A true hero William H. Pitsenbarger

Given that its memorial day here in good old America I want to take this time to write about someone I consider to be a Hero Someone that risked has life to give the ultimate sacrifice

For those Who don't know what Pjs do they are the guys that Jump out of planes And go into hostile war war zones to save injured soldiers Often risking there Lifes and limbs

Pitsenbarger was born in 1944 and grew up in Piqua, Ohio, a small town near Dayton. When Bill was a junior in high school, he tried to enlist in the Army as a Green Beret, but his parents refused to give their permission. After he graduated from high school, he decided to join the Air Force, and on New Year's Eve 1962, he was on a train bound for basic training in San Antonio.

After Going threw A years long training program he was shipped out to vietnan And was deployed to the 38th Air Rescue and Recovery Squadron at Bien Hoa

It is also to note that he flew over 300 Missions in vietnam So in a war were people were burning up there draft cards he was out there risking his life to save people including one time were he saved a Vietnamese soiger from burning mindfeid by hanging from the cord of an HH-33 Huskie

But all good things come to an end and all heroes must have there final battle

On April 11, 1966, the Joint Rescue Center dispatched two Huskies from Detachment 6 to extract a half-dozen or more Army casualties pinned down in a battle near Cam My, a few miles east of Saigon. Upon reaching the site of the ambush, he was lowered through the trees to the ground where he attended to the wounded before having them lifted to the helicopter by cable. After six wounded men had been flown to an aid station, the two Air Force helicopters returned for their second load.

As one of the helicopters lowered its litter basket to Pitsenbarger, who had remained on the ground with the 20 infantrymen still alive, it was hit by a burst of enemy small-arms fire. When its engine began to lose power, the pilot realized he had to get the helicopter away from the area as soon as possible. Instead of climbing into the litter basket so he could leave with the helicopter, Pitsenbarger elected to remain with the Army troops under enemy attack and he gave a "wave-off" to the helicopter which flew away to safety. With heavy mortar and small-arms fire, the helicopters couldn't return to rescue the rescuer.

He then stayed on the ground and tend to the wounded

For the next hour and a half, Pitsenbarger attended to wounded soldiers, hacking splints out of snarled vines and building improvised stretchers out of saplings. When the others began running low on ammunition, he gathered ammunition from the dead and distributed them to those still alive. Then, he joined the others with a rifle to hold off the Viet Cong. Pitsenbarger was killed by Viet Cong snipers later that night. When his body was recovered the next day, one hand still held a rifle and the other clutched a medical kit.

He died like a true hero so on this memorial day lets remember him and all the brave pepole who had the corage to fight in such a terrible war