Vittori posthumously received the Medal of Honor. Vittori and his friend stopped one more wave before a shot to the face finally killed the young corporal. The Marines suffered more casualties and when Vittori was shot for a second time, he told his friend to run back to the ridge behind them. Vittori and his fellow Marines were securing a hill they had just taken from Chinese forces when a counterattack forced a 100-yard gap that could’ve doomed the U.S. forces. Vittori and others rushed into the opening with automatic rifles and machine guns.Īfter hours of stubborn resistance, Vittori was shot through the chest but continued fighting. Joseph Vittori made his mark on Hill 749 in Korea on Sep. He deployed to Korea with the Air National Guard and rose to the rank of brigadier general before retiring. After that war, he helped organize the American Football League and the South Dakota Air National Guard.
He later tied Air Force Legend Eddie Rickenbacker’s record of 26 aerial kills.įoss was awarded the Medal of Honor for his World War II exploits. Foss was shot down while strafing Japanese ships in 1942. After Pearl Harbor, he was deployed to the Pacific Theater and spent three months defending American-occupied Guadalcanal. Joe Foss joined the Marine Corps before America joined World War II and earned his aviator wings in March of 1941.
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