Alan Cozzalio

Alan "Ace" Cozzalio (August 19, 1946 – April 30, 1993) was an American army officer, primarily known for his distinguished service as a helicopter pilot in the Vietnam War. Initially nominated for the Medal of Honor, he instead received the Distinguished Service Cross as well as every lesser commendation of valor. He remained in the army, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel before being medically retired due to heart problems. He died six years later at the age of 46 after an unsuccessful heart transplant operation.

Early life and education

Cozzalio was born August 19, 1946, in Ashland, Oregon, and raised on his family's ranch on the Klamath River on the California/Oregon border where he learned to ride horses as a young child. His father, Mel Cozzilio, was a deputy sheriff with the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Department and later an agent with the California Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement. His mother was an art teacher and dean of women at Yreka High School. Cozzalio attended the local schools in Ashland, Hornbrook, California, and high school in Yreka and Sacramento, California. He graduated from Mira Loma High School in 1964. He attended American River Junior College for a year. He worked as a cook and assistant manager at an International House of Pancakes in Sacramento before being drafted into the United States Army in February 1966.

He graduated from Armor Officers Candidate School in April 1967 and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant of Armor. He then received helicopter pilot training from March to October 1967 at the Army Aviation School. Flying came naturally, and he demonstrated exceptional aptitude with rotary-wing aircraft.

Vietnam (1967–1972)

Cozzalio arrived for first time in Vietnam in December 1967, he was deployed to the Bearcat Base in Đồng Nai province and was assigned to an air cavalry reconnaissance unit (D Troop, 3rd Squadron, 5th Cavalry Regiment) attached to the 9th Infantry Division. The unit wore yellow scarves and white Stetsons, evoking the uniform of prior-era horse cavalry units. Cozzalio served as a “War Wagon” pilot, flying the small, two-man OH-6 light observation helicopters—nicknamed Loaches—used for low-level reconnaissance and rapid engagement. In his second tour, he flew Huey Cobra gunships.

Citing his skills as a pilot and leadership experience, the unit's commanding officer placed Cozzalio in charge of the Crusader gunship platoon

He was first shot down in December 1967 after his first 18 hours of piloting in Vietnam, where Cozzalio suffered a broken jaw after crashing, which required a six-week hospital stay, he was treated at the 106th General Hospital in Yokohama, Japan before returning to duty.

On 10 April, Cozzalio became the Aero Scout Section Leader, during which he participated in the May Offensive in Saigon's Cholon sector from May 5 until May 11, 1968, providing critical gunship support during the intense fighting. On May 10, the D Troop along with the 3rd Brigade, 9th Infantry Division, was credited with killing 13 enemy combatants during separate engagements throughout the day. On May 17, he was assigned as Aero Scout Section Commander.

In recognition of their valor, Delta Troop was awarded the Valorous Unit Award, one of the U.S. Army’s highest collective honors for heroism in combat. The official citation praised their “extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty,” crediting their actions with helping to prevent an enemy breakthrough into the capital.

His service included two required six-month tours, during which he received 49 medals including a Silver Star, three Distinguished Flying Crosses, the Soldier's Medal and two Purple Hearts, one for a bullet wound to the neck and another for a broken jaw, suffered after crashing when shot-down, which required a seven-week hospital stay before he returned to duty. He logged over 1,000 hours of combat flying in the area around Saigon.

Flying both Cobra gunships and the Hughes OH-6 Light Observation Helicopter (Loach), he preferred the fast and light Loach and was reportedly the first to arm one with machine guns for offensive operations.

After his twelve months active duty in Vietnam, he took a 30-day leave at his home in Oregon before a voluntary return for an additional six-month extended tour.

United Press International reported that his exploits were "practically legendary" and "far surpass those of the Lone Ranger and Silver".

On January 25, 1969, seven days after his voluntary return to Vietnam, he was awarded, "on the spot", a second Silver Star and promoted in the field from first lieutenant to captain by a general who had observed Cozzalio's assault on an enemy bunker. The incident was part of the Battle of Phu My, where Cozzalio spotted the entrenched enemy position while flying a Cobra gunship. He landed his helicopter and "commandeered" a more maneuverable Loach. "With gallant disregard for his own safety", Cozzalio destroyed the target while hovering a few feet above. He landed to brief the ground forces commander on his view of the battlefield, then resumed flying to direct and support the infantry. He was later awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for this action.

Cozzalio spent eighteen months in Vietnam and was shot down a total of six times. Several times, he returned in a helicopter so badly damaged it was never flown again. Despite being one of the "most highly decorated" soldiers of the Vietnam war, he did not return for a fourth tour for "straying too many times across the Demilitarized Zone. Over his three tours, he accumulated over 2,100 flying hours in the OH-6A, Bell UH-1 Iroquois, Bell AH-1 Cobra.

Postwar (1972–1986) After service in Vietnam, he returned to the US for several years before deploying as a Special Services Officer to Thailand in 1972. He attended Sul Ross University in Texas in 1974–1975, before duty as a recruitment officer in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1975–1977. From 1977 to 1980, Major Cozzalio was posted to Katterbach Kaserne, Germany with the 501st Combat Aviation Battalion, first as the S3 operations officer, then as an aviation company commander. He returned to U.S. to attend the United States Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas in 1980–1981, and then as a Lt. Colonel he led the ROTC programs as the University of Southern Mississippi in 1981–1984 as an assistant professor of military science. He believed that the desire to serve in the military was strongest in the southern United States. His final posting was to command the 4th Training Battalion of the 1st Aviation Brigade at Ft. Rucker, Alabama in 1984–1986.