09/30/2025
Happy Birthday to a living legend Medal of Honor Recipient Gary Wetzel!
'...his helicopter violently crashed, he was blown up, shot and stabbed by a bayonet but somehow kept fighting!"
Medal of Honor Recipient US Army Specialist Fourth Class Gary G. Wetzel.
Gary Wetzel risked his life and sacrificed his limb in the name of saving as many men as he could. Despite suffering extensive wounds that might’ve taken out most men he survived and when duty called, he answered.
On January 8, 1968, Wetzel was a Private First Class serving as a door gunner in the 173rd Assault Helicopter Company. On that day, near Ap D**g An, Republic of Vietnam, Wetzel’s helicopter, hit by a rocket-propelled gr***de and crashed violently into the ground.
Two of the helicopters crew were killed outright by enemy fire. While going to the aid of his aircraft commander, Wetzel was blown into a rice paddy by a homemade gr***de that shredded his entire upper left arm and caused severe wounds to his right arm, chest, and left leg.
Without hesitation, and despite profuse bleeding, he staggered back to his gun well, tucked his mangled arm into his waistband, and took the enemy under fire. Wetzel’s machine gun was the only weapon placing effective fire on the enemy, and although severely wounded, Wetzel remained at his position until he had taken out the automatic weapons emplacement that had been inflicting heavy casualties on the American troops and preventing them from moving against the enemy.
Passing in and out of consciousness, Wetzel sustained a stab wound to his right thigh from a bayonet. He disregarded his own wounds and returned to aid his crew chief who was attempting to drag the wounded aircraft commander to safety. He continued to grab other wounded and pull them across the rice paddy, all the while losing consciousness and blood.
After Wetzel and the other survivors were rescued the next morning, he spent a week on the critical list.
To read his full story please check out the book & Audiobook "Giant Killers, War Heroes and Special Forces Legends."
Amazon link to the book: https://a.co/d/bfGBext
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