The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy and Marine Corps Medal to Sergeant Richard B. Bettis (MCSN: 608342), United States Marine Corps, for heroism in preventing the loss of life and property on 18 July 1951 at Pohang, Korea. A thirty-two hundred gallon fuel truck burst into flame while re-fueling transient aircraft. Sergeant Bettis observed the immediate danger to personnel and aircraft in the area. Risking imminent explosion of the vehicle, and with flames reaching the interior of the cab, Sergeant Bettis manned the driver’s seat and drove the flaming vehicle a distance of one hundred fifty yards, safely clear of the parked aircraft, where increasingly intense heat forced him to abandon the cab. His heroic conduct in the face of great danger to himself was outstanding and was in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.