173d Airborne Brigade Vietnam Sky Soldiers Long-Sleeve T-Shirt

The 173d Airborne Brigade (Separate) arrived at Bien Hoa from Okinawa in May 1965 under BG Ellis Williamson, the first major U.S. Army ground combat formation to deploy to South Vietnam. On 8 November 1965, 1/503 fought in War Zone D during Operation Hump. Wounded medic SP5 Lawrence Joel kept treating casualties under fire and received the Medal of Honor. The brigade fought around the Cu Chi tunnels during Operation Crimp and returned to the Iron Triangle during Cedar Falls. On 22 February 1967, 2/503 and supporting elements parachuted near Katum in Tay Ninh Province during Operation Junction City.

In the Central Highlands, 2/503 fought the Battle of the Slopes near Dak To in June 1967. The brigade returned to Dak To that November during Operation MacArthur. PFC John Barnes earned the Medal of Honor in the fighting on 11 November, and PFC Carlos Lozada and Chaplain MAJ Charles Watters earned it for their actions at Hill 875. The brigade received the Presidential Unit Citation for Dak To. Later operations took the 173rd to the Bong Son plains, where Washington Green paired combat patrols with support for South Vietnamese territorial forces. The last elements left Vietnam in August 1971. A veterans’ brigade history lists 1,601 killed in action, while the Army’s 2025 remembrance reports 1,790 Sky Soldiers lost in Vietnam without a separate KIA breakdown. Sky Soldiers received more than 6,000 Purple Hearts and 13 Medals of Honor.