Valor Friday

| January 4, 2019

Hudner

Today’s Valor Friday highlights Thomas J. Hudner Jr. (August 31, 1924 – November 13, 2017). He was an officer in the United States Navy and a Naval Aviator. He rose to the rank of Captain, and received the Medal of Honor for his actions in trying to save the life of his wingman, Ensign Jesse L. Brown, during the Battle of Chosin Reservoir in the Korean War.

Born in Fall River, Massachusetts, Hudner attended Phillips Academy and the United States Naval Academy. Initially uninterested in aviation, he eventually took up flying and joined Fighter Squadron 32, flying the F4U Corsair at the outbreak of the Korean War. Arriving near Korea in October 1950, he flew support missions from the aircraft carrier USS Leyte.

corsair

On 4 December 1950, Hudner and Brown were among a group of pilots on patrol near the Chosin Reservoir when Brown’s Corsair was struck by ground fire from Chinese troops and crashed. In an attempt to save Brown from his burning aircraft, Hudner intentionally crash-landed his own aircraft on a snowy mountain in freezing temperatures to help Brown. In spite of these efforts, Brown died of his injuries and Hudner was forced to evacuate, having also been injured in the landing.

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.

Fair winds and following seas, Captain Hudner.

Refs.
Wiki
CMOH

Category: Korea, Navy, Valor

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ChipNASA

First!!!!!!!!….. to say that I”m here and working from home and I have a LOT to catch up on and “cleaning House” as it were for 2019.
Give me some slack but I’m around and I’ll go back and real all 4,5,6,7,8 pages and check for The Continent of Insults®™
and for the Instantpot recipes I asked for and get back up to speed.

I don’t know how to designate between Ladies and Gentlemen here quickly so,

HAPPY NEW YEAR FUCKERS!!!!

Thanks TRUMP for the $100 you gave me!!!!

Oh by not having to commute and pay for gas and now, being able to work from home *this time*, which I am sure will work itself out.

Again, Love all you TAH Goofballs.

Comment shortly!!

HMC Ret

‘Again, Love all you TAH Goofballs.’

Ditto to you, Chip, and the others on this site. This is the first site I check every day. I just love this place.

ChipNASA

Yep, me too,
TAH Automatically comes up on my tab at home and at work.
Have a good weekend. Freaks.
Love all of you. Well, most!!!
😀 😀

Ding Dong! The Bernath is dead. Which old Bitch? That tiny dick!
Ding Dong! The Stupid Dick is dead.
Wake up – sleepy head, rub your eyes, get out of bed.
Wake up, the Bernath ass is dead. She’s gone where the goblins go,
Below – below – 6 feet below. Yo-ho, let’s open up and sing and ring the bells out.
Ding Dong’ the merry-oh, sing it high, sing it low.
Let them know
The Dickhead Bernath is dead!

5th/77th FA

A true Hero and humble man. What a contrast to the valor thief and screaming tranny.

RIP Captain Hudner.

HMCS(FMF) ret

“Where do we find such men?”

RIP CAPT Hudner

Hondo

You don’t say. (smile)

Seriously: if you haven’t read Doug Sterner’s excellent article concerning Hudner and Brown titled “No Man Should Die Alone”, you need to do it. Now. And have a tissue ready.

RIP, gentlemen. RIP.

2/17 Air Cav

I recalled that immediately. It’s good that these men are remembered and their stories shared and re-shared. That said sincerely, I would like to see the less well known heroes featured. There is no shortage of them, and they are all available through multiple sites that carry their citations.

Hondo

Might want to check out Doug Sterner’s “Home of Heroes” page under “Stories and History” –> “Heroes Stories”. Some of the individuals featured there aren’t particularly well-known.

