Thomas J. Hudner’s Medal of Honor

312859 years ago during the Korean War, eight Navy F4U Corsairs from the USS Leyte‘s Fighter Squadron 32 (VF-32) were flying an armed reconnaissance mission near the Chosin Reservoir. Ensign Jesse Brown (the Navy’s first black aviator)’s plane was hit, and crash landed on the side of a snow-covered mountain. Brown was unable to get out of the cockpit of the smoking aircraft, and the men of VF-32 knew that the Chinese would reach Brown before the rescue helicopter could.

While the remaining aircraft circled overhead, Brown’s wingman, Lt. J.G. Thomas Hudner, decided to crash-land his own Corsair next to Brown’s. “I knew what I had to do,” said Hudner in an interview. “I was not going to leave him down there for the Chinese. Besides, it was 30 degrees below zero on that slope, and he was a fellow aviator. My association with the Marines had rubbed off on me. They don’t leave wounded Marines behind.”

After reaching Brown’s aircraft, Hudner was unable to remove his wingman from the cockpit. Brown was barely alive, and by the time a Marine helicopter arrived to assist in the rescue, Brown had died. They were unable to remove Brown’s body, and the approaching darkness forced the men to leave the fallen aviator behind.

For his actions, Thomas Hudner was awarded the Medal of Honor. Jesse Brown was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the escort ship USS Jesse L. Brown was named in his honor.

You can read Hudner’s Medal of Honor citation here.

Thomas J. Hudner, Jr. Medal of Honor Citation

Navy MOH CitationThe President of the United States in the name of The Congress takes pleasure in presenting the MEDAL OF HONOR to

LIEUTENANT JUNIOR GRADE

THOMAS JEROME HUDNER JR.

NAVY

for service as set forth in the following

CITATION:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as a pilot in Fighter Squadron 32, while attempting to rescue a squadron mate whose plane struck by antiaircraft fire and trailing smoke, was forced down behind enemy lines. Quickly maneuvering to circle the downed pilot and protect him from enemy troops infesting the area, Lt. (J.G.) Hudner risked his life to save the injured flier who was trapped alive in the burning wreckage. Fully aware of the extreme danger in landing on the rough mountainous terrain and the scant hope of escape or survival in subzero temperature, he put his plane down skillfully in a deliberate wheels-up landing in the presence of enemy troops. With his bare hands, he packed the fuselage with snow to keep the flames away from the pilot and struggled to pull him free. Unsuccessful in this, he returned to his crashed aircraft and radioed other airborne planes, requesting that a helicopter be dispatched with an ax and fire extinguisher. He then remained on the spot despite the continuing danger from enemy action and, with the assistance of the rescue pilot, renewed a desperate but unavailing battle against time, cold, and flames. Lt. (J.G.) Hudner’s exceptionally valiant action and selfless devotion to a shipmate sustain and enhance the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service.

Born: 31 Aug. 1934 in Fall River, Mass…. Graduated from U.S. Naval Academy in 1947… Retired in 1973 as Captain.