Fred A. Gassman’s Silver Star citation
THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA TAKES PRIDE IN PRESENTING THE
SILVER STAR MEDAL MEDAL
POSTHUMOUSLY TO
SERGEANT FRED A. GASSMAN
UNITED STATES ARMY
For service as set forth in the following
CITATION:
Sergeant Fred A. Gassman, United States Army, Command and Control Detachment, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), 1st Special Forces, Republic of Vietnam, distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry in action on 24 September 1970 while serving on a long-range reconnaissance patrol operating deep within enemy-held territory. The team was preparing to move out of their night defensive position on the morning of 24 September 1970 when they were compromised by an enemy force of undetermined size. In the ensuing firefight, Sergeant Gassman moved without hesitation to an area of intense enemy fire to aid two commandos. A grenade thrown into their position by the enemy killed on commando and wounded the other, but miraculously Sergeant Gassman escaped injury. He ignored the enemy fire to aid the wounded commando in safely withdrawing to a more secure position. Finding the man not seriously injured, he returned to find the other commando beyond medical help. Sergeant Gassman, realizing the value of the equipment left behind during the team’s withdrawal, returned to gather all remaining equipment before returning on the last trip with the body of the dead commando. The team leader then called in air strikes on the enemy positions so the team could be safely extracted. Sergeant Gassman’s actions during this period were instrumental in saving one commando’s life and in recovering equipment of value to the enemy if left behind. Sergeant Gassman’s conspicuous gallantry was in keeping with the highest tradition of the military service and reflects great credit on him, the Special Forces, and the United States Army.
Born: September 5, 1947 in Fort Walton Beach, Fla…. His father was an Army Air Force fighter pilot during world War II… Memorialized at the Courts of the Missing in Honolulu