Vietnam Training Service Medal

August 23, 2010 – 2:03 pm

Vietnam Training Service Medals are not US military medals, but foreign awards, and unlike the medals of America, they were presented by the Republic of South Vietnam.  The Vietnam Training Service Medal was authorized by the now defunct government of South Vietnam in 1964.  These military medals were designed to honor both Vietnamese and foreign instructors who contributed significantly to training efforts.  These military ribbons were granted in two degrees: the First Class medal was awarded to military officers and Second Class medal was bestowed upon Non Commissioned Officers and enlisted personnel.

These military medals are authorized for wear by US service personnel, but are currently considered obsolete as the issuing authority was the now non-existent government of South Vietnam.  They are worn below the Vietnam Technical Service Medal and above the Vietnam Gallantry Cross in the general order of precedence that has been established for the display of all military medals and ribbons by US service personnel.  

Today, Vietnam Training Service Medals are available only from private military insignia dealers.  It is generally worn as traditional slide-on military ribbons, or the newer ultra thin ribbons that have become so very popular among up and coming military personnel who know how important it is to their career advancement to always maximize the neatness and smartness of their uniform appearance.

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Vietnam Technical Service Medal

August 22, 2010 – 9:55 am

Vietnam Technical Service Medals are not US military medals, but foreign awards, and unlike the medals of America, they were presented by the Republic of South Vietnam.  The Vietnam Technical Service Medal was issued by the now defunct government of what was then the Republic of South Vietnam between the years of 1964 and 1972 during the Vietnam War.  These military medals were awarded in two degrees, one for commissioned officers and one for warrant officers and enlisted personnel.  These military medals were bestowed upon civilians and military personnel who had performed duties “as technicians or of a technical nature” and had demonstrated “outstanding professional capacity, initiative, and devotion to duty”.  These military ribbons were a “behind-the-lines” type of award, mainly presented to those who were engaged in support and upkeep duties for units deployed to the front lines of the Vietnam War.

The two classes of the Vietnam Technical Service Medal were denoted by a slight variation in the award’s ribbon bar, with the suspension medal for the decoration identical in both cases. The Vietnam Technical Service Medal was occasionally bestowed to foreigners, but not to the extent as other well known Vietnamese awards such as the Vietnam Gallantry Cross or the Vietnam Campaign Medal.

The Vietnam Technical Service Medal became obsolete in 1974 upon the fall of the South Vietnam government, which was its issuing authority.  US service personnel ware the award below the Vietnam Staff Service Medal and above the Vietnam Training Service Medal in the general order of precedence that has been established for the display of all military medals and ribbons.    

The award appeared as a disc with a propeller suspended from a blue-grey ribbon. The second class version contained two vertical red lines while the first class medal displayed an additional set of thin red lines down the center of the award ribbon. Today, the award is only available as military ribbons from private dealers in military insignia.  It is traditionally worn as a slide on ribbon, or the newer thin mini-medals, and mounted military ribbons that have become so very popular among up and coming military personnel who know how important it is to their career advancement to always maximize the neatness and smartness of their uniform appearance.

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Vietnam Staff Service Medal

August 21, 2010 – 6:51 pm

Vietnam Staff Service Medals are not US military medals, but foreign awards, and unlike the medals of America, they were presented by the Republic of South Vietnam.  The Vietnam Staff Service Medal was created by the now defunct government of South Vietnam and issued between1964 and 1973.  These military medals were awarded in two degrees and presented for exemplary service while performing military duty on the staff of a major Vietnamese military command.  To be issued one of these military medals a service member must have performed at least six months of military duty, while serving on a military staff, with such performance being above and beyond that which would normally be required for the position.  These military ribbons were presented in two grades for such service with the first class grade for officers and the second class for enlisted personnel. The two different grades were annotated by border coloring on the medal’s ribbon, the first class being green and the second class blue.