FWIW: Doug appears to have reorganized his website recently. Unfortunately, that means the link in my previous comment no longer works. The new link to his story “No Man Should Die Alone” about Hudner and Brown is

https://homeofheroes.com/heroes-stories/the-brotherhood-of-soldiers-at-war/no-man-should-die-alone/

2/17 Air Cav

Sure, I’ll be happy to submit recommendations. Just promise that you won’t mention me at all if you use one.

AnotherPat

Hopefully SFC First Class Alwyn Crendall Cashe’s Silver Star will be upgraded to the Medal of Honor.

His Silver Star Citation speaks volumes:

https://valorguardians.com/blog/?p=77736

HMC Ret

They could take that citation and change Silver Star to Medal of Honor and it would be entirely valid and appropriate. How can a man who is himself on fire continue to return to a vehicle and pull others, who are also burned, to safety? I don’t get it. There are men and women whose actions can not be explained. This man is deserving of the Medal of Honor.

Rest in Peace, Brother. I am humbled by your bravery.

Mason

I’ve been reading some of the older MoH stories lately.

Ran across 1st Lt Frank Luke Jr (namesake of Luke AFB), who was the second top scoring air ace of WWI (after the immortal Eddie Rickenbacker). As well as his wingman 1st Lt Joseph Wehner. They were a tag team in the air. Both were lost within days of each other. Like an old married couple, they apparently needed each other.

Both received two DSCs and Luke received the MoH, the first airman to receive one. Wehner was 23 when he died from injuries incurred in his downing, while Luke was only 21 when he was KIA.

I’d be happy to help write something up on these or any other heroes.

Mason

Totally willing. I assume you can see my e-mail. I’ve got time on my hands so don’t mind.

Buckeye Jim

As an aside, Jesse Brown is also a fascinating story in itself. He was the son of a black sharecropper who overcame tremendous barriers to earn a degree in Aeronautical Engineering from The Ohio State University and then become the first African-American Naval Aviator. Both he and CAPT Hudner were the kind of men we should all strive to become.

Mason

The story of Hudner’s devotion to his wingman is truly an inspiration.

I particularly find delight that the Navy had to make it a policy after this that you will not crash Uncle Sam’s expensive aircraft to attempt a rescue. I have a soft spot in my heart for the people that cause needless policies or stupid warning signs to be put up.

Grunt

I’d fuckin do it anyway.

HMC Ret

I’d crash that sucker in a New York minute. Is that really official policy? Screw them

The Other Whitey

You can’t put a price on being able to live with yourself.

USMC Steve

I also admire the stones involved in what he did. It was a compassionate and very human thing to do. I also abhor the lack of judgement involved. Hudner potentially deprived the forces in the fight TWO naval aviators, destroyed a second badly needed Corsair, and potentially cost Marines on the ground their lives through the loss of support he and his bird could have provided. Sometimes you have to take the hard road that keeps more folks alive.

11B-Mailclerk

“I will never leave a fallen comrade.”

Wilted Willy

We should make all the phonies read everyone of these stories and commit them to memory, then see how they want to apologize for all of their phony shit! These men and women are all true heroes! Has there ever been a female MOH winner??

