I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2281 

To award a Congressional Gold Medal to the United States Army Dust 

Off crews of the Vietnam War, collectively, in recognition of their extraordinary heroism and life-saving actions in Vietnam. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 29, 2021 

Mr. KILMER (for himself, Mrs. RODGERS of Washington, and Mr. BOST) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on House Administration, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each 

case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 

the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To award a Congressional Gold Medal to the United States 

Army Dust Off crews of the Vietnam War, collectively, 

in recognition of their extraordinary heroism and lifesaving actions in Vietnam. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Dust Off Crews of 

5 the Vietnam War Congressional Gold Medal Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 The Congress finds that— 

3 (1) a United States Army Dust Off crewman 

4 (pilot, crew chief, and medic) is a helicopter crew 

5 member who served honorably during the Vietnam 

6 War aboard a helicopter air ambulance often under 

7 the radio call sign ‘‘Dust Off’’; 

8 (2) Dust Off crews performed aeromedical evac9 uation for United States, Vietnamese, and allied 

10 forces in Southeast Asia from May 1962 through 

11 March 1973; 

12 (3) nearing the end of World War II, the 

13 United States Army began using helicopters for 

14 medical evacuation and years later, during the Ko15 rean War, these helicopter air ambulances were re16 sponsible for transporting 17,700 United States cas17 ualties; 

18 (4) during the Vietnam War, with the use of 

19 helicopter air ambulances, United States Army Dust 

20 Off crews pioneered the concept of dedicated and 

21 rapid medical evacuation and transported almost 

22 900,000 United States, South Vietnamese, and other 

23 allied sick and wounded, as well as wounded enemy 

24 forces; 

25 (5) helicopters proved to be a revolutionary tool 

26 to assist those injured on the battlefield; 


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1 (6) highly skilled and intrepid, Dust Off crews 

2 were able to operate the helicopters and land them 

3 on almost any terrain in nearly any weather to pick 

4 up wounded, after which the Dust Off crews could 

5 provide care to these patients while transporting 

6 them to ready medical facilities; 

7 (7) the vital work of the Dust Off crews re8 quired consistent combat exposure and often proved 

9 to be the difference between life and death for 

10 wounded personnel; 

11 (8) the revolutionary concept of a dedicated 

12 combat life-saving system was cultivated and refined 

13 by United States Army Dust Off crews during 11 

14 years of intense conflict in and above the jungles of 

15 Southeast Asia; 

16 (9) innovative and resourceful Dust Off crews 

17 in Vietnam were responsible for taking the new con18 cept of helicopter medical evacuation, born just a 

19 few years earlier, and revolutionizing it to meet and 

20 surpass the previously unattainable goal of delivering 

21 a battlefield casualty to an operating table within 

22 the vaunted ‘‘golden hour’’; 

23 (10) some Dust Off units in Vietnam operated 

24 so efficiently that they were able to deliver a patient 

25 to a waiting medical facility on an average of 50 


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1 minutes from the receipt of the mission, which saved 

2 the lives of countless personnel in Vietnam, and this 

3 legacy continues for modern-day Dust Off crews; 

4 (11) the inherent danger of being a member of 

5 a Dust Off crew in Vietnam meant that there was 

6 a 1 in 3 chance of being wounded or killed; 

7 (12) many battles during the Vietnam War 

8 raged at night, and members of the Dust Off crews 

9 often found themselves searching for a landing zone 

10 in complete darkness, in bad weather, over moun11 tainous terrain, and all while being the target of in12 tense enemy fire as they attempted to rescue the 

13 wounded, which caused Dust Off crews to suffer a 

14 rate of aircraft loss that was more than 3 times that 

15 of all other types of combat helicopter missions in 

16 Vietnam; 

17 (13) the 54th Medical Detachment typified the 

18 constant heroism displayed by Dust Off crews in 

19 Vietnam, over the span of a 10-month tour, with 

20 only 3 flyable helicopters and 40 soldiers in the unit, 

21 evacuating 21,435 patients in 8,644 missions while 

22 being airborne for 4,832 hours; 

23 (14) collectively, the members of the 54th Med24 ical Detachment earned 78 awards for valor, includ25 ing 1 Medal of Honor, 1 Distinguished Service 


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1 Cross, 14 Silver Star Medals, 26 Distinguished Fly2 ing Crosses, 2 Bronze Star Medals for valor, 4 Air 

3 Medals for valor, 4 Soldier’s Medals, and 26 Purple 

4 Heart Medals; 

5 (15) the 54th Medical Detachment displayed 

6 heroism on a daily basis and set the standard for all 

7 Dust Off crews in Vietnam; 

8 (16) 6 members of the 54th Medical Detach9 ment are in the Dust Off Hall of Fame, 3 are in the 