Nowadays, Vietnam Staff Service Medals are only awarded as military ribbons and are considered to be obsolete decorations since the awarding government no longer exists.  They are worn below the Vietnam Armed Forces Honor Medal and above the Vietnam Technical Service Medal in the general order of precedence that has been established for the display of all military medals and ribbons for US personnel.   These military ribbons are only available through private purchase from military insignia dealers, today.   Like most military ribbons, they may be worn as traditional slide-on military ribbons.  Nowadays however, more and more military service personnel are realizing the value to their career goals of always having their uniform decorations looking their best, and have turned to the slimmer and trimmer thin military medals and mini medals and the ultra thin ribbon racks to provide them with the smartest looking military award displays possible.

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Vietnam Armed Forces Honor Medal

August 20, 2010 – 12:02 pm

Vietnam Armed Forces Honor Medals are not US military medals, but foreign awards, and unlike the medals of America, they were presented by the Republic of South Vietnam.  The Vietnam Armed Forces Honor Medal was created by the now extinct government of the Republic of South Vietnam in 1953.  These military medals were issued in two degrees during the Vietnam War, and were frequently bestowed upon personnel of the US armed forces.  The first class medal was issued to commissioned officers while the second class was bestowed upon warrant officers and enlisted personnel. The Vietnam Armed Forces Honor Medal, which were actually military ribbons, were awarded to any member of the military who actively contributed to the formation and organization of the Vietnamese military and who actively participating in cadre training of Vietnamese units. These military awards were presented for non-combat service only and were comparable to US Commendation Medals.

The two grades of the Vietnam Armed Forces Honor Medal were annotated on the medal by the coloring of the medal’s ribbon. The first class grade displayed a yellow and red pattern while the second class displayed red and yellow. In addition, the medal’s medallion for the first class grade was gold while the second class was of a silver coloring.  These military awards are worn by US service personnel just below the Vietnam Air Gallantry Cross, and just above the Vietnam Staff Service Medal in the general order of precedence that has been established for the display of all US military medals and ribbons.  Since the government of South Vietnam has ceased to exist, these awards are only available from private dealers in military insignia.  Like most military ribbons, they may be worn as traditional slide-on military ribbons.  Nowadays however, more and more military service personnel are realizing the value to their career goals of always having their uniform decorations looking their best, and have turned to the slimmer and trimmer thin military medals and mini medals and the ultra thin ribbons to provide them with the smartest looking military award displays possible.

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Vietnam Air Gallantry Cross

August 19, 2010 – 4:52 pm

Vietnam Air Gallantry Cross Medals are not US military medals, but foreign awards, and unlike the medals of America, they were presented by the Republic of South Vietnam.  The Vietnam Air Gallantry Cross was created by the government of the Republic of South Vietnam and issued throughout the Vietnam War to US and Vietnam soldiers.  These military medals and ribbons were awarded to members of foreign militaries, but only if an air combat action was performed which directly benefited Vietnamese war efforts.  Pilots of the US Air Force were often awarded the Vietnam Air Gallantry Cross.  These military medals were considered the Vietnam government’s equivalent of the US Air Forces’ Air Medal.  There are currently no corresponding military medals available for this award.

Separate decorations, known as the Vietnam Navy Gallantry Cross and the Vietnam Gallantry Cross were also issued for naval achievement and general service.  These were, however, separate awards from the Vietnam Air Gallantry Cross.

The US government has authorized the Vietnam Air Gallantry Cross to be worn by US service personnel below the Vietnam Military Merit Medal and above the Vietnam Armed Forces Honor Medal in the general order of precedence that has been established for the display of all military medals and ribbons.  Like most military ribbons, they may be worn as traditional slide-on military ribbons.  Nowadays however, more and more military service personnel are realizing the value to their career goals of always having their uniform decorations looking their best, and have turned to the slimmer and trimmer thin military medals and mini medals and the ultra thin ribbons to provide them with the smartest looking military award displays possible.

