Above and beyond the call of duty – A Memorial Day Tribute

  • Published
  • By Lt. Col. Todd Copley
  • 700th Airlift Squadron
DOBBINS AIR RESERVE BASE, Ga. --  In March, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq will have surpassed the length of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. Iraq has a scheduled withdraw of our troops by 2011, while Afghanistan has a promise of U.S. troop withdraw after we build up our forces to protect the fragile democratic government.

Much has been written about the lack of Medal of Honor (MOH) recipients from these post 9/11 wars and the fact that none are living, four from Iraq and two from Afghanistan. There are currently 91 living MOH recipients between the World War II and Vietnam eras. The youngest will soon turn 60 years old! As a nation, we could very well be looking at no living recipients 20 years from now. How could this happen since we've been heavily engaged in combat since the first Gulf War in 1990?

I had the distinct opportunity to be a part of an Air Force MOH panel of five living U.S. Air Force recipients, the youngest being 66 years old. It seems this question is asked many times to them, "Why so few, and why all deceased?" The answer from this fine panel of veterans, several who spent more than five years in Vietnamese prison camps, was clear, "We would love to have more members into our MOH Society. The criteria for the award has not changed." So what has changed since the Vietnam War, which produced 246 MOH recipients?

Possibly the process has become politicized according to the article, "Death before this honor" from the Army Times. It took just 6 ½ months for the Clinton administration to posthumously award the MOH to two soldiers in Somalia. By contrast, during President George W. Bush's tenure, the speediest MOH approval took 18 months. One took as long as three years. It was suggested in the article that intense partisan politics in Washington, D.C. over these wars, forced the Bush Administration to subject potential MOH recipients to intense background checks so as to avoid scrutiny from political opponents of the administration. Defense and service officials deny that the process has become politicized. In fact, one of President Bush's regrets as he left office was that he was never able to present a MOH to a living recipient. All this pales in comparison to the 103 years it took our government for the presentation of the MOH in 2001, to Lt. Col. Theodore Roosevelt, for leading a daring charge up San Juan Hill.

Politics aside, we as a nation and a military fighting force don't fight large scale battles anymore. Technological advances in weaponry and communication allow our servicemembers to standby while remotely piloted vehicles, formally called drones or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), controlled 6,000 miles away in the safety of the Nevada desert, loiter for periods of up to 24 hours in the combat zone. Not only is this platform collecting reconnaissance and intelligence data, but it can quickly turn aggressive, using Hellfire missiles to take out the target. When we have the tactical advantage, our ground forces clean up the mess. In the past, an infantry charge using old field manual techniques, may have put a much higher percentage of Soldiers in harm's way.

Although combat tactics have changed from war to war, men and women still fight and die on the battlefield. And when a member distinguishes themselves "conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while engaged in an action against an enemy of the United States," the MOH may be awarded. I believe we've already seen the last MOH to be awarded to an Air Force or Naval aviator (Vietnam) based on current doctrine and the way we'll fight future wars. This nation's special operation forces are most likely to make contact with the enemy via Counterinsurgency or Low Intensity Operations. It would be good for the American people to see one of their young sons or daughters join the living ranks of the MOH Society.