 2016. This ceremony recognizes the lives of 
individuals who were stationed at Fort Wolters at some point in their 
career and received our nation's highest military commendation.
  On May 15, 1967, Charles was serving as the Flight Commander of the 
176th Aviation Company in the 14th Combat Aviation Battalion, American 
Division near Duc Pho, Republic of Vietnam. On that day, an airborne 
infantry unit came under heavy enemy fire and suffered casualties. 
Charles immediately volunteered to lead a flight of six UH-1D 
helicopters to carry reinforcements to the embattled force and evacuate 
his wounded brothers. Upon arriving at the landing zone, Charles and 
his crew faced a savage barrage of enemy fire that inflicted heavy 
damage to their fleet. Despite all of this, Charles refused to depart 
until all helicopters were loaded to capacity. With his aircraft 
severely damaged and leaking fuel, Charles skillfully guided his 
helicopter back to base.
  Later that day, the Infantry Battalion Commander requested immediate, 
emergency extraction of the remaining 40 soldiers that were stranded 
after their helicopter was downed by enemy fire. Again, Charles 
volunteered to lead a flight of six evacuation helicopters to return 
back to the deadly landing zone, making this his third trip that day. 
During the extraction, Charles was told that all personnel were 
accounted for and he, along with his team and Army gunships, left the 
battlefield.
  Shortly after departing, Charles was informed that eight troops had 
been unable to reach the evacuation helicopters due to being pinned 
down by intense heavy fire. With complete disregard for his safety, 
Charles passed the lead to another helicopter and reversed course back 
to the landing zone. Without any artillery and tactical support, enemy 
forces concentrated all firepower on Charles' helicopter. His aircraft 
was immediately damaged by a mortar round that shattered his front 
windshields and the body of the helicopter was riddled with small arms 
and machine gun bullets. Despite these circumstances, Charles was able 
to buy enough time to allow the remaining eight soldiers to board the 
helicopter. Once in the air, Charles was able to safely guide his 
severely mangled aircraft back to the base.
  Without LTC Kettles' heroic deeds that day, the dozens of soldiers he 
had saved would not have come home to their loved ones. His selfless 
acts of valor exemplified the values of honor and service that makes 
our nation's military the finest in the world. It is with great 
pleasure and honor that I am able to share his story with all of my 
colleagues in the House.

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