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Vietnam Military Merit Medal

August 18, 2010 – 5:46 am

Vietnam Military Merit Medals are not US military medals, but foreign awards, and unlike the medals of America, they were presented by the Republic of South Vietnam.  The Vietnam Military Merit Medal was created in August of 1950 by the government of South Vietnam, and was modeled after the US Medal of Honor to be their highest military decoration during the years of the Vietnam War.  These military medals were only available to enlisted personnel who had performed extreme acts of bravery or had given their lives in armed combat with enemy forces of South Vietnam.  The National Order of Vietnam medals were considered equivalent military awards available to officers.    

The US military authorized the Vietnam Military Merit Medal as a foreign decoration and permitted the medal to be worn on U.S. uniforms.  A high number of bestowals were made posthumously as the medal was most often awarded to United States enlisted personnel who had been killed in action fighting the forces of North Vietnam or the guerrilla forces of the Viet Cong.  The Vietnam Military Merit Medal was last issued to U.S. personnel in 1973 and was discontinued after the fall of South Vietnam in 1975.  These military awards are now only available through private dealers in military insignia.

Vietnam Military Merit Medals are currently available as military ribbons which US service personnel may ware below the National Order of Vietnam and above the Vietnam Air Gallantry Medal.   Like most military ribbons, they may be worn as traditional slide-on military ribbons.  Nowadays however, more and more military service personnel are realizing the value to their career goals of always having their uniform decorations looking their best, and have turned to the slimmer and trimmer thin military medals and mini medals and the ultra thin ribbons to provide them with the smartest looking military award displays possible.

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Take Pride in Your Army Medals

August 17, 2010 – 11:31 am

There are many US military medals and some foreign awards approved for wear by US military personnel.  The medals of America are generally broken into the five major service branches of issue authority.  Of those, the oldest military medals generally belong to the US Army.

U.S. Army ribbons and medals are awarded for all levels of bravery, heroism and duty performance.  Each one stands for a different act of bravery or represents levels of achievement for duties with differing levels of difficulty.  Although there are higher and lower levels of U.S. Army medals, all of them are equally commendable.  With roughly 1,083,000 soldiers currently in the U.S. Army, receiving any medal is exceptional.

The Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal is awarded for participation in any military operation of the United States to which there is no other medal endorsed. The Army Good Conduct Medal is awarded to those members of the U.S. Army who have successfully completed 3 years of faithful service.  The Armed Forces Reserve Medal is given to those members of the U.S. military who have completed 10 years in the Army reserves.  While each medal recognizes a different level of performance, they all symbolize some form of excellence.

The Bronze star is given to individuals who showed great amounts of bravery or acts of merit in combat.  It is the fourth highest combat award and the ninth highest over military awards.  The Army Commendation Medal it typically awarded to a junior officer and enlisted personnel as an end-of-tour award. This award is presented for acts worthy of praise in direct contact with an enemy force but of a lesser level than those receiving the Bronze Star.

The Soldier’s Medal is a medal that honors heroism.  The Soldier’s Medal is a non-combat award given to any person who shows heroism not involving actual conflict with an enemy of the United States while serving the United States Army.  The Army Distinguished Service Medal is given to a member if the United States Army who has distinguished themselves by remarkably commendable service to the U.S. Government in a duty of great responsibility.

The second-ranked US Army Medal is the Army Distinguished Service Cross Medal. This award is given for extreme valor and risk of life in actual combat with an enemy of the United States.  Because of the nature of its criteria, this award is only given when a military member meets all other qualifications of every U.S. combat decorations except the Medal of Honor.  The Medal of Honor is the ultimate highest medal is the U.S. Army and all other branches of the military. This award is usually given posthumously because of its high qualifying criteria.

Exceptional acts of bravery, the ability to stay above the grade, and loyal service are just three qualities a member of U.S. Army must possess to attain even the least exceptional medals the Army has to offer.

