Kenneth J. David distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty on May 7, 1970, while serving as a radio-telephone operator with Company D, 1st Battalion, 506th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division, near Fire Support Base Maureen, Thua Thien Province, Republic of Vietnam.

The enemy’s ferocious initial assault mortally wounded the company’s platoon leader and resulted in numerous other friendly casualties.

Upon the initial assault and without hesitation, David handed his radio to his platoon sergeant and moved forward to the defensive perimeter, unleashing a barrage of automatic weapons fire on the enemy.

Although wounded by an exploding satchel charge and running perilously low on ammunition, he tossed hand grenades toward the attackers to effectively counter their fire.

David continued to draw enemy fire away from the incoming medevac helicopters, allowing the wounded to be safely evacuated.