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Vietnam: John Paul Vann (1924-1972) and his staff at the Pleiku headquarters, c. 1970

John Paul Vann (July 2, 1924 – June 9, 1972) was a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army, later retired, who became well-known for his role in the Vietnam War, especially in the Central Highlands and around Kontum.

Vann was killed in a helicopter crash in the Central Highlands and buried on June 16, 1972 in Arlington National Cemetery. His funeral was attended by such notables as Gen. William Westmoreland, Maj. Gen. Edward Lansdale, Lt. Col. Lucien Conein, Senator Edward Kennedy, and Daniel Ellsberg.

On June 18, President Richard Nixon posthumously awarded Vann the Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian citation, for his ten years of service as a top American in South Vietnam. For his actions from April 23–24, 1972, Vann, ineligible for the Medal of Honor as a civilian, was also awarded (posthumously) the Distinguished Service Cross, the only civilian so honored in Vietnam.

Journalist Neil Sheehan wrote a Pulitzer Prize-winning Vietnam history and biography of Vann, A Bright Shining Lie: John Paul Vann and America in Vietnam. In 1998, HBO made a film adapted from the book, with Bill Paxton playing the role of Vann.