Dennis M Fujii
Dennis was born in Waimea, Hawaii, on the 1st of March 1949, and his stepfather was a mechanic in the National Guard. He grew up with five siblings and earned his high school diploma after enlisting in the US Army in December of 1967. Shortly after enlisting, Dennis was deployed in support of the Vietnam War and served as an assistant machine gunner with the 2nd Battalion, 35th Infantry, 4th Infantry Division. Dennis returned home after his first deployment and in 1970 he once again headed to Vietnam, this time as a crew chief on medical evacuation UH-1 helicopters known as “dustoffs”, and it was his actions during the rescue of wounded troops from the Army of the Republic of Vietnam, that would earn him the Distinguished Service Cross, later upgraded to the Medal of Honor. The citation reads:
Specialist Five Dennis M. Fujii distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity beyond the call of duty while serving as crew chief aboard a helicopter ambulance during rescue operations in Laos, Republic of Vietnam, during the period of 18 to 22 February 1971. Specialist Five Fujii was serving with the 237th Medical Detachment, 61st Medical Battalion, 67th Medical Group. The team's mission was to evacuate seriously wounded Vietnamese military personnel from the midst of a raging battlefield. The aircraft's primary approach to the bullet-infested landing zone was thwarted by heavy volumes of enemy fire directed at the specialist's helicopter. As the pilot made a second landing attempt, the enemy concentrated a barrage of flak at the air ambulance which damaged the craft and caused it to crash in the conflict area, injuring Specialist Five Fujii. Moments later, another American helicopter successfully landed near the wreckage of the specialist's airship and extracted all the downed crewmen except for Specialist Five Fujii, who was unable to board due to the intense enemy fire directed at him. Rather than further endanger the lives of his comrades aboard the second helicopter, Specialist Five Fujii waved the craft out of the combat area and remained behind as the only American on the battlefield. Subsequent attempts to rescue the specialist were aborted due to the violent antiaircraft fire. Specialist Five Fujii finally secured a radio and informed the aviators in the area that the landing zone was too hot for further evacuation attempts. During the night and all through the next day, Specialist Five Fujii disregarded his own wounds as he administered first aid to the allied casualties. On the night of 19 February, the allied perimeter came under ruthless assault by a reinforced enemy regiment supported by heavy artillery. Once again obtaining a radio transmitter, Specialist Five Fujii called in American helicopter gunships to assist the small unit in repelling the attack. For a period of over seventeen consecutive hours, Specialist Five Fujii repeatedly exposed himself to hostile fire as he left the security of his entrenchment to better observe enemy troop positions and to direct air strikes against them. At times the fighting became so vicious that Specialist Five Fujii was forced to interrupt radio transmittal in order to place suppressive rifle fire on the enemy while at close quarters. Though wounded and severely fatigued by 20 February, the specialist bore the responsibility for the protection and defense of the friendly encampment until an American helicopter could land and attempt to airlift him from the area. As his air ambulance left the battlefield, it received numerous hits and was forced to crash land at another South Vietnamese Ranger base approximately four kilometers from the specialist's original location. The totally exhausted Specialist Five Fujii remained at the allied camp for two more days until yet another helicopter could return him to Phau Bai for medical assistance on 22 February. Specialist Five Fujii's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.
According to Paul Simcoe, who was a medic that had flown in with Dennis, the ARVN troops had not been clear on the details on the ground. They had claimed they had not been in contact with the enemy for two days but as the helicopters approached their base, it was clear that they were taking fire from all directions and the hill was covered in smoke. It was not uncommon to see ARVN troops abandon their positions and their wounded so when the Huey that Dennis was on attempted to land, they witnessed a swarm of troops headed for the landing zone. This allowed for the North Vietnamese Army to focus in on one spot which resulted in the wounding of both pilots.
Dennis recovered from his wounds in Phu Bai and then returned home at the end of February. He received a welcome from the Governor and was nominated for the Medal of Honor for his actions, but it was downgraded to the Distinguished Service Cross, which he received from General Fred Weyand on the 20th of March 1971. Dennis transferred to the Hawaii National Guard and went on to work at the Johnston Atoll Wildlife Refuge Island as a utilities and logistics technician. He also married Raynette on the 10th of May 1986, and was inducted in to the Army Aviation Museum’s Hall of Fame at Fort Rucker, Alabama, in addition to the US Army Museum of Hawaii’s Gallery of Heroes. On the 27th of June 2022, the White House announced that his Distinguished Service Cross would be upgraded to the Medal of Honor and on the 5th of July, Dennis Marc Fujii received the Medal of Honor from President Biden. Two days later, he was inducted into the Pentagon’s Hall of Heroes and at the time of writing this, he is 73 years old and resides in Hawaii.
