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.com. So this is a story about a Medal of Honor
recipient from Vietnam that I think you'll find
of interest. We always like telling these stories
of these American heroes. So enjoy this one on
Medal of Honor recipient Brian Thacker. Alright.
Welcome back everyone to the deep dive. We're
diving into a story today The story of First
Lieutenant Brian Miles Thacker Wow, so March
31st 1971 actions that earned him the Medal of
Honor big day. Yeah big day for sure And we got
a whole collection of sources here We really
want to dig deep into like what happened that
day who Thacker was as a person and the lasting
impact of this, like, incredible valor. The ripples.
The ripples, yeah, exactly. And I guess our mission
is really to go kind of beyond just the basic
details of, like, you know, here's what he did
and here's why he got the medal honor, but to
really, like, zoom in on the specifics of what
he faced, you know, the intensity of the situation
and. the courage you showed. Yeah, absolutely.
I think for the listener, you know, we don't
want to just read off a citation, right? We want
to really like put you in the boots on the ground
and really understand the human will that it
took to not just survive that, but to thrive
and be recognized in that way. Yeah, sort of
like set the stage for all this. You know, let's
start with just like Thacker's background. seems
like his journey to that remote fire base in
Canton province, like really started way before
that. You know, shaped by his upbringing and
then the realities of the Vietnam War. That's
right. That's right. So he was the son of a career
Air Force officer. So he kind of grew up in that
military lifestyle, moving around a lot. Ended
up graduating from Weber State College in Utah.
and through the ROTC program, he was commissioned
as a second lieutenant in 1969. And the thing
that really stood out to me was just how quickly
he rose in rank. So by the fall of 1970, so just
a little over a year after joining the army,
he was already a first lieutenant. Wow, yeah,
that's quick. It was great. And the sources don't
shy away from why that happened. There's one
quote, I think it really kind of sums it up.
It says, the war in Vietnam was going through
first and second lieutenants at a rabid rate.
Yeah. Really makes you think about the impact
on junior officers in that conflict. Absolutely.
And it was a sad reality, right? The casualty
rate among junior officers was so high that these
leadership roles were opening up way faster than
they would in peacetime. And I think thinking
about that pressure that that puts on the guys
that are remaining. Yeah. You know, and I think
it might have even contributed to Thacker's actions
later on, you know, kind of that that no choice
but to lead mentality. Right. So after a tour
in Germany, which, by the way, he described as
like a time to kind of make all his, quote, second
lieutenant mistakes. That's good. Yeah. He's
transferred to Vietnam in late 1970. All right.
So now he's there. Relatively young first lieutenant.
By early 71 he's leading a six -man observation
team stationed in Contra province. So what were
they doing there? What was their mission in that
area? So they were on a hilltop and it was a
very strategically critical position. Okay They
were there to support the ARVN artillery, you
know, the Army of the Republic of Vietnam, the
South Vietnamese forces. And their job was basically
to observe enemy activity, ID targets, and then
direct that artillery fire onto the North Vietnamese
Army units that were operating in the valley
below. Oh, wow. Really dangerous job, but absolutely
vital. Like the eyes, the eyes for the artillery.
I think it's on the target, yeah. OK, so then
comes March 31st. Yeah. This wasn't just some,
you know, small firefight. This was a big coordinated
offensive. This was huge. Early morning hours,
the North Vietnamese launched a huge offensive
across a 60 -mile front. Oh, wow. And unfortunately,
Facker's little hilltop position, known as Fire
Base Six, was right in the path of this attack.
Ooh. So they basically just woke up to, like,
a huge assault. It was overwhelming, yeah. heavy
machine guns, RPGs, satchel charges, mortars,
recoilless rifles, like the whole, everything
they had. Just like raining down on them. It
was, it was an intense barrage. Like from the
get go, the enemy's intentions were clear. They
wanted that fire base. Take no prisoners, take
the base. Right. So how long did the defense
hold up? It's not long. Very quickly, the NBA
forces, they breached the perimeter and then
it just turned into brutal hand to hand combat.
Oh wow. So like just intense fighting from bunker
to bunker, American and ARVN forces just desperately
trying to hold their ground. And tragically,
three of Thacker's five men were killed in this
initial assault. Three out of five. Yeah. I mean,
with those kind of losses, that intensity of
attack, it must have just felt completely hopeless.
Would be easy to just give up in that moment.
But Thacker didn't. So what did he do? He immediately
tried to rally the remaining forces, called in
air support, tried to do everything he could.
Wow. It's incredible. So even while they're getting
just hammered, he's still trying to fight back,
protect whoever's left. Yeah, he took initiative.
He called for air support, hoping to kind of
disrupt the enemy advance and give his team a
little bit of breathing room. Did it work? Well,
two U .S. helicopters tried to come to their
aid, but they were shot down. Yeah, it was a
huge blow. Both helicopters were hit. And to
make matters worse, the surviving crew members
actually joined Thacker's team on the ground.
So now even more people to try and protect. Exactly.
The situation just became even more desperate.
So at this point, defenses are gone, heavy casualties,
rescue attempts, failing. I mean, what can you
even do in that situation? The Hacker made the
call to withdraw. To try and reach Fire Base
6, which was six miles away. Six miles? Six miles
through Enfe territory. Oh, wow. It was a risky
move for sure, but staying put meant certain
death. Yeah, I mean, six miles, you're right.
That's a tough call, but probably the right call.
But I mean, that's where Thacker's actions go.
Like, way beyond, you know, just doing your duty.
He didn't just order the retreat. He stayed behind
to cover them, right? He did. He stayed there,
exposed, laying down fire so his men could escape.
