Glenn Urban Andreotta (October 30, 1947 – April 8, 1968) was an American helicopter crew chief in the Vietnam War noted for being one of three who intervened in the Mỹ Lai massacre, in which 504 unarmed children, women and men were murdered.
Serving as a crew chief aboard an OH-23 Raven observation helicopter, his pilot was Warrant Officer One Hugh Thompson, Jr. and his door-gunner was Specialist Four Lawrence Colburn, both of whom would also be acclaimed for their heroism at My Lai.
Thompson and his crew watched from a low hover as Captain Ernest Medina (C Company Commander, 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment) came up to the woman, prodded her with his foot, and then shot and killed her.
Shocked at the sight, he radioed his accompanying gunships, knowing his transmission would be monitored by many on the net: "It looks to me like there's an awful lot of unnecessary killing going on down there.
Second Lieutenant William Calley (1st Platoon Leader, C Company) then came up, and the two had the following conversation:[2] Thompson took off again, and Andreotta reported that Mitchell was now executing the people in the ditch.
Furious, Thompson flew over the northeast corner of the village and spotted a group of about ten civilians, including children, running toward a homemade bomb shelter.
After coaxing the 11 Vietnamese out of the bunker, Thompson persuaded the pilots of the two UH-1 Huey gunships (Dan Millians and Brian Livingstone) flying as his escort to evacuate them.
After wading through the remains of the dead and dying men, women and children, Andreotta extracted a live boy, Do Ba, and handed him up to Colburn and Thompson.
On April 8 he was serving as the door gunner aboard OH-23 helicopter 62-03813, along with crew chief Specialist Five Charles M. Dutton and pilot First Lieutenant Barry Lloyd.
Viet Cong activity was reported 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) southwest of Quảng Ngãi, and their scout helicopter was ordered to accompany two gunships to that location and flush out and destroy the enemy.
Then a North Vietnamese 12.7 mm anti-aircraft machine gun began firing on the scout, destroying both the swashplate and control panel.
Dutton was covered in burning Avgas when the craft finally hit the ground, and a North Vietnamese soldier ran towards the wreckage and shot him, before retreating— leaving a wounded Lloyd lying in shock where he had been thrown from the impact.
Soon after he was killed by hostile fire, Andreotta received a posthumous Bronze Star for his part in rescuing children at My Lai.
[8] Andreotta received a posthumous Courage of Conscience Award for his unusual bravery and compassion in helping, along with helicopter crewmen Hugh C. Thompson Jr. and Lawrence Coburn, to save civilian lives during the My Lai massacre in Vietnam in 1968.
Andreotta was posthumously awarded the Soldier's Medal in 1998 for his bravery in stopping the My Lai Massacre, along with Lawrence Colburn and Hugh Thompson, Jr.