The Wall › Panel 30E › New York › Carlos James Lozada
CARLOS JAMES LOZADA
Private First Class · U.S. Army
September 6, 1946 – November 20, 1967
Medal of Honor StoryPortrait: U.S. Army, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Carlos James Lozada, of New York, New York, served as a Private First Class in the U.S. Army. He died on November 20, 1967, in Kontum Province, South Vietnam, at age 21. His name is inscribed on Panel 30E, Line 45 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
Medal of Honor · awarded posthumously
For conspicuous gallantry
Carlos James Lozada received the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest award for valor, for his actions on November 20, 1967. The official citation reads:
The President of the United States in the name of The Congress takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to:
LOZADA, CARLOS JAMES
Rank and organization:Private First Class, U.S. Army, Company A, 2d Battalion, 503d Infantry, 173d Airborne Brigade.
Place and date: Dak To, Republic of Vietnam, November 20, 1967.
Entered service at: New York, N.Y.
Born: September 6, 1946, Caguas, Puerto Rico.
Citation:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Pfc. Lozada, U.S. Army, distinguished himself at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty in the battle of Dak To. While serving as a machine gunner with 1st platoon, Company A, Pfc. Lozada was part of a 4-man early warning outpost, located 35 meters from his company's lines. At 1400 hours a North Vietnamese Army company rapidly approached the outpost along a well-defined trail. Pfc. Lozada alerted his comrades and commenced firing at the enemy who were within 10 meters of the outpost. His heavy and accurate machinegun fire killed at least 20 North Vietnamese soldiers and completely disrupted their initial attack. Pfc. Lozada remained in an exposed position and continued to pour deadly fire upon the enemy despite the urgent pleas of his comrades to withdraw. The enemy continued their assault, attempting to envelop the outpost. At the same time enemy forces launched a heavy attack on the forward west flank of Company A with the intent to cut them off from their battalion. Company A was given the order to withdraw. Pfc. Lozada apparently realized that if he abandoned his position there would be nothing to hold back the surging North Vietnamese soldiers and that the entire company withdrawal would be jeopardized. He called for his comrades to move back and that he would stay and provide cover for them. He made this decision realizing that the enemy was converging on 3 sides of his position and only meters away, and a delay in withdrawal meant almost certain death. Pfc. Lozada continued to deliver a heavy, accurate volume of suppressive fire against the enemy until he was mortally wounded and had to be carried during the withdrawal. His heroic deed served as an example and an inspiration to his comrades throughout the ensuing 4-day battle. Pfc. Lozada's actions are in the highest traditions of the U.S. Army and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the U.S. Army.
Badge
Combat Infantryman Badge
1st Row
Medal of Honor
Purple Heart
Army Good Conduct Medal
2nd Row
National Defense Service Medal
Vietnam Service Medal with one bronze service star
Vietnam Campaign Medal
Badge
Parachutist Badge
Unit awards
Army Presidential Unit Citation
Valorous Unit Award
^ "Carlos Lozada". Hall of Valor. Military Times. Retrieved September 6, 2010.
Citation text as reproduced in Wikipedia’s article on Carlos James Lozada; Medal of Honor citations are official U.S. government records. See also the Congressional Medal of Honor Society and all Medal of Honor recipients on the Wall.
On the Wall
Panel 30E · Line 45
Names are inscribed in the order of loss, starting at Panel 1E at the apex and ending at Panel 1W. At the Memorial, find the panel number at the base and count down from the top line.
Remember
Did you know him? Family members and friends are invited to share a photograph or a memory. Nothing is posted until it has been reviewed.
Service
- Branch
- U.S. Army
- Rank
- Private First Class (PFC)
- Service
- Drafted (Selective Service)
- Unit (as recorded)
- 173 AIRBORNE BDE
- Born
- September 6, 1946
- Home of record
- New York, New York (Kings County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- November 20, 1967
- Age
- 21
- Province
- Kontum
- Country
- South Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Killed in Action
- Circumstance
- Unknown
Context · from the records
What was happening
79 names on the Wall carry the date November 20, 1967; 72 of them were lost in Kon Tum Province. In November 1967, 1,133 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
The 173rd Airborne Brigade, his unit in the record, lost 212 of its members that month.