Wow. I mean, talk about selfless. Yeah, complete
disregard for his own safety. That's what the
Medal of Honor citation says. Bought precious
time for his comrades to get out of that immediate
kill zone. So he's covering the retreat. But
then he does something even more incredible.
He called in artillery fire on his own position.
It's hard to even fathom, right? Yeah, I can't
imagine making that decision. What went through
his mind at that moment? Later he said, the only
coordinates that I could give the firing battery
that were valid were the coordinates of my own
position. Wow. So he knew what he was doing.
He knew the risk. But he also knew it was the
best way to disrupt the enemy to buy his men
more time. So this wasn't just a tactical decision.
It was almost like an acceptance, like, OK, I'm
putting it all on the line here. Yeah, it speaks
to a deep sense of duty. You know, the bonds
he had with his men, he was willing to sacrifice
himself for them. And what happened next? Well,
with all the chaos of the artillery, Thacker
got cut off from the rest of the friendly forces.
So he's alone now, behind enemy lines. Wounded,
exhausted. He managed to find cover in a bamboo
thicket. And he just stayed there. For eight
days. Eight days. With no food or water. Nothing.
He was completely alone, constantly having to
hide, listening for enemy patrols. He talked
about hearing them signaling nearby. He even
got strafed by friendly fire at one point. Oh,
wow. I mean, that takes incredible mental toughness
to survive something like that. Absolutely. Just
imagine the willpower, the resilience. Every
minute must have felt like an eternity. So how
did he finally get rescued? Well, Firebase Six
was eventually recaptured by friendly forces.
OK. And after eight days of hiding, Thacker,
weak, dehydrated, emerged from that bamboo thicket.
Wow. What a moment that must have been. Yeah,
they got him medical attention right away. He
was evacuated to a hospital in Japan to recover.
All right, so two years later, 1973, Brian Thacker
receives the Medal of Honor. Rightfully so. It's
a testament to his courage, his leadership, his
self -sacrifice. What does the citation actually
say? While it highlights his conspicuous gallantry
and intrepidity, it talks about his leadership,
how he rallied the troops, directed airstrikes,
artillery fire for hours under intense enemy
fire. It mentions how he organized and directed
the withdrawal, how he stayed behind to provide
cover, and then that incredible decision to call
artillery on his own position. Yeah. It's not
just about his bravery, but like you said, his
leadership, the impact he had on everyone around
him. Absolutely. It says he was an inspiration
to his comrades. His actions save lives. You
know, reading through these sources, it's amazing
how aware Thacker was of the situation, even
from the beginning. He said, we knew early on
that we weren't going to be able to hold the
firebase. We didn't have enough people or the
right weaponry to fight off the attack, but they
fought anyway. for hours. They held on as long
as they could. And he described how their perimeter
just shrunk throughout the day under constant
enemy pressure. He said, our little oval that
we called the Firebase just kept shrinking and
shrinking throughout the day. And then that one
and a half mile retreat through enemy territory.
I mean, it's a miracle anyone made it out alive.
It really is. And that's where his leadership
comes in, you know. Organizing that withdrawal,
providing cover, making those tough decisions.
Yeah, and then that quote about calling in the
artillery on himself. The only coordinates that
I could give the firing battery that were valid
were the coordinates of my own position. It's
just so matter of fact, but so powerful. It really
shows the impossible situation he was in and
the incredible courage it took to make that call.
And those eight days hiding, constantly on alert,
no food, no water, the fear of being discovered,
the friendly fire incident. It's hard to comprehend
how he endured that. He talked about how he grew
weaker each day, how even short distances felt
like miles. And then finally, emerging from that
thicket, being found by U .S. troops. Many of
whom thought he was dead. Yeah, it must have
been like seeing a ghost. And even then, the
danger wasn't over. The extraction was delayed
because the enemy was monitoring radio communications,
and there was heavy anti -aircraft fire in the
area. So it wasn't until the next morning that
he was finally evacuated. But the important thing
is he learned later that everyone who withdrew
with him made it to safety. Everyone. Everyone.
His actions saved their lives. It's crazy to
think that while all this was happening, Thacker
was nearing the end of his tour. Yeah. He was
actually in his first week of graduate school
back in the States when he got the news about
the Medal of Honor. Wow. From the jungles of
Vietnam to the classroom. That must have been
a wild transition. And he received the medal
from President Nixon on October 15th, 1973. In
a ceremony at the White House with eight other
recipients. And even after all that, he continued
to serve. Yeah, he worked at the Tabor Rubin
VA Medical Center for 26 years, retired in 2002.
But even then, he stayed involved with veterans,
Gold Star families, speaking to students, attending
events. It's amazing, really. And his alma mater,
Weber State University, they created a scholarship
in his name in 2019. A fitting tribute. Yeah.
So the story of Brian Thacker. It's about more
than just one man's actions on a single day.
It's about courage, leadership, self -sacrifice.
It's about the human spirit's ability to endure,
to overcome, even in the face of unimaginable
adversity. It makes you think, you know? When
you consider what he went through, those split
-second decisions he had to make, the physical
and mental toll of those eight days in hiding,
what does it tell us about courage, about the
bonds forged in combat? Those are big questions.
Big questions. And I think it's worth thinking
about those questions long after we're done with
this deep dive. Yeah, I agree. And I think it's
worth checking out the stories of other Medal
of Honor recipients and learning more about the
Vietnam War and all the sacrifices that were
made. There are countless stories out there of
bravery and resilience that deserve to be remembered.
Absolutely. So dive in, explore and never forget
the courage of those who served. That's it for
this deep dive. Until next time. And I want to
thank everybody for listening to Veterans Radio
today. I am Jim Fossone. It's been a pleasure
to be your host. I'm a Veterans disability lawyer
at Legal Help for Veterans and you can reach
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