Alfred P. Dianda

The President of the United States takes pride in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross (Posthumously) to Alfred P. Dianda (0-963871), Second Lieutenant (Infantry), U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy of the United Nations while serving with the Company D, 1st Battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. Second Lieutenant Dianda distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism in action against enemy aggressor forces near Taejon, Korea, on 16 July 1950. On this date during a withdrawal from the Kum River Line, Lieutenant Dianda’s unit was halted by an enemy roadblock consisting of well-emplaced automatic weapons and small-arms fire. The enemy emplacements were situated above a narrow, winding mountain road and covered all approaches with heavy fire. The initial enemy fire was heavy and accurate, and caused many casualties. Lieutenant Dianda mounted a tank and, in his exposed position directed fire against the enemy, destroying many of the gun emplacements. Following this assault a second roadblock was encountered. Lieutenant Dianda mounted an abandoned truck, personally manned a .50 caliber machine-gun, and silenced the hostile weapons. Later Lieutenant Dianda, through his initiative, leadership, courage, and ability reorganized three hundred survivors of the battalion while under fire and led them through mountainous enemy territory for a distance of twenty miles to safety. His resourcefulness saved the lives of many soldiers and established order out of chaos.
Headquarters, Eighth U.S. Army, Korea: General Orders No. 77 (September 23, 1950)