OVOSEL, MICHAEL J. Medal of Honor
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.
CWO Novosel’s people came from Ribnik in Croatia.