MEDAL OF HONOR 15 Jan1968 Vietnam US Army CO B 1st BN 69th Armor 4th Inf Div

[old tanker]

JOHNSON, DWIGHT H.

Rank and organization: Specialist Fifth Class, U.S. Army, Company B, 1st Battalion, 69th Armor, 4th Infantry Division.
Place and date: Near Dak To, Kontum Province, Republic of Vietnam, 15 January 1968.
Entered service at: Detriot, Mich.
Born: 7 May 1947, Detroit, Mich.

Citation:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Sp5c. Johnson, a tank driver with Company B, was a member of a reaction force moving to aid other elements of his platoon, which was in heavy contact with a battalion size North Vietnamese force. Sp5c. Johnson’s tank, upon reaching the point of contact, threw a track and became immobilized. Realizing that he could do no more as a driver, he climbed out of the vehicle, armed only with a .45 caliber pistol. Despite intense hostile fire, Sp5c. Johnson killed several enemy soldiers before he had expended his ammunition. Returning to his tank through a heavy volume of antitank rocket, small arms and automatic weapons fire, he obtained a sub-machine gun with which to continue his fight against the advancing enemy. Armed with this weapon, Sp5c. Johnson again braved deadly enemy fire to return to the center of the ambush site where he courageously eliminated more of the determined foe. Engaged in extremely close combat when the last of his ammunition was expended, he killed an enemy soldier with the stock end of his submachine gun. Now weaponless, Sp5c. Johnson ignored the enemy fire around him, climbed into his platoon sergeant’s tank, extricated a wounded crewmember and carried him to an armored personnel carrier. He then returned to the same tank and assisted in firing the main gun until it jammed. In a magnificent display of courage, Sp5c. Johnson exited the tank and again armed only with a .45 caliber pistol, engaged several North Vietnamese troops in close proximity to the vehicle. Fighting his way through devastating fire and remounting his own immobilized tank, he remained fully exposed to the enemy as he bravely and skillfully engaged them with the tank’s externally-mounted .50 caliber machine gun; where he remained until the situation was brought under control. Sp5c. Johnson’s profound concern for his fellow soldiers, at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself and the U.S. Army.

Sp5 Dwight Hal Johnson on the right, holding the bore evacuator. He ended in a sad way, a victim of PTSD before it had a name.

Information

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[browningautorifle]

Quite a piece of work...in a day... Did you by chance serve with him or know him?

[old tanker]

No, I did not serve with him. My unit replaced his in III corps and the 25th ID. They went up north to II Corps and the 4th ID.

[Ovidio]

WOW! What a feat!

[HOOKED ON HISTORY]

JOHNSON, DWIGHT H.

I hope you have found the peace that eluded you here on earth.

[browningautorifle]

It didn't quite end like that. He didn't commit suicide because of PTSD. More to it... Dwight H. Johnson - Wikipedia

[old tanker]

It didn't quite end like that. He didn't commit suicide because of PTSD. More to it... Dwight H. Johnson - Wikipedia

No matter how you look at it, it is a sad end. Johnson's mother said: "Sometimes I wonder if Skip tired of this life and needed someone else to pull the trigger".

Sat, May 1, 1971 – Page 1 · Detroit Free Press (Detroit, Wayne, Michigan, United States of America) · Newspapers.com

[Lee Enfield]

It didn't quite end like that. He didn't commit suicide because of PTSD. More to it... Dwight H. Johnson - Wikipedia

It's truly a tragic story. I read other information regarding Mr. Johnson some years ago - IIRC including from one of his crew members.

The Wikipedia article makes it sound like he walked in on a robbery in progress, but the testimony of the store owner and the people waiting in the car for him, both indicate that he was the robber and that he was alone.

Robbery Try By Viet Hero Laid to Illness - The Washington Post
From Dakto to Detroit: Death of a Troubled Hero - The New York Times

[HOOKED ON HISTORY]

I am glad I am not the only one moved to dig deeper. The MOH citation reminded me of the Audie Murphy one. Tragic story indeed.
I just lost a good friend to what was very likely to have been agent orange exposure. The tragedies never seem to end.

[browningautorifle]

indicate that he was the robber and that he was alone.

Interesting...how varied the story.