The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 8, 1918 (amended by act of July 25, 1963), takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Sergeant First Class Kenneth Hanna (ASN: RA-249469241), United States Army, for gallantry in connection with military operations against an opposing armed force while serving with Detachment A-101, Company C, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), 1st Special Forces, in the Republic of Vietnam. Sergeant First Class Hanna distinguished himself by exceptionally valorous actions on 6 and 7 February 1968, as Special Forces Advisor to a Vietnamese strike force defending an outpost on a main approach to the Lang Vei Camp. Shortly before North Vietnamese Army forces launched a savage late night tank and ground assault on the main camp, his force came under an intense mortar barrage. Enemy infantrymen quickly surrounded the outpost under cover of the heavy fire and directed a devastating small arms and automatic weapons fusillade on his unit. Exposing himself to a hail of bullets and shrapnel, he moved among his men and directed their defenses. He was seriously wounded by heavy enemy fire but courageously refused aid. Repeatedly moving in the open, he located hostile targets and skillfully directed artillery strikes which inflicted heavy casualties on the determined attackers. Sergeant First Class Hanna’s gallantry in action was in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflects great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.