THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
Washington

The President of the United States, takes pride in presenting the
NAVY CROSS posthumously to:

HOSPITALMAN SAMUEL G. ORLANDO
UNITED STATES NAVY

for service as set forth in the following:

CITATION:

For extraordinary heroism on 4 March, 1966 while serving as Corpsman in Company "H", Second Battalion, Seventh Marines, during Operation UTAH in the Republic of Vietnam. Upon learning that additional Corpsmen were needed when one of the platoons of his company was particularly hard hit by automatic weapons and heavy mortar fire and was sustaining heavy casualties, Orlando unhesitatingly left his position of relative safety and moved across a barren hill in the face of intense fire to the wounded Marines. Exercising outstanding professional skill and resourcefulness, he dressed many wounds and helped evacuate casualties, making several daring trips across the fire-swept area. During one of these trips, when he heard a call for more machine-gun ammunition, he quickly acquired the necessary rounds and carried them to the machine-gun position which was in critically short supply. Hearing the cries of a wounded Marine during an ensuing enemy counter-attack, Orlando crawled forward in a courageous attempt to render aid, but was mortally wounded by enemy fire at the moment he reached his objective. In Sacrificing his own life while saving the lives of many of his comrades, Orlando displayed the highest degree of courage and self-sacrifice. His heroic and inspiring efforts were in keeping the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.

For the President,

Secretary of the Navy