AnotherPat

WW: Yes. Dr. Mary Walker, Civil War: https://www.army.mil/article/183800/meet_dr_mary_walker_the_only_female_medal_of_honor_recipient “Meet Dr. Mary Walker: The only Female Medal of Honor Recipient” By Katie Lange, DoD News, Defense Media ActivityMarch 7, 2017 “Out of the nearly 3,500 Medal of Honor recipients, only one was a woman — just one — and her medal was actually rescinded just before she died.” “Walker was born in Oswego, New York, to abolitionist parents who encouraged her to pursue an education. She really embraced that idea and in 1855 graduated as a medical doctor from Syracuse Medical College.” “Walker went into private practice for a few years, but then the Civil War broke out in 1861. She wanted to join the Army as a surgeon but wasn’t allowed because she was a woman. Because of her credentials, she didn’t want to be a nurse, either, so she chose to volunteer for the Union Army.” “Walker worked for free at the temporary hospital set up at the U.S. Patent Office in Washington, D.C. She also organized the Women’s Relief Organization to help the families of the wounded who came to visit them at local hospitals.” “In 1862, Walker moved on to Virginia, this time treating the wounded at field hospitals throughout the state. In 1863, her medical credentials were finally accepted, so she moved to Tennessee, where she was appointed as a War Department surgeon. Her position was paid, and it was the equivalent of a lieutenant or captain.” “Walker was captured in April 1864 by the South and held as a prisoner of war for about four months. She and other Union doctors were eventually exchanged in a prisoner-of-war swap for Confederate medical officers.” “Not long after being released by the Confederates, Walker returned to her craft as an assigned medical director at a hospital for women prisoners in Kentucky.” “In November 1865, having left government service for good, Walker was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Andrew Johnson, even though she was a civilian who had never been a commissioned officer in military service.” “That civilian status is why Walker’s medal was rescinded in 1917,… Read more »

5th/77th FA

(+_+) One of the few things that Jimmuh got right.

Wilted Willy

Thanks AP,
Something I always wanted to know?

2/17 Air Cav

I know this will bother some folks but, in my view, the medal should have stayed rescinded. Tell me what she did that would have merited one today. At one time, it seems, they were handed out like so much candy and hundreds and hundreds were issued to people who did little more than show up for work. I wish that MacArthur’s would be rescinded too.

2/17 Air Cav

In support of my view, read the citation. The Medal of Honor was issued as a consolation prize b/c there was nothing else to give her at the time. She was, after all, a civilian. The wrong was righted and Carter undid that.

Mason

At the time it was the only decoration we had, other than brevet promotions for officers. Prior to the Civil War, there were no medals or decorations (other than Washington’s short lived merit award). They were seen as too European. Same reason we didn’t have admirals until the Civil War.

Until WWII, it was awarded (mostly by the Navy) for peacetime bravery.

2/17 Air Cav

Yes, I understand, but that has long since been remedied and had been when Carter made his decision. She I do not disparage in any way, shape, or form. Her sacrifices were voluntary and her hardships were great.

11B-Mailclerk

I do see your point, but am concerned.

should all past MOH awards be re-filtered through the standards of today? That seems …. Unwise. What about again in a decade or three?

On specific point, for the time and place, the cited actions were more than a bit of unusual moxie for a woman.

Was it more or less the same as many others of that era?

I wouldn’t want any current or recent recipients to be re-judged, decades hence.

AnotherPat

Rest In Peace, Sir.

Salute.

https://youtu.be/jTRvHcCIDug

5th/77th FA

Thanks for the link AP! rtr

AnotherPat

Thank You, Ed for posting the video of the Commissioning Ceremony of the USS Hudner that took place this past December in Boston.

Believe Mick or you or HMC Ret might had shared this in a previous post.

HMC Ret

Aaah, the good old days. Peacoat with a Dixie cup cover.

HMC Ret

IIRC, Ensign Jesse L. Brown was a black man who was highly regarded by his peers for his bravery. I read these citations and all I can do is wonder at the constitution of these men who go into harm’s way and knowingly put their lives at risk. Crashing his aircraft in the presence of enemy soldiers to rescue a comrade? Lord, where do we get such men and women? I am humbled by you, Sir. And, Ensign Jesse L. Brown, Rest In Peace. You are a true warrior.

Mason

Ensign Brown was a black man. The first black naval aviator in fact.

The Other Whitey

I read this to my crew this morning at breakfast. It ties in rather nicely with some fireline safety topics, specifically about making sure everybody gets out.

CDR_D

RIP, CAPT Hudner. Tip a beverage of your choice with your peers in Valhalla. I’ll tip one in your honor down here.

AnotherPat

Good point, Mason and 2/17th Air Cav.

