How did he get the Purple Heart then?...a paper cut?
@mystery-ak He got it when a truck bomb exploded while he was riding as a passenger in the truck. He did NOT fire at anybody,and and nobody ever fired at him.
I PERSONALLY know a man that ran recon missions into Laos with 6 man teams,and was fired at on 3 missions without getting his CIB. He didn't get it because he was under "probing fire" and was unable to return fire without giving away the position of the team.
AFATG's,our camp Commander,LTC Abt was a tanker during the Korean war and won a bunch of valor awards during that war,but he didn't have a CIB either because they aren't given to tankers,never mind truck drivers or passenger. He wanted one so badly he agreed to go on mission into Laos with RT California and even agreed to carry the radio if the team leader would allow him to go with the team. The team leader did,so off they went. By pure accident I happened to be on radio watch at our Laotian radio relay site (recon teams took turns manning the site) when the Colonel was giving the mid-day sitrep,and had the microphone cord shot in half.
Let's just say there was a fair amount of panic about after I reported back to the FOB that RT California,with the camp commander,was in contact with the NVA,on the run,and out of communications.
Yeah,THAT Colonel EARNED his CIB!