10 Army Aviation Hall of Fame, and 1 is the only 

11 United States Army aviator in the National Aviation 

12 Hall of Fame; 

13 (17) Dust Off crew members are among the 

14 most highly decorated soldiers in American military 

15 history; 

16 (18) in early 1964, Major Charles L. Kelly was 

17 the Commanding Officer of the 57th Medical De18 tachment (Helicopter Ambulance), Provisional, in 

19 Soc Trang, South Vietnam; 

20 (19) Major Kelly helped to forge the Dust Off 

21 call sign into history as one of the most welcomed 

22 phrases to be heard over the radio by wounded sol23 diers in perilous and dire situations; 

24 (20) in 1964, Major Kelly was killed in action 

25 as he gallantly maneuvered his aircraft to save a 


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1 wounded American soldier and several Vietnamese 

2 soldiers and boldly replied, after being warned to 

3 stay away from the landing zone due to the ferocity 

4 of enemy fire, ‘‘When I have your wounded.’’; 

5 (21) General William Westmoreland, Com6 mander, Military Assistance Command, Vietnam 

7 (1964–1968), singled out Major Kelly as an example 

8 of ‘‘the greatness of the human spirit’’ and high9 lighted his famous reply as an inspiration to all in 

10 combat; 

11 (22) General Creighton Abrams, Westmore12 land’s successor (1968–1972), and former Chief of 

13 Staff of the United States Army, highlighted the 

14 heroism of Dust Off crews, ‘‘A special word about 

15 the Dust Offs . . . Courage above and beyond the 

16 call of duty was sort of routine to them. It was a 

17 daily thing, part of the way they lived. That’s the 

18 great part, and it meant so much to every last man 

19 who served there. Whether he ever got hurt or not, 

20 he knew Dust Off was there.’’; 

21 (23) Dust Off crews possessed unique skills and 

22 traits that made them highly successful in 

23 aeromedical evacuation in Vietnam, including indom24 itable courage, extraordinary aviation skill and 

25 sound judgment under fire, high-level medical experVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:32 May 26, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2281.IH H2281

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1 tise, and an unequaled dedication to the preservation 

2 of human life; 

3 (24) members of the United States Armed 

4 Forces on the ground in Vietnam had their con5 fidence and battlefield prowess reinforced knowing 

6 that there were heroic Dust Off crews just a few 

7 minutes from the fight, which was instrumental to 

8 their well-being, willingness to fight, and morale; 

9 (25) military families in the United States knew 

10 that their loved ones would receive the quickest and 

11 best possible care in the event of a war-time injury, 

12 thanks to the Dust Off crews; 

13 (26) the willingness of Dust Off crews to also 

14 risk their lives to save helpless civilians left an im15 measurably positive impression on the people of 

16 Vietnam and exemplified the finest American ideals 

17 of compassion and humanity; and 

18 (27) Dust Off crews from the Vietnam War 

19 hailed from every State in the United States and 

20 represented numerous ethnic, religious, and cultural 

21 backgrounds. 

22 SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 

23 (a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of 

24 the House of Representatives and the President pro tem25 pore of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements 


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1 for the presentation, on behalf of Congress, of a single 

2 gold medal of appropriate design in honor of the Dust Off 

3 crews of the Vietnam War, collectively, in recognition of 

4 their heroic military service, which saved countless lives 

5 and contributed directly to the defense of our country. 

6 (b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For the purposes of the 

7 award referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the 

8 Treasury shall strike the gold medal with suitable em9 blems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the 

10 Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense. 

11 (c) SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Following the award of the 

13 gold medal in honor of the Dust Off Crews of the 

14 Vietnam War, the gold medal shall be given to the 

15 Smithsonian Institution, where it will be available 

16 for display as appropriate and available for research. 

17 (2) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 

18 Congress that the Smithsonian Institution should 

19 also make the gold medal awarded pursuant to this 

20 Act available for display elsewhere, particularly at 

21 appropriate locations associated with the Vietnam 

22 War, and that preference should be given to loca23 tions affiliated with the Smithsonian Institution. 


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1 SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 

2 The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in 

3 bronze of the gold medal struck pursuant to section 3 

4 under such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, at 

5 a price sufficient to cover the cost thereof, including labor, 

6 materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses. 

7 SEC. 5. NATIONAL MEDALS. 

8 The medal struck pursuant to this Act is a national 

9 medal for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States 

10 Code. 

Æ 


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