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Department of Washington Legionnaire was cited for his heroism during the Battle of la Drang, when he evacuated more than 70 U.S. wounded troops under enemy fire. 

Medal of Honor recipient Bruce Crandall, cited for his extraordinary heroism during the Battle of Ia Drang in Vietnam, has passed away at age 93. Crandall, a member of 17�Թ��� Department of Washington, was presented the medal on Feb. 26, 2007, from President George W. Bush.

During the Battle of Ia Drang, Crandall flew 22 missions in an unarmed helicopter heading into enemy fire to evacuate more than 70 wounded troops while bringing ammunition and supplies to the front lines. By the end of the Vietnam War, he had flown more than 900 combat missions.

Decades later, Crandall sat down with 17�Թ��� to talk about the battle. “You have a responsibility to the guys on the ground,” he said. “They were mine. And I treated them like that. We just did our job.”

Watch the interview

In 2014, 17�Թ��� Magazine asked its readers, website visitors and social media followers to select from a list of 100 beloved U.S. veterans spanning the nation’s lifetime. More than 70,000 votes were cast; when the final tally was counted, Crandall was ranked 23^rd.

In the that revealed the rankings, a quote from famed Vietnam War correspondent and co-author of “We Were Soldiers Once ... and Young” Joseph Galloway was used to describe Crandall:

“Col. Bruce ‘Ol’ Snake’ Crandall is the bravest, craziest, funniest helicopter pilot I ever met in 43 years of going to war. On Nov. 14, 1965, during the Vietnam War’s Battle of Ia Drang, Snake and his wingman, Maj. Ed ‘Too Tall to Fly’ Freeman, led 16 slick Hueys into Landing Zone X-Ray again and again – hauling in 1st Battalion 7th Cavalry troops, hauling out their wounded, and hauling in resupplies of ammunition, water and medical supplies. When the LZ got so hot that Lt. Col. Hal Moore closed it, ‘Snake’ and ‘Too Tall’ just kept coming. Both of them earned the Medals of Honor they received for their actions. Scores of the wounded are alive today because of their heroism.”

And in 2021, Crandall addressed 17�Թ���’s national convention, helping present the Legion’s Spirit of Service Awards to active-duty servicemembers honored for their volunteer efforts in their communities.