He died in Kon Tum Province while the Battle of Đắk Tô was under way. Around Đắk Tô in the Central Highlands (3–23 November 1967), the 4th Infantry Division and the 173rd Airborne Brigade fought North Vietnamese regiments for the hills along the border, ending with the assault on Hill 875 on Thanksgiving Day. The casualty record gives the province and date, not the exact place, so it does not say whether he fell in the battle itself.
Read the history
On the Wall
Also on Panel 30E, Line 45
- WESTON JOSEPH LANGLEYSpecialist Four · November 20, 1967
- ROGER DALE MABEPrivate First Class · November 20, 1967
- JOHN MURRAY MARTINLieutenant Colonel · November 20, 1967
- GEORGE MICHAEL MATTINGLYPrivate First Class · November 20, 1967
Same unit, same day
- LOUIS GEORGE WASHI ARNOLDPrivate First Class · Panel 30E, Line 37
- GREGORY CHARLES BAUERPrivate · Panel 30E, Line 37
- BRUCE MARTIN BENZINGPrivate First Class · Panel 30E, Line 37
- NEAL IRA BESTPrivate First Class · Panel 30E, Line 37
- MANFRED FRANCIS CAMAROTESergeant · Panel 30E, Line 37
- DAVID BROOKS BETCHELSpecialist Four · Panel 30E, Line 38
- ROBERT TILDON BLYSpecialist Four · Panel 30E, Line 38
- HARVEY LEE BROWN IIISpecialist Four · Panel 30E, Line 38
- RICHARD THOMAS BUSENLEHNERFirst Lieutenant · Panel 30E, Line 38
- ERNESTO SOLIZ CANTUSpecialist Four · Panel 30E, Line 38
- THOMAS LOUIS CORBETTSpecialist Four · Panel 30E, Line 39
- CLAUDE LEE CRAWFORDPrivate · Panel 30E, Line 39
- BRUCE WAYNE CUNNINGHAMSpecialist Four · Panel 30E, Line 39
- TROY ALEXANDER GALYANSpecialist Four · Panel 30E, Line 39
- JOHN DAGOSTINOPrivate First Class · Panel 30E, Line 40
- ROBERT PAUL DEGENPrivate First Class · Panel 30E, Line 40
- LARRY AIME DENTREMONTPrivate First Class · Panel 30E, Line 40
- CASIMIRO DIANDAPrivate First Class · Panel 30E, Line 40
- JOHN MICHAEL DUNBARSpecialist Four · Panel 30E, Line 41
- JAMES CABELL FARLEYPrivate First Class · Panel 30E, Line 41
- MICHAEL WILLIAM FERENCEPrivate First Class · Panel 30E, Line 41
- ANGEL RAMO FLORES-JIMENEZPrivate First Class · Panel 30E, Line 41
- CHARLES RICHARD CREWSPrivate First Class · Panel 30E, Line 42
- JUAN MANUEL GARCIAPrivate First Class · Panel 30E, Line 42
From New York
- WALTER R MCCARTHY JRCaptain · June 16, 1962
- JOHN HOWARD MCCLEANCaptain · August 16, 1963
- DONALD ALLAN MOLLICONEFirst Lieutenant · December 20, 1963
- VINCENT JOSEPH HICKMANCaptain · January 14, 1964
- MARTIN STOCKFEDERPrivate First Class · July 15, 1964
- ROBERT GEORGE ARMSTRONGFirst Lieutenant · October 24, 1964
- DOMINICK SANSONESergeant First Class · December 10, 1964
- DONALD GILBERT COOKColonel · December 31, 1964
- TERENCE MEREDITH MURPHYLieutenant (junior grade) · April 9, 1965
- ROBERT CARL WISTRANDColonel · May 9, 1965
Source. U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Casualty Analysis System, Vietnam Conflict Extract Data File (as of April 29, 2008), Records of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Record Group 330, National Archives (NAID 2240992). Panel and line as recorded in that file. The Medal of Honor citation above is the official account of his actions. See something wrong? Report a correction.