Clyde Lassen
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| Clyde Everett Lassen | |
|---|---|
| 1942-1994 | |
| Allegiance | USN |
| Rank | Commander |
| Unit | Helicopter Squadron 7, Detachment 104 |
| Battles/wars | Vietnam War |
| Awards | Medal of Honor |
Clyde Everett Lassen (1942-1994), a native of Fort Myers, Florida, was a United States Navy aviator who was awarded the Medal of Honor for his rescue of two downed aviators while piloting a search and rescue helicopter in Vietnam.
[edit] The Mission
On June 19, 1968, Lassen, then a 27 year old Lieutenant (LT) flying a UH-2 Seasprite, embarked on a mission to recover two downed naval aviators whose plane had been shot down deep in North Vietnamese territory. Upon reaching the hilly terrain where the aviators were hiding. LT Lassen made several attempts to recover the aviators, but dense tree cover, enemy weapons fire and intermittent illumination frustrated his efforts. LT Lassen turned on the landing lights of the helicopter, despite the danger of revealing his position to the enemy. After the pilots made their way to the helicopter and with his bullet-riddled helicopter dangerously low on fuel, LT Lassen evaded further antiaircraft fire before landing safely at sea onboard a guided missile destroyer with only five minutes of fuel left in the helicopter's fuel lines. The account of the rescue was logged as a successful, routine search and rescue mission.
LT Lassen became the first naval aviator and fifth Navy man to be awarded the Medal of Honor for bravery in Vietnam. In 2001, a Naval Destroyer was commissioned and named after him: USS Lassen (DDG 82).[1]
[edit] Notes
- ^ "Navy to Commission Guided Missile Destroyer Lassen", Abilene Reporter-News, April 19, 2001. (posted on Home of Heros.com, URL retrieved May 14, 2006)
[edit] References
- This article includes text in the public domain published by the United States Navy.
- "Medal of Honor Recipients of the U.S. Navy in Vietnam", By Sea, Air, and Land, Naval Historical Center, Department of the Navy. (URL accessed May 14, 2006).
- USS Lassen Namesake, United States Navy.
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