AWARDS ACKNOWLEDGED BY THE AMERICAN WAR LIBRARY
Co. D, 17th Infantry Airborne (LRRP)
11Oct67-31May68
 Frankfurt, Germany Terry completed Airborne Jump School in 1967 at age 17 and was assigned to the elite 17th Airborne light infantry force which was capable of conducting Direct Action Operations. McIntosh underwent several months of extensive covert and aerial assault warfare training. He was trained in automatic light weapons, radio communications, and special operations missions performing raids and ambushes. European Service was during the Cold War   From Terry McIntosh
A salute to the brave men I served with who were wounded
and/or killed in action in Vietnam
| 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) 3Aug68-26Jul69
 Det. A-414 Mekong Delta, South Vietnam Due to heavy US casualties, Terry was assigned to the Green Berets in 1968 Vietnam. He served 6 months on A-Team 414 in the Mekong Delta 1969. The Groups' motto "De Oppresso Liber" (To Liberate the Oppressed.) He commanded or participated in 22 combat missions to include Search & Destroy, Ambush, Airboat, and Helicopter Insert Missions. He served along with Col. Robert Rheault's espionage team at the time of the execution of a double agent (Who killed Thai Khac Chuyen) . He ran missions with the double agent before his execution. The incident sparked Daniel Ellsberg's compilation and eventual release of the Pentagon Papers. See also "Project Gamma." An official Army history of the Green Berets published after the Vietnam War does not mention Project GAMMA or Detachment B57. Although the Pentagon has declassified much material about Green Beret cross border operations inside Laos and Cambodia, nothing on Project Gamma has been made available. Campaigns: Counter Offensive Tet 69, Counter Offensives 4,5, 6, Summer and Fall Campaign 69. Decorations: Combat Infantryman Badge Awarded to an infantryman or Special Forces soldier for being personally present, and under hostile fire, whilst serving in assigned, primary infantry or special forces duty in a unit actively engaging the enemy in ground combat. US Paratrooper Jump Wings: Awarded to soldiers who receive the proper parachute training and accomplish the required number of jumps. Vietnam Paratrooper Wings: Awarded for Excellence in Aerial Assault Readiness and completing the required number of jumps. German Army Parachutist Badge: Awarded for completion of required jumps. * Undocumented Army Commendation Medal Awarded for heroism, meritorious achievement or meritorious service. Expert Badge (Rifle): The highest degree of marksmanship upon completion of a weapons qualification course. Sharpshooter and Marksman follow in order of accomplishment. Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry Awarded for deeds of valor or heroic conduct while fighting an enemy force. VSM w/4 Bronze Service Stars: Awarded for participation in combat or service with a unit directly supporting a military operation or participating in combat in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, or Vietnam. Civil Actions Honor Medal: Awarded for participation in local police actions to suppress civil unrest in certain areas of South Vietnam. RVCM w/device 60, Two Overseas Service Bars, AGCM, MUC, & NDSM. 5th Group Unit Awards include: The Presidential Unit Citation Despite being one of the smallest units engaged in the Vietnam conflict, the Group colors fly twenty campaign streamers, and its soldiers are among the most highly decorated in the history of our nation.  | operational training campaign that would have required Terry to extend his time in service, and he opted not to extend time in service. He was reassigned on 11March71 to Co D, 16th Engineer Battalion, 1st Armored Division, Ft. Hood, Texas. Discharged 21May71 to USAR Honorable Discharge 1Apr73  SGT Terry McIntosh post Vietnam 1969  Arms Qualifications Rifle (Expert) Pistol "Quick Kill" Sharpshooter 81mm Mortar Sharpshooter Bayonet Marksman Grenade Marksman All claims regarding military service and awards by any veteran can be and should be verified through the Freedom of Information Act and agencies who do the proper research. The American War Library is one such organization that verifies or refutes claims of service and awards.  DOB 01.16.1950 RA 12 923 926 HOR: Paducah, KY www.usajourney.us/files/MILITARY_AWARDS "The only thing worse than an impostor is someone who impugns the honorable service of a military veteran without just cause." |
Vietnam In Country Duty Stations:
B -41 Moc Hoa, Radio OP, Airboat Patrol, Aerial Assault
A-414 Thanh Tri, a stone's throw from Cambodian border, Kien Tuong Province, Front Line Defense, Counterinsurgency aimed at NVA Units based in Cambodia. Duties included Ambush, Search & Destroy, Coding & Decoding Situation Reports.
Tour of duty included short term assignment to Nui Coto, a fortified Viet Cong stronghold in the 7 Mountains area at end of "The Blood Road," also known as Ho Chi Minh Trail. Terry became ill and was medivac to 29th Evac hospital in Can Tho. Diagnosed "Fever of Unknown Origin." Returned to duty at A-414 upon recovery.
UNOFFICIAL MARK OF DISTINCTIVE SERVICE:
Terry McIntosh is one of the youngest men, if not the actual youngest, to ever serve on a Special Forces A-Team and engage an armed enemy in combat as a Green Beret. Military Records verify that he was assigned to Special Forces at age 18 and at the height of the Vietnam War because of his military skills. The median age of Special Forces soldiers was about 30 to 35 years old. The Group had suffered high causality rate Tet68, and temporarily dropped the age requirement to 18 in order to fill much needed positions. In spite of the age drop, SF only recruited those qualified in a critical Military Occupational Skill. The assignment demanded skill, determination, and ability in keeping with SF standards. He was accepted by his team members without question. After all, they were all getting shot at regardless of age, and it was during a time when a soldier was judged by his actions more than anything else.
Terry earned his Combat Infantryman Badge at age 19 during a Search & Destroy mission. Lt. Col. Wesley Herrlein was OIC with air support, and ten enemy soldiers were killed in action. Terry’s citation of combat was submitted, and orders for the award were officially cut Feb 23, 1969. By then, he was reassigned and serving on Det. A-414 in Thanh Tri, a rifle shot from the Cambodian border. He spent 170 days on the A-Team.
Terry's service was in the old Army and before the SF Tab was issued to qualified soldiers. Before creation of the Tab, Special Forces status was indicated by wearing a full-size unit flash on the Green Beret. At the time of its creation in 1983, the Special Forces Tab was retroactively awarded to any Army soldiers previously Special Forces qualified. In addition, as set forth in Army regulations, veterans of certain categories of former wartime service are also eligible for retroactive awards of the tab. This includes personnel captain and below awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge or Combat Medical Badge while serving at least 120 days wartime service between 1955 and 1975 in a Special Forces Operational Detachment-Alpha (A-Team).
Non Airborne clerical and others on TDY (Temporary Duty) to support and assist Special Forces in Vietnam were allowed to wear the Green Beret with small, rectangular colored patches referred to as Candy Stripes, but did not and do not qualify for SF status. Terry met the wartime criteria outlined above, was airborne qualified and trained in Long Range Reconnaissance. His assignment to SF was PCS (Permanent Change of Station) with full size unit flash, which indicates that he was an official part of the Group by all current standards 1968. Based on those facts, it is likely that he is the youngest man in Special Forces history to engage the enemy in ground combat, and certainly one of the youngest men to wear the Green Beret.
This particular distinction does not merit an award, but it is a footnote in history. If it can be validated that a younger man earned a Combat Infantryman Badge while serving with Special Forces this claim will be deleted.
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