Colonel
Distinguished Service Cross
Douglas E. Moore, from Marked Tree, Arkansas, graduated from Arkansas State in 1959 with a BS in Agriculture Education. Colonel Moore is one of America’s most decorated Vietnam Era soldiers, with two Distinguished Flying Crosses, a Purple Heart, and our nation’s second highest award for valor in combat: the Distinguished Service Cross.
On 11 and 10 December 1968, as commander of an ambulance helicopter in the Republic of Vietnam, Major Moore braved a hail of bullets, maneuvered his ship down through trees and bushes into a tiny pickup site, and successfully extracted a casualty from an infantry unit in close contact with the enemy. He later exposed his helicopter to enemy snipers in order to rescue four more seriously wounded soldiers from the same unit. Early the following morning, after flying missions throughout the night, Major Moore agreed to evacuate a number of casualties from the unit although illumination rounds would silhouette his aircraft and incoming small arms fire was still being received. Intense enemy fire erupted as the ship touched down, but he calmly waited until all eight casualties were aboard before departing the landing zone. He had barely cleared the perimeter when the North Vietnamese fusillade hit his ship from both sides and one round tore through his helmet, knocking him from the controls and sending the aircraft into a steep bank. Despite being wounded and unable to see out of one eye, he righted the helicopter, aided in reporting the enemy locations, and successfully evacuated the wounded soldiers