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National Order of Vietnam

August 16, 2010 – 11:00 am

The National Order of Vietnam awards are not US military medals, but foreign awards, and unlike the medals of America, they are presented by the Republic of South Vietnam.  The National Order of Vietnam was a combined military-civilian decoration of the Republic of South Vietnam and was considered the highest honor that could be bestowed upon an individual by that now extinct government.  These military medals were created in 1950 and awarded to persons who performed “grandiose works, remarkable deeds, exhibited bravery, or for those who have honored and served the country by lofty virtues and outstanding knowledge.”  These military awards were modeled after the French Legion d’honneur, and were similarly issued in five degrees called the Grand Cross, the Grand Officer, Commander, Officer, and Knight.  In the French tradition, each of these military ribbons has a unique design and was worn in a particular position.

During the Vietnam War, the National Order of Vietnam was bestowed on several members of the US military, most of whom were senior military and political advisors to the South Vietnamese government. The decoration could also be awarded posthumously. 

Since the National Order of Vietnam was both a civil and a military decoration, it was displayed above all other awards when worn on a military uniform. A purely military equivalent of the decoration was the Vietnam Military Merit Medal, awarded only to members of the military.  These decorations are worn below the Vietnam Presidential Unit Citation and above the Vietnam Military Merit Medal in the general order of precedence that has been established for the proper display of all military medals and ribbons.  These awards are currently available to US military personnel as traditional slide-on military ribbons, and the newer thin military ribbons.  These awards can be worn as traditional slide on military ribbons, or the newer ultra thin military ribbons that have gained such wide-spread acclaim from military personnel who desire to maximize the smartness of their uniform appearance.

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Vietnam Presidential Unit Citation

August 15, 2010 – 1:44 pm

Vietnam Presidential Unit Citations are not US military medals, but foreign awards, and unlike the medals of America, they are presented by the Republic of South Vietnam.  The Vietnam Presidential Unit Citation was created by the South Vietnamese government.  These military ribbons were awarded to all personnel in the Indo-China Military Assistance Advisory Group during August and September of 1954.  These military awards were also presented to units of the US military deemed to have performed exceptional services to the Republic of South Vietnam throughout the US involvement in the Vietnam War.   The VPUC is now considered obsolete since the bestowing authority of the government of South Vietnam ceased to exist with the extinction of that ruling body.

 The Vietnam Presidential Unit Citation is worn below the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and above the National Order of Vietnam in the general order of precedence that has been established for the proper display of all military medals and ribbons for US service branches.   These awards are available as military ribbons, lapel pins and unit awards.  They may be worn as traditional slide-on military ribbons, or the newer ultra thin military ribbons that have gained such wide-spread acclaim from military personnel who desire to maximize the smartness of their uniform appearance.

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Korean Presidential Unit Citation

August 14, 2010 – 9:32 am

Korean Presidential Unit Citations are not US military medals, but foreign awards, and unlike the medals of America, they are presented by the Republic of South Korea.  The Korean Presidential Unit Citation was issued by the government of the Republic of South Korea.  These military ribbons were bestowed upon several US and UK, as well as Korean military units.  Later, these military awards were retroactively presented to every unit of the US army which had deployed to Korea between 1950 and 1954.  The commander of the US Marine Corps Forces serving in Korea between December of 1999 and April of 2002 was also awarded this decoration.  No corresponding military medals have been authorized for this award.

In addition to South Korean, US and UK military units, there have been several other nationalities including the Canadians, the Australians, the Italians, the Puerto Ricans, the South Africans and the Dutch whose military units have won the Korean Presidential Unit Citation.  

The Korean Presidential Unit Citation may be worn below the Philippine Presidential Unit Citation and above the Vietnam Presidential Unit Citation in the general order of precedence that has been established for the proper display of all military ribbons and medals.  These awards are available as military ribbons, lapel pins and unit awards.  They may be worn as traditional slide-on military ribbons, or the newer ultra thin military ribbons that have gained such wide-spread acclaim from military personnel who desire to maximize the smartness of their uniform appearance.

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