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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Capt. William Albracht served as the senior ground
3commander at Firebase Kate, a fortified position in the Central
4Highlands of South Vietnam near the Cambodian border, and was
5tasked with interdicting North Vietnamese Army (NVA) movements
6along the Ho Chi Minh Trail and restricting the enemy's ability
7to attack Special Forces camps in the area; by late October
81969, about 5,000 NVA troops had surrounded the firebase and
9were preparing to attack; Capt. Albracht and fellow Special
10Forces soldier Sgt. Daniel Pierelli prepared the troops for the
11inevitable battle, which finally began on October 28, 1969; and
 
12    WHEREAS, The NVA began its siege of Firebase Kate on the
13night of October 28, when a Civilian Irregular Defense Group
14patrol ran into the forward elements of an NVA regiment; the
15NVA troops, who outnumbered Kate's defenders by about 40 to
16one, launched their first assault around 11:30 the next
17morning; NVA troops mercilessly attacked Firebase Kate with
18small arms fire, mortars, artillery, and B-40 rockets, but
19Kate's defenders drove them off; despite the valiant efforts of
20the defenders at Kate, NVA attacks were slowly wearing them
21down; Capt. William Albracht, wounded during the attack on
22October 29, chose to stay at Kate to lead the remaining
23besieged troops during the assaults; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Seeing that his position was untenable, Capt.
2William Albracht radioed Special Forces Operations and
3requested permission to escape from Firebase Kate with his
4soldiers; after obtaining permission from his superiors, he
5decided to make his escape on November 1; Capt. Albracht and
6Sgt. Pierelli drew up an escape-and-evasion plan, arranged for
7gunships to protect them as they left Kate, and explained
8carefully to the troops how they would link up with a Special
9Forces detachment waiting for them in a concealed position
10about 3 miles away; and
 
11    WHEREAS, After sabotaging everything at the base that could
12be used by the NVA, Capt. William Albracht and his soldiers
13began their trek at about 10 P.M. on November 1, 1969, knowing
14that the NVA would be looking for them and would not take
15prisoners; the NVA immediately lit the area with flares as the
16men fled down the North Slope, through a small gap in the wood
17line, and up the side of Ambush Hill; after dodging NVA patrols
18and ambushes, Capt. Albracht and his men reached Mike Force at
193 A.M. on November 2, 1969; During the final evacuation, Capt.
20Albracht wound up crossing the open field three times, on each
21occasion exposing himself to the enemy, to make sure his men
22were safe; and
 
23    WHEREAS, Capt. William Albracht has been the recipient of 3
24Silver Stars, 3 Purple Hearts, 5 Bronze Stars (3 for valor), 2

 

 

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1Air Medals (one for valor), and an Army Commendation Medal (for
2valor), but has been denied the Medal of Honor for his
3courageous acts at Firebase Kate; and
 
4    WHEREAS, The members of this body believe that the
5gallantry displayed by William Albracht on those fateful days
6is worthy of this nation's greatest military honor; therefore,
7be it
 
8    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
9NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
10we urge Congress and the President to upgrade the Silver Star
11bestowed to former United States Army Special Forces Captain
12William L. Albracht for his actions at Firebase Kate on October
1328 - November 2, 1969 to the Medal of Honor; and be it further
 
14    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
15presented to the President, the Speaker and Minority Leader of
16the United States House of Representatives, and the Majority
17and Minority Leaders of the United States Senate.