When Lt. Col. Charles Kettles was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Barack Obama on July 18, John Osborne of Williamstown was right there with him. Just as he was on May 15, 1967, when he flew the last rescue mission of the day into “Chump Valley,” South Vietnam.
As commander of the 176th Aviation Company, Kettles’ mission was to fly in reinforcements and rescue wounded soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division, who were outnumbered by the North Vietnamese near Duc Pho, according to the U.S. Army website.