Larry M. Liss
Larry Liss
Class of 1963
Aviation Detachment, II Field Force, USARV
Silver Star
Silver Star for heroism and gallantry in action while participating in aerial flight in an unarmed helicopter in support of a Civilian Irregular Defense force under attacked by a numerically superior force on May 14, 1967 near Cau Song Be, Republic of Vietnam.
Disregarding his own safety, Captain Liss diverted from his routine transportation mission to fly in reinforcements and evacuate the wounded from the friendly force. To successfully land Captain Liss used his rotors to clear an area in the dense canopy to land his vehicle. This was an extremely hazardous undertaking. He successful landed with reinforcements and evacuated the wounded. He repeated his cycle several more times, despite a shrinking perimeter, enemy fire and lost communications with supporting tactical air. Due to chaos on the ground on the last two trips, it was vital that control be established and he exited the aircraft, organized the situation, and expedited the extraction of the wounded at great personal risk. On the last trip, with 18 soldiers on board, far in excess of weight guidelines, he nevertheless cleared the LZ and flew to a supporting aid station. Captain Liss’ heroism, determination, and ingenuity contributed to the successful outcome of the situation and reflect great credit on him and Field Force Il, United States Army Vietnam.
Read more:
