URGENT:

Congressional Action Needed -
Justice Delayed for
Colonel Phil Conran's
​Medal of Honor
The Story This Video Tells
​https://vimeo.com/1105860551?share=copy
RIGHT NOW, the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) reconciliation process is determining whether retired Air Force Colonel Philip J. Conran will finally receive the Medal of Honor he earned 56 years ago. The House Armed Services Committee (HASC) has proposed including Conran's case in the NDAA, but the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) has not yet agreed.
Time is running out.
On October 6, 1969, then-Major Phil Conran repeatedly risked his life over six hours to save 54 American and Laotian personnel during a classified CIA operation at Muong Phine, Laos. Despite taking enemy fire and suffering a bullet wound, Conran organized the defense, retrieved critical supplies under fire, and coordinated air support until rescue arrived. His commanding officer recommended him for the Medal of Honor.
But politics intervened.
Why He Was DeniedThe Nixon administration downgraded Conran's Medal of Honor to an Air Force Cross for reasons having nothing to do with his extraordinary heroism:
  • Treaty Violation Cover-up: The mission violated the 1962 Geneva Accords guaranteeing Laos neutrality
  • Political Deception: Awarding the Medal of Honor would have exposed President Nixon's lies about "no American combat forces in Laos"
  • Vietnamization Policy: The award would have contradicted the administration's public withdrawal narrative
When General Lucius Clay presented Conran with the Air Force Cross in 1970, he explicitly told him the Medal of Honor was "initially approved but downgraded because the action took place in Laos, violated a treaty, and contradicted the President's statements about the war."
The Precedent is ClearAir Force Chief Master Sergeant Richard Etchberger faced identical treatment for heroic actions in Laos in 1968. General John D. Ryan admitted Etchberger deserved the Medal of Honor but was downgraded due to operational secrecy. President Obama corrected this injustice in 2010, posthumously awarding Etchberger the Medal of Honor 42 years after his death.
Why This Matters NOW
  • DoD regulations require awards based "solely on the merits" of actions
  • Clear evidence exists of "material error or impropriety" allowing correction
  • The Etchberger precedent provides the legal framework
  • Colonel Conran, now in his 80s, has waited 56 years for justice
What You Can DoCONTACT YOUR SENATORS IMMEDIATELY and urge them to support including Colonel Conran's Medal of Honor in the final NDAA 2026. The Senate Armed Services Committee must act before the reconciliation process closes sometime before the end of December 2025.
This video tells the full story of how political calculations denied an American hero the recognition he earned through extraordinary valor. Watch it, share it, and demand Congress finally do what's right.

"The valorous action(s) must have been one of personal bravery or self-sacrifice so conspicuous as to clearly distinguish the individual above his comrades and must have involved risk of life." - DoD Manual 1348.33
Colonel Conran's actions at Muong Phine, Laos meet every requirement. Politics should never again deny what merit demands.

