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Contact Info
Home Town Raeford, NC
Last Address Raeford, NC
Date of Passing Jan 11, 2009
Location of Interment Arlington National Cemetery (VLM) - Arlington, Virginia
This is to Certify that
The President of the United States of America
Takes Pride in Presenting
THE
DISTINGUISHED SERVICE CROSS
to
NEWMAN, JAMES T.
Other Comments:
For extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations involving conflict with an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam, while serving with Troop C, 2d Squadron, 17th Cavalry, 101st Airborne Division. Major Newman distinguished himself by exceptionally valorous actions on 18 February 1971. His extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army. DAGO 23 May 30 72
Flight Class 65-14
NEW YORK (AP)
By RICHARD PYLE, Associated Press
— James T. Newman, a Vietnam War helicopter pilot whose rescues of downed airmen earned him the Distinguished Service Cross and other honors, has died. He was 73. Newman's son, Jay, said he died Sunday at the University of North Carolina medical center in Chapel Hill of complications associated with lung cancer.
Newman was twice nominated for the Medal of Honor, the highest military award for valor. While he did not receive that medal, he did get a Distinguished Service Cross, the nation's second-highest award for combat valor, the Silver Star, four Distinguished Flying Crosses, the Bronze Star, Purple Heart and 23 Air Medals, among others.
In an interview years later, the Georgia native said he could "get the shakes" in recalling such incidents although at the time he had felt "no fear." He first served in Vietnam in 1966, suffering a leg wound that nearly led to an amputation. Regaining flight status, he returned in 1970 as commander of C Troop, 2/17 Air Cavalry, 101st Airborne Division.
His first nomination for the Medal of Honor came in February 1971, when he rescued four U.S. crewmen from a crashed medevac helicopter on a mountaintop base in Laos where South Vietnamese Rangers were under heavy attack by North Vietnamese troops. The same week, he rescued two other downed pilots by chopping down small trees with his main rotor blade, an act that astonished helicopter experts but earned Newman a Silver Star.
Five months later, Newman rescued two more pilots injured in a crash near the Laotian border, spotting a flash from their signal mirror and extracting the men with seconds to spare. Richard Frazee, another former C Troop member, called Newman "a man of immeasurable courage who made us all feel invincible."
In 2000, Newman was inducted into the 101st Airborne Division's Hall of Fame at Fort Campbell, Ky. Burial will be in Arlington National Cemetery, the family said.
Vietnam War/Counteroffensive Phase VII Campaign (1970-71)/Operation Lam Son 719
From Month/Year
February / 1971
To Month/Year
March / 1971
Description Operation Lam Son 719 (Vietnamese: Chiến dịch Lam Sơn 719 or Chiến dịch đường 9 – Nam Lào) was a limited-objective offensive campaign conducted in southeastern portion of the Kingdom of Laos by the armed forces of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam) between 8 February and 25 March 1971, during the Vietnam War. The United States provided logistical, aerial, and artillery support to the operation, but its ground forces were prohibited by law from entering Laotian territory. The objective of the campaign was the disruption of a possible future offensive by the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN), whose logistical system within Laos was known as the Ho Chi Minh Trail (the Truong Son Road to North Vietnam).
By launching such a spoiling attack against PAVN's long-established logistical system, the American and South Vietnamese high commands hoped to resolve several pressing issues. A quick victory in Laos would bolster the morale and confidence of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN), which was already high in the wake of the successful Cambodian Campaign of 1970. It would also serve as proof positive that South Vietnamese forces could defend their nation in the face of the continuing withdrawal of U.S. ground combat forces from the theater. The operation would be, therefore, a test of that policy and ARVN's capability to operate effectively by itself.
Because of the South Vietnamese need for security which precluded thorough planning, an inability by the political and military leaders of the U.S. and South Vietnam to face military realities, and poor execution, Operation Lam Son 719 collapsed when faced by the determined resistance of a skillful foe. The campaign was a disaster for the ARVN, decimating some of its best units and destroying the confidence that had been built up over the previous three years.
