Legislation introduced in the U.S. Senate Sept. 14 seeks a congressional gold medal to collectively recognize the Vietnam War era’s Dustoff crews.

It follows by six months a similar bill introduced in the house seeking to honor these teams, which provided aeromedical evacuation from the battlefield via helicopter.

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, introduced S.2825, and the bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs for consideration.

On Feb. 14, Rep. Derek Kilmer, D-Washington, introduced a similar bill, H.R. 1015, in the House.

According to the text of S.2825, “during the Vietnam War, with the use of helicopter air ambulances, United States Army Dustoff crews pioneered the concept of dedicated and rapid medical evacuation, and transported almost 900,000 United States, South Vietnamese, and other allied sick and wounded, as well as wounded enemy forces.”

The perilous extractions often meant the different between life and death for the injured military personnel.

According to the legislation, “the 54th Medical Detachment typified the constant heroism displayed by Dustoff crews in Vietnam, over the span of a 10-month tour, with only 3 flyable helicopters and 40 soldiers in the unit, evacuating 21,435 patients in 8,644 missions while being airborne for 4,832 hours.”

Both bills seek production of bronze duplicates of the gold medal for sale to the public.

Connect with Coin World:  
Sign up for our free eNewsletter
Access our Dealer Directory  
Like us on Facebook  
Follow us on X (Twitter)
Keep in touch on MyCollect - the social media platform for collectibles 

Whether you’re a current subscriber or new, you can take advantage of the best offers on magazine subscriptions available in digital, print or both! Whether you want your issue every week or every month, there’s a subscription to meet your needs.