More on Colonel Conran's Service
"There are no American ground combat troops in Laos."President Richard Nixon, March 6, 1970
Major Philip J. Conran was awarded the Air Force Cross on May 20, 1970, a downgrade from the recommended Medal of Honor. Why was it downgraded? President Nixon certainly did not want to disclose we actually did have American troops in Laos.
On October 6, 1969, then USAF Major Philip J. Conran, piloting a CH-3 helicopter at a classified location in Laos, had just minutes to make a critical decision whether to rescue his downed comrades or fly safely back to the home base. Fortunately for his comrades on the ground, he chose to attempt the rescue even though the heavily armed North Vietnamese combat soldiers were waiting. He knew that if he didn’t make the attempt to rescue the men, they had very little chance of survival. For his heroic actions, he was recommended the Medal of Honor by his commanding officer.
“I retired in 2004 after 40 years in CIA special operations, serving in many trouble spots around the world in that time frame. I have seen several acts of the highest level of courage in my career, but none came close to Phil Conran’s actions at Muang Phin. I strongly believe he should have been awarded the Medal of Honor and never understood why he could be awarded the Air Force Cross for actions in Laos and not the Medal of Honor performed in the same country."
​Bruce Lehfeldt, CIA Special Operations
Phil Conran served in the Connecticut Air National Guard before receiving his ROTC commission at Fordham University, New York. Serving with the 55th Air Rescue Squadron out of Kindley AFB, Bermuda, from 1962 – 65, he deployed in support of the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. He received the Air Force Cross on October 6, 1969, for a mission on the ground in Laos, one of the few ground actions to merit the award. Captain Jackson Hudson, an A-1E Skyraider pilot, also received the Air Force Cross for the same mission. Colonel Conran retired from the Air Force on December 31, 1988.
​Airman’s MedalVietnam WarService:
United States Air ForceRank:
MajorBatallion:
21st Special Operations SquadronRegiment:
56th Special Operations WingDivision:
Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Base, ThailandAction Date:
January 19, 1969
​Air Force CrossVietnam WarService:
United States Air ForceRank:
MajorBatallion:
21st Special Operations SquadronRegiment:
56th Special Operations WingDivision:
Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Base, ThailandAction Date:
October 6, 1969
​Distinguished Flying CrossVietnam WarService:
United States Air ForceRank:
CaptainBatallion:
21st Special Operations SquadronRegiment:
56th Special Operations WingDivision:
Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Base, ThailandAction Date:
February 7, 1969
​Legion of MeritPeacetime AwardsService:
United States Air ForceRank:
ColonelAction Date:
January 1, 1979 – September 7, 1981
​Distinguished Flying CrossVietnam WarService:
United States Air ForceRank:
CaptainBatallion:
21st Special Operations SquadronRegiment:
56th Special Operations WingDivision:
Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Base, ThailandAction Date:
May 5, 1969
​Distinguished Flying CrossVietnam WarService:
United States Air ForceRank:
CaptainBatallion:
21st Special Operations SquadronRegiment:
56th Special Operations WingDivision:
Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Base, ThailandAction Date:
February 14, 1969
​Legion of MeritPeacetime AwardsService:
United States Air ForceRank:
ColonelAction Date:
November 25, 1982 – September 30, 1986
​Distinguished Flying CrossVietnam WarService:
United States Air ForceRank:
MajorBatallion:
21st Special Operations SquadronRegiment:
56th Special Operations WingDivision:
Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Base, ThailandAction Date:
June 3, 1969

