Presidential Unit Citation Awarded to Units of the 3d Squadron, 5th Cavalry, 9th Infantry Division, and to Battery B, 7th Battalion, 9th Artillery, USA

BY VIRTUE of the authority vested in me as President of the United States and as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the United States I have today awarded

THE PRESIDENTIAL UNIT CITATION (ARMY) FOR EXTRAORDINARY HEROISM TO

TROOP A, 3D SQUADRON, 5TH CAVALRY,

1ST PLATOON, TROOP B, 3D SQUADRON, 5TH CAVALRY,

3D PLATOON, TROOP C, 3D SQUADRON, 5TH CAVALRY,

HEADQUARTERS SECTION, HEADQUARTERS TROOP, 3D SQUADRON, 5TH CAVALRY,

GROUND SURVEILLANCE SECTION, HEADQUARTERS TROOP, 3D SQUADRON, 5TH CAVALRY,

MEDICAL PLATOON, HEADQUARTERS TROOP, 3D SQUADRON, 5TH CAVALRY, OF THE 9TH INFANTRY DIVISION,

AND TO BATTERY B, 7TH BATTALION, 9TH ARTILLERY

UNITED STATES ARMY

The foregoing units distinguished themselves by gallantry in action while engaged in military operations against a heavily armed enemy on the night of 19-20 March 1967 in the second battle of Ap Bau Bang, Republic of Vietnam. Although initially outnumbered more than ten to one and completely surrounded, Troop A tenaciously contained the fierce Viet Cong attack. As the enemy pressed its coordinated attack with mortars, automatic weapons, recoilless rifles and anti-tank rockets, the courageous defenders of the artillery fire support base at Ap Bau Bang sustained many direct hits on their combat vehicles, destroying two of the vehicles and wounding over half the troopers. With dauntless courage, ignoring their wounds, they struck back at the fanatical enemy, breaking up the enemy's repeated assaults. In violently executed moves, the besieged Troop A perimeter was reinforced by elements of Troop B, C and Headquarters, to relieve pressure on the defenders and destroy the Viet Cong forces. As the armored reinforcing columns raced to the battle area, they broke through the Viet Cong ambushes prepared for them, continued on to the embattled perimeter under intense fire, charged through the heavy enemy concentrations, and accomplished the first successful night reinforcement by armored units of a perimeter under heavy Viet Cong attack in the Vietnamese conflict. Massed fires of the cavalrymen and supporting artillery, armed helicopters, and tactical air fires poured into the enemy masses, as the troopers conducted successive counterattacks to complete the rout of the 273d Viet Cong Regiment. As dawn broke, after the six hour battle, enemy dead covered the battlefield. The indomitable fighting spirit and gallantry of the cavalry troopers achieved a signal victory at Ap Bau Bang which contributed significantly to the success of Operation Junction City in the Vietnamese campaign. The gallantry and heroism of the troopers was in keeping with the highest traditions of the cavalry and the United States Army.

LYNDON B. JOHNSON