Mike & H&S Companies 

Third Battalion, Fifth Marines

Veterans of the Vietnam War

The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the BRONZE STAR MEDAL to

SERGEANT CLYDE CRAIG SULLIVAN

UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS

for service as set forth in the following

CITATION:

For heroic achievement in connection with operations against the enemy while serving as a Platoon Sergeant with Company M, Third Battalion, Fifth Marines, First Marine Division. On 4 September 1967 during Operation Swift in Quang Tin Province, Sergeant SULLIVAN'S platoon, serving as point element for the company, absorbed the brunt of a fierce attack by a massed force of North Vietnamese troops using small arms, automatic weapons and mortar fire.  Immediately, the platoon commander became a casualty and summoned Sergeant SULLIVAN to move forward 100 meters to his position and assume command of the platoon.  With concern only for his duty, Sergeant SULLIVAN started to advance but the increasing hostile fire forced him to seek cover.  While waiting for an opportunity to move, he heard the cry of one of his squad leaders who had been wounded.  Under the covering fire of an M-79 grenade launcher, he courageously exposed himself a second time to the intense enemy fire to go to the aid of his companion.  Moving the wounded Marine to a safe position behind a large rock, he skillfully administered first aid and applied a battle dressing to the disabled man's wounds.  In the meantime, enemy units had moved behind the entrapped unit and had commenced to deliver a heavy volume of fire.  Reacting instantly, Sergeant SULLIVAN ordered his men to move to a bomb crater thirty meters distant.   During this movement, he was wounded in the forehead by a fragment from an exploding enemy mortar.  As dust came and the intensity of the attack increased, Sergeant SULLIVAN radioed for assistance, but the other nearby units were also heavily engaged with the enemy.  Realizing the need to move the critically injured to safety, he organized a team to evacuate them but enemy fire was so heavy that they could only gather the wounded into the bomb crater.  When one of the casualties ceased to breathe, Sergeant SULLIVAN applied mouth-to-mouth resuscitation until the man was revived.   Upon receiving directions to leave the area in  preparation for an air strike, Sergeant SULLIVAN radioed the company commander that his platoon was pinned down in the bomb crater only seventy-five meters from the enemy positions.  Despite the proximity of his unit to the target, he courageously recommended that the air strike commence.   Subsequently, the air strike silenced the enemy automatic weapons and Sergeant SULLIVAN was able to lead his men back to the company's position.  By his composure under the most hazardous conditions and complete disregard for his own safety, he inspired all who observed him and undoubtedly helped save one Marine life.  Sergeant SULLIVAN's courageous leadership, determined fighting spirit and selfless devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval Service.

Sergeant SULLIVAN is authorized to wear the Combat "V".

                                                    FOR THE PRESIDENT   

                                                    V.H. KRULAK

                                         LIEUTENANT GENERAL, U.S. MARINE CORPS

                                COMMANDING GENERAL, FLEET MARINE FORCE, PACIFIC