- SURNAME
St.Clair
- FORENAME
Patrick
- UNIT
6 SF Group (Company C)
- RANK
Sergeant
- NUMBER
- AWARD
Silver Star
- PLACE
North Vietnam 1970 (Son Tay)
- ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
CITATION:
Silver Star : The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 8, 1918 (amended by act of July 25, 1963), takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Sergeant Patrick St. Clair, United States Army, for gallantry in action on 21 November 1970 as a member of an all-volunteer joint U.S. Army and Air Force raiding force in the Joint Chiefs of Staff-directed heliborne assault mission to rescue United States military personnel held as prisoners of war at Son Tay prison in North Vietnam. This valiant effort was motivated by deep compassion for his imprisoned fellow men-at-arms, and by a strong sense of military duty and national pride. Sergeant St. Clair was the first man to debark from a helicopter which crash-landed inside the prison compound. Completely disregarding his personal safety, he moved directly to an exposed area and immediately began placing a heavy volume of automatic rifle fire on the fortified northwest guard tower of the prison. He then maneuvered to his next objective where he surprised a number of enemy soldiers. Without hesitation, he courageously attacked the soldiers, forcing them to abandon their fortified positions and retreat into the covering fire of a supporting element of the raiding force. He then calmly and deliberately searched and cleared his assigned area of responsibility. Sergeant St. Clair's courageous actions contributed significantly to the successful execution of the mission, His extraordinary heroism against an armed hostile force, and extreme devotion to duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit on himself and the United States Army.
WEB LINKS:
https://valor.militarytimes.com/hero/24770
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