 ​TRUTH - JUSTICE - HONOR


Subject: USAF Col. (Ret) Philip J. Conran - Indelible Legacy - Valor Denied

We write to you today about a sacred bond – the promise we make to honor extraordinary valor with our nation's highest recognition. This is not merely about regulations or paperwork. This is about keeping faith with one of our own. This is the story of Phil Conran, a man whose extraordinary valor in 1969 was recognized, documented, and then -through circumstances shrouded in missing paperwork and lost files—denied his rightful honor.
The Letter of the Law: 10 USC § 9271. 
The Medal of Honor requires "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty." The original 1,020-word recommendation for Phil Conran meticulously detailed actions that embodied every element of this standard. This wasn't a marginal case. This wasn't a close call. The extensive detail in that recommendation - over 1,000 words of specific, documented valor - stands in stark contrast to the abbreviated 159-word Air Force Cross citation that ultimately resulted.
What happened to those 861 missing words? What gallantry was deemed unworthy? We cannot know because the record of that decision has vanished.
The Missing Record: A Fatal Flaw
This is not a minor procedural irregularity. The complete absence of any documentation explaining why Conran's Medal of Honor recommendation was downgraded creates a legal vacuum that cannot be filled with assumptions. The Supreme Court established in SEC v. Chenery Corp, 332 U.S. 194 (1947) that agencies cannot retroactively justify their decisions. Without the original rationale, any defense of the downgrade is, by definition, a post-hoc rationalization prohibited under law.
The Air Force today cannot tell us why the Medal of Honor was denied in 1969 because those records are gone. How can a decision stand when its very foundation has crumbled to dust?
A Matter of Equal Treatment
If we look to precedent, the case becomes even clearer. USAF CMSgt Etchberger received the Medal of Honor posthumously in 2010 for classified operations in Laos—the very same environment where Conran served with distinction. Etchberger's citation contained fewer words than Conran's original recommendation. Six Army soldiers received Medals of Honor retroactively for actions in 1969 in the same denied areas of Laos and Cambodia. All fourteen USAF Vietnam-era Medal of Honor recipients demonstrated valor comparable to Conran's.
The question becomes unavoidable: Why them and not him? What principled distinction can be drawn when the original rationale has disappeared?
The Failure of "Presumption of Regularity"
The Air Force Board has leaned heavily on the "presumption of regularity"—the assumption that officials performed their duties correctly in 1970. However, this presumption crumbles when records are missing. As established in O'Hare v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. A. 36  (1991), when government records are lost, the burden shifts, and doubts must be resolved in favor of the veteran.
The Air Force claims to have conducted "de novo" reviews, but this is legally impossible without access to the complete original record. You cannot fully reconsider a case when crucial evidence has vanished.
The Inconsistency That Undermines Integrity
The refusal to equate Conran's actions with Etchberger’s, or the six Army cases, or the 14 Vietnam-era USAF cases exposes a troubling inconsistency in how we honor valor. These disparities don't just harm one man; they undermine the integrity of our entire system of military honors. When similar actions receive different recognition based on lost paperwork rather than merit, public trust in that system erodes.
The Weight of Circumstantial Evidence
While direct evidence of political influence in Conran's case may be lacking, we cannot ignore the context. Operations in Laos were politically sensitive during Nixon's administration. Awards related to these operations were systematically minimized. The CIA actively concealed its activities there. These circumstances don't prove political intervention, but they create sufficient doubt to warrant reexamination under the veteran-friendly "benefit of the doubt" standard established in O’Hare v. Derwinski.
The Man Behind the Medal
Phil Conran is not seeking this recognition for himself. His USAF and CIA veteran supporters advocate on his behalf. With 21 decorations—including four Distinguished Flying Crosses, an Airman's Medal, a Purple Heart, and two Legions of Merit—his valor is beyond question. As a member of both the Air Commando Hall of Fame and the Legion of Valor of the United States of America, he already stands among the most distinguished airmen in our nation's history.
But this case is about more than one man. It's about whether we, as a nation, will allow bureaucratic errors and missing files to deny the rightful recognition of extraordinary heroism.
Conclusion: The Legal and Moral Imperative
The law is clear. When records are lost, the veteran receives the benefit of the doubt. When an agency cannot produce its original rationale, its decision cannot stand. When similarly situated individuals receive different treatment, equity demands correction.
Every legal principle - from Chenery to O'Hare to Cushman v. Shinseki, 576 F.3d 1290 (Fed. Cir. 2009) - points to the same conclusion: Phil Conran's Medal of Honor recommendation must be reinstated.
The moral imperative is equally clear. Phil Conran risked everything in service to his country. The least we can do is ensure that his sacrifice receives its proper recognition, undiminished by lost paperwork and unexplained downgrades.
I urge you to right this historical wrong. Award Phil Conran the Medal of Honor that his actions earned in 1969. Justice may be delayed, but it must not be denied. The integrity of our military honors system - and our commitment to those who serve - demands nothing less.


Thomas Leo Briggs (GS-15 Ret)
CIA Special Operations Officer
Laos 1970-1972
President, CAVWV
​

Conran was one of the forgotten warriors of the Secret War in Laos
More about the our forgotten warriors

The Coalition of Allied Vietnam War Veterans is a former 501(c)3 non profit which ceased operating under that IRS status at the end of 2025 which was the 50th anniversary year of the ending of the Vietnam War.
It now operates as a Veteran Fellowship located in the State of Minnesota