Rank: Corporal
Unit: D Company, 1st Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment
MOS: 11E – Armor Crewman
Awards: Bronze Star Medal with Valor Device, Purple Heart Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal
Badges: Combat Infantryman Badge
Unit awards: Presidential Unit Citation, Vietnamese Gallantry Cross with Palm device
Enlisted by: Regular
Date of birth: 12-Nov-1947
Hometown: Toledo, Ohio
Marital status: Never Married
Campaign: Vietnam Conflict
Start of tour: 3-Apr-1968
Incident date: 3-Jul-1968
Date of casualty: 3-Jul-1968
Age at death: 20
Cause of death: Hostile, died. Artillery/Mortar/Rocket. Artillery, rocket, or mortar.
Raymond Sharp Loftus III died from wound received while gunner on a military vehicle on combat operation when hit by a fragment from a rocket round.
Location of fatality: Binh Duong, South Vietnam
Place of interment: Toledo Memorial Park, Sylvania, Ohio, USA
View this soldier‘s Find a Grave page (opens in a new window)
BRONZE STAR MEDAL
WITH VALOR DEVICE
POSTHUMOUS
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS RAYMOND SHARP LOFTUS III
3 JULY 1968
D COMPANY, 1st SQUADRON
11TH ARMORED CAVALRY REGIMENT
Private First Class Loftus distinguished himself by heroism in connection with military operations against a hostile force on 3 July 1968 while serving with Company D, 1st Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, in the Republic of Vietnam. On this date shortly after midnight, the ambush patrol of which Private Loftus was a member made contact with a platoon-size enemy force. Because of the intense volume of fire that the ambush patrol was receiving from the numerically superior enemy force helicopter gunships were called in. To mark the hostile position required the use of machine gun tracer rounds on the enemy. To accomplish this, Private Loftus, with a total disregard for his own safety, completely exposed himself to the intense hostile fire to place highly accurate machine gun fire on the enemy positions. Private Loftus remained at his exposed position until mortally wounded by the hostile fire. As a result of his heroic actions, the enemy force was located by the gunships and completely eliminated. Private First Class Loftus’ unwavering devotion to duty and great personal bravery while under hostile fire were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit and the United States Army.
Headquarters, II Field Force Vietnam General Orders No. 973 (17 August 1968)