The Wall › Panel 16E › Massachusetts › David George Ouellet
DAVID GEORGE OUELLET
Seaman · U.S. Navy
June 13, 1944 – March 6, 1967
Medal of Honor StoryDavid George Ouellet, of Wellesley, Massachusetts, served as a Seaman in the U.S. Navy. He died on March 6, 1967, in Go Cong Province, South Vietnam, at age 22. His name is inscribed on Panel 16E, Line 30 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
Medal of Honor · awarded posthumously
For conspicuous gallantry
David George Ouellet received the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest award for valor, for his actions on March 6, 1967. The official citation reads:
Seaman David G. Ouellet, United States Navy, (posthumous), Seaman, U.S. Navy, River Squadron 5, My Tho Detachment 532., Mekong River, Republic of Vietnam, March 6, 1967.
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with River Section 532, in combat against the enemy in the Republic of Vietnam. As the forward machine gunner on River Patrol Boat (PBR) 124, which was on patrol on the Mekong River during the early evening hours of March 6, 1967, Seaman Ouellet observed suspicious activity near the river bank, alerted his Boat Captain, and recommended movement of the boat to the area to investigate. While the PBR was making a high-speed run along the river bank, Seaman Ouellet spotted an incoming enemy grenade falling toward the boat. He immediately left the protected position of his gun mount and ran aft for the full length of the speeding boat, shouting to his fellow crew members to take cover. Observing the Boat Captain standing unprotected on the boat, Seaman Ouellet bounded onto the engine compartment cover, and pushed the Boat Captain down to safety. In the split second that followed the grenade's landing, and in the face of certain death, Seaman Ouellet fearlessly placed himself between the deadly missile and his shipmates, courageously absorbing most of the blast fragments with his own body in order to protect his shipmates from injury and death. His extraordinary heroism and his selfless and courageous actions on behalf of his comrades at the expense of his own life were in the finest tradition of the United States Naval Service.
^ United States Navy.Navy Medal of Honor: Vietnam War 1964-1975. Accessed December 3, 2006.
Citation text as reproduced in Wikipedia’s article on David George Ouellet; 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 16E · Line 30
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
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Service
- Branch
- U.S. Navy
- Rank
- Seaman (SN)
- Service
- Regular
- Occupation
- Seaman (SN)
- Unit (as recorded)
- USNAVFORV
- Born
- June 13, 1944
- Home of record
- Wellesley, Massachusetts (Norfolk County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- March 6, 1967
- Age
- 22
- Province
- Go Cong
- Country
- South Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Died of Wounds
- Circumstance
- Explosive Device
Context · from the records
What was happening
36 names on the Wall carry the date March 6, 1967; he was the only one lost in Go Cong Province that day. In March 1967, 1,091 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
Also on Panel 16E, Line 30
- JIMMIE CARTER MARTINPrivate First Class · March 6, 1967
- STEPHEN GRADY PECKSpecialist Four · March 6, 1967
- WILLIAM CLAUDE POOLEMaster Sergeant · March 6, 1967
- VIRGUS FREDRICK RAMSEY JRPrivate First Class · March 6, 1967
From Wellesley
- THOMAS BERNARD FLOODLance Corporal · March 21, 1966
- DANA STANLEY FROSTCorporal · April 19, 1966
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.