Found this interesting, well written article “When The Army Took Back The Congressional Medal of Honor”.

http://www.jmarkpowell.com/when-the-army-took-back-the-congressional-medal-of-honor-2/

It is worth the read.

A Board met in 1917 that reviewed 2,625 MOH Recipients who had been honored since the Medal’s creation in 1861(1,520 recipients from the War Between the States, all 443 Indian Wars recipients, plus the 662 from the Spanish-American War).

911 names were removed from the nation’s Roll of Honor, whose members receive the Medal of Honor.

Some Recipients never should have received the MOH in the first place. One example
is a Civil War Veteran, LTC Asa Bird Gardiner, who wrote a letter to the War Department saying, “I understand there are a number of bronze medals for distribution to soldiers of the late War, and request I be allowed one as a souvenir of memorable times past.” HE was given the MOH on September 23, 1872, only to have it taken away in 1917.

Buffalo Bill Cody received a MOH, but it rescinded in 1917 because he was a Civilian (as in the case of Dr. Mary Walker.) And as Dr. Walker, he got it back.

Who knew. History Class is over.😉

Mason

I’ve always liked the story of the 311 men of the 27th Maine Volunteers getting the MoH for reenlisting. For. Four. Days. Didn’t even end up seeing combat in their four days. Right place and right time, right?

Hondo

Perhaps the most egregious abuses of the Medal of Honor involved the 27th Maine and Lincoln Funeral detail.

29 personnel from the Lincoln Funeral Detail received the MoH for that service. Additionally, 864 members of the 27th Maine agreed to continue to serve in the DC area for varying periods after their enlistments had expired (roughly 560 for the “excruciatingly long” period of 4 days) during the Civil War. They too were awarded the MoH.

Some of the medals revoled in 1917 were arguing deserved under the prevailing standards of the day for award of the medal. But the vast majority of the 911 revoked MoHs – those 893 from the 27th Maine and the Lincoln Funeral Detail – were deservedly revoked.

http://www.cmohs.org/medal-history.php

Mason

893, why did I have 311 in my head? Forgot about the Lincoln funeral detail getting MoHs.

Wasn’t there also a guy who wrote a letter asking for one many years after the war and they just sent him one?

AnotherPat

Mason: Yep…it was Civil War Veteran, LTC Asa Bird Gardiner (please see my post above to include the link that discusses the LTC, the 27th Maine and the Lincoln Funeral detail.

Here is Gardiner’s Grave Site memorial. I guess LTC was a Brevet Rank:

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/57369263/asa-bird-gardiner

5th/77th FA

20 MoH awarded to the troops that “fought” the “battle” of Wounded Knee.

Those Native American Women, Children, and Old Men were a tough fight. /s/

HMC Ret

The Medal of Honor was at one time given for almost inconsequential action as several above have mentioned. Here is a brief story about the first (known) black soldier to receive the Medal of Honor.

WASHINGTON —
Of the 3,498 service members who have received the Medal of Honor throughout U.S. history, only 88 have been black.

Army Sgt. William H. Carney was the first of the nation’s 88 African-American Medal of Honor recipients, earning the medal during the Union Army’s charge on Fort Wagner during the Civil War.

… the first black recipient of the award: Army Sgt. William H. Carney, who earned the honor for protecting one of the United States’ greatest symbols during the Civil War — the American flag.

That’s right, he protected the American Flag. Not saying this is not important, it is, but, really …

Hondo

Actually, as I recall during the Civil War color bearers were huge targets. If I recall correctly, they had one of if not the highest casualty rates on both sides.

Further: carrying and protecting the Regimental Colors was indeed a big (freaking) deal during close combat of that era. The Regimental Colors were a visual symbol of where the unit was going. Given the noise level of the battlefield, seeing those Regimental Colors often was the only way many soldiers knew whether to advance or retreat – or which direction to go. And loss of the regiment’s colors was considered a huge disgrace to the entire regiment, akin to a Roman Legion losing their standard.

Bottom line: a rