 He reached the rank of staff sergeant while serving with Company B, 4th Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 11th Infantry Brigade of the Americal Division.On August 26, 1968, while leading a squad in Bravo Company's 1st Platoon, in an operation west of Tam Kỳ, Bacon and his unit came under fire from enemy positions.While Bacon destroyed these positions with hand grenades, his platoon leader was wounded in open ground.