Honor comes 54 years after the destruction of the Bridge at Dong Ha
On 3 March 2026, Congress passed a resolution to recommend the President award Colonel John Ripley ’62, USMC (Ret.), the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions during the Vietnam War.
Ripley received the Navy Cross after he single handedly destroyed a crucial bridge at Dong Ha. On 2 April 1972, then-Captain Ripley, the senior advisor to the 3rd Vietnamese Marine Battalion, repeatedly put himself in harm’s way to place explosives on the Dong Ha bridge over the Cua Viet River in South Vietnam’s Quang Tri province.
Five times, Ripley arm-walked steel girders to set explosives while under continuous enemy fire for five hours. The destruction of the bridge blunted a massive offensive by the North Vietnamese. On Easter Sunday, 1972 communist forces crossed the demilitarized zone in a division level mechanized invasion. Thousands of tanks, troops and artillery advanced toward the Dong Ha bridge.
A diorama of Ripley at the Bridge is on display in Memorial Hall. He is the first Naval Academy graduate to be awarded the Medal of Honor since Vice Admiral James B. Stockdale ’47, USN (Ret.), received his on 4 March 1976.
Efforts to award Ripley the Medal of Honor had stalled. Earlier this year, Secretary of the Navy John Phelan called Ripley’s son, Tom, to meet with him and share the story of Colonel Ripley’s heroics. Phelan, at the orders of the President to evaluate military honors, was impressed and a few days later, the Marine Corps had written an endorsement.
That was followed by Phelan’s and the Secretary of War’s endorsements. Within a couple of weeks, the recommendation was sent to the House Armed Service Committee. Congressman Morgan Griffith, representing Virginia’s Ninth District, sponsored the bill to honor the Radford, Va. native with the nation’s highest military decoration. While Congress has approved the honor, it still must be approved by President Donald Trump.
Tom Ripley said his father, who died in 2008, would have wanted to ensure proper credit to those who supported him, trained him and served alongside him. That includes his wife, Moline, fellow advisor Major Jim Smock, and the 300 men of the 3rd Vietnamese Marine Battalion who fought a desperate battle to buy Ripley time. Of those 300 less than 60 would survive the battle.
“He knew nothing great is ever accomplished by the individual,” Tom Ripley said.
Tom Ripley said the family always believed his father’s actions met the Medal of Honor standard.
“You have faith that your country’s going to do the right thing,” he said. “For us, this is really the completion of a circle.”
Colonel Ripley’s actions on the Dong Ha bridge illustrates his mantra, “Mission first, Marines always,” his son said. Not accomplishing the task would have put Ripley’s people in greater jeopardy than they already were.
Tom Ripley said his father was committed to blowing the bridge because there was no other option.
He said his father was fond of a Winston Churchill quote:
“To each, there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour.”
“My father resigned himself to, ‘I’m probably not making it out of here. I have a job to do. I’m a United States Marine. That’s what we do.’”
Colonel Ripley’s Navy Cross citation reads, in part:
Upon receipt of a report that a rapidly moving, mechanized, North Vietnamese army force, estimated at reinforced divisional strength, was attacking south along Route #1, the Third Vietnamese Marine Infantry Battalion was positioned to defend a key village and the surrounding area. It became imperative that a vital river bridge be destroyed if the overall security of the northern provinces of Military Region One was to be maintained.
Advancing to the bridge to personally supervise this most dangerous but vitally important assignment, Captain Ripley located a large amount of explosives which had been pre-positioned there earlier, access to which was blocked by a chain-link fence. In order to reposition the approximately 500 pounds of explosives, Captain Ripley was obliged to reach up and hand-walk along the beams while his body dangled beneath the bridge.
On five separate occasions, in the face of constant enemy fire, he moved to points along the bridge and, with the aid of another advisor who pushed the explosives to him, securely emplaced them. He then detonated the charges and destroyed the bridge, thereby stopping the enemy assault. By his heroic actions and extraordinary courage, Captain Ripley undoubtedly was instrumental in saving an untold number of lives. His inspiring efforts reflected great credit upon himself, the Marine Corps, and the United States Naval Service.
Ripley was also a Silver Star recipient for his actions of 21 August 1967 as commanding officer of Company L, Third Battalion, Third Marines, THIRD Marine Division in Vietnam.
His Silver Star citation reads in part:
On 21 August 1967, Company L was assigned the mission of reinforcing a convoy that had been surprised by a large enemy force and was pinned down. With one rifle platoon, a small command group, and accompanied by two M-42 dual 40-mm. anti-aircraft guns, Captain Ripley was leading the relief column when it suddenly came under intense enemy automatic weapons and recoilless rifle fire.
Disregarding his own safety and the heavy volume of hostile fire, he moved to the machine gun mounted on the vehicle and opened fire, pinpointing the location of the well concealed North Vietnamese and enabling the 40-mm. guns to deliver accurate fire on the enemy positions. Directing his unit to dismount, he quickly organized a defensive perimeter while coordinating supporting artillery fire and simultaneously controlling the remainder of his company which was widely separated from his position. Repeatedly exposing himself to the hostile fire, he directed artillery fire and air strikes upon the attacking enemy force and courageously adjusted fire missions to within fifty meters of his position. Throughout the following three hours, his skillful employment of supporting arms and direction of the fire of his men repulsed the determined enemy attacks and forced the hostile units to flee in panic and confusion. His aggressiveness and outstanding professionalism were an inspiration to all who served with him and were instrumental in the successful extraction of his unit from an extremely hazardous situation.