During his four tours to Vietnam, Army Major John J. Duffy often fought behind enemy lines. During one such deployment, he single-handedly saved a South Vietnamese battalion from massacre. Fifty years later, the Distinguished Service Cross he received for these actions was upgraded to the Medal of Honor.
Duffy was born March 16, 1938 in Brooklyn, New York and enlisted in the Army in March 1955 at the age of 17. By 1963, he was promoted to officer and joined the elite 5th Special Forces Unit, the Green Berets.
During his career, Duffy was sent to Vietnam four times: in 1967, 1968, 1971 and 1973. During his third service, he received the Medal of Honor.
In early April 1972, Duffy was senior adviser to an elite battalion in the South Vietnamese Army. When the North Vietnamese attempted to capture Charlie’s fire support base in the country’s central highlands, Duffy’s men were ordered to stop the battalion’s forces.
As the offensive neared the end of the second week, the South Vietnamese commander working with Duffy was killed, the battalion command post was destroyed, and food, water, and ammunition were running low. Duffy was wounded twice but refused to be evacuated.
In the early hours of 14 April, Duffy tried unsuccessfully to set up a landing site for resupply aircraft. Moving on, he managed to get close to the enemy anti-aircraft positions, causing an air strike. The major was wounded a third time by rifle fragments, but again refused medical attention.
Shortly thereafter, the North Vietnamese began an artillery bombardment of the base. Duffy remained in the open to direct US attack helicopters towards enemy positions to stop the attack. When this success led to a lull in the fighting, the major assessed the damage to the base and ensured that the wounded South Vietnamese soldiers were moved to relative safety. He also made sure to distribute the remaining ammunition to those who could still defend the base.
Shortly thereafter, the enemy began to attack again. Daffy continued to fire at them from the gunship. By evening, enemy soldiers began to flock to the base from all sides. Duffy had to move from position to position to correct return fire, identify targets for artillery spotters, and even direct fire from a gunship on his own position, which had been compromised.
By nightfall it was clear that Duffy and his men would be defeated. He began to organize a retreat, calling for gunship support under Dusty Cyanide’s cover fire, and was the last to leave the base.
Early the next morning, enemy forces ambushed the remaining retreating South Vietnamese soldiers, causing more casualties and the scattering of strong men. Duffy took up defensive positions so that his men could drive back the enemy. He then led those who remained—many of them badly wounded—to the evacuation zone, even as the enemy continued to pursue them.
Arriving at the evacuation site, Duffy ordered the armed helicopter to open fire again on the enemy and marked the landing site for the rescue helicopter. Duffy refused to board one of the helicopters until everyone else was on board. According to the San Diego Union-Tribune evacuation report, when Duffy was balancing on a pole during the evacuation of his helicopter, he rescued a South Vietnamese paratrooper who had begun to fall from the helicopter, grabbed him and pulled him back, then was assisted by the helicopter’s door gunner, who was injured during the evacuation .
Duffy was originally awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for the above actions, however this award has recently been upgraded to the Medal of Honor. Duffy, 84, along with his brother Tom, received the highest national award for military prowess from President Joseph R. Biden in a ceremony at the White House on July 5, 2022.
“It seems incredible that about 40 people without food, water and ammunition are still alive among enemy kill groups,” Army Deputy Chief of Staff Army General Joseph M. Martin said at the ceremony. including the call to strike at his own position to allow his battalion to retreat, made the escape possible. Major Duffy’s Vietnamese brothers … believe he saved their battalion from total annihilation.”
Together with Duffy, three more Vietnamese servicemen, army special forces, were awarded the medal. 5 Dennis M. Fujii, Army Staff Sgt. Edward N. Kaneshiro and Army Spc. 5 Dwight Birdwell.
Duffy retired in May 1977. During his 22 years of service, he received 63 other awards and distinctions, including eight Purple Hearts.
After the Major retired, he moved to Santa Cruz, California and eventually met and married a woman named Mary. As a civilian, he was the president of a publishing company before becoming a stockbroker and founding a discount brokerage company, which was eventually acquired by TD Ameritrade.
Duffy also became a poet, detailing some of his combat experiences in his writings, passing on stories to future generations. Many of his poems have been published online. Major wrote six books of poetry and was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.
A poem written by Duffy titled “Frontline Air Traffic Controllers” is inscribed on a monument in Colorado Springs, Colorado honoring the victims of frontline air traffic controllers. According to Duffy’s website, he also wrote the Requiem, which was read at the unveiling of the monument. Later, the Requiem was added to the central part of the bronze monument.
Retired Army Colonel William Reeder, Jr., veterans wrote the book Extraordinary Valor: Fighting for Charlie Hill in Vietnam. The book details Duffy’s exploits in the 1972 campaign.
According to Duffy’s website, he is a founding member of the Special Warfare Association and was inducted into the OCS Infantry Hall of Fame at Fort Benning, Georgia in 2013.
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Post time: Nov-16-2022
