The President of the United States
in the name of The Congress
takes pleasure in presenting the
Medal of Honor
to
NOVOSEL, MICHAEL J.
Rank and organization: Chief Warrant
Officer, U.S. Army, 82d Medical Detachment, 45th Medical Company, 68th Medical Group. Place
and date: Kien Tuong Province, Republic of Vietnam, 2 October 1969. Entered
service at: Kenner, La. Born: 3 September 1922, Etna, Pa.
Citation:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and
beyond the call of duty. CWO Novosel, 82d Medical Detachment, distinguished himself while
serving as commander of a medical evacuation helicopter. He unhesitatingly maneuvered his
helicopter into a heavily fortified and defended enemy training area where a group of
wounded Vietnamese soldiers were pinned down by a large enemy force. Flying without
gunship or other cover and exposed to intense machinegun fire, CWO Novosel was able to
locate and rescue a wounded soldier. Since all communications with the beleaguered troops
had been lost, he repeatedly circled the battle area, flying at low level under continuous
heavy fire, to attract the attention of the scattered friendly troops. This display of
courage visibly raised their morale, as they recognized this as a signal to assemble for
evacuation. On 6 occasions he and his crew were forced out of the battle area by the
intense enemy fire, only to circle and return from another direction to land and extract
additional troops. Near the end of the mission, a wounded soldier was spotted close to an
enemy bunker. Fully realizing that he would attract a hail of enemy fire, CWO Novosel
nevertheless attempted the extraction by hovering the helicopter backward. As the man was
pulled on aboard, enemy automatic weapons opened fire at close range, damaged the aircraft
and wounded CWO Novosel. He momentarily lost control of the aircraft, but quickly
recovered and departed under the withering enemy fire. In all, 15 extremely hazardous
extractions were performed in order to remove wounded personnel. As a direct result of his
selfless conduct, the lives of 29 soldiers were saved. The extraordinary heroism displayed
by CWO Novosel was an inspiration to his comrades in arms and reflect great credit on him,
his unit, and the U.S. Army.
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