Donald L. Dotson

Service & Sacrifice

Staff Sergeant Donald L. Dotson served with Detachment B-52, Project Delta, 5th Special Forces Group. He was assigned to Recon Team CAPITOL during Operation 2-66 in the An Lao Valley of Binh Dinh Province.

On January 29, 1966, RT CAPITOL came under devastating enemy fire. The six-man all-American team had been operating in the valley for two days when they were engaged by a superior Viet Cong force. SSG Dotson was among the first men hit during the initial burst of fire. He suffered a through-the-chest wound and was heard struggling in the thick elephant grass around the team's position. He did not survive his injuries.

SSG Dotson was one of four members of RT CAPITOL killed that day. Only two men from the team survived. The An Lao Valley engagement was the worst single loss Project Delta suffered during its six years of combat operations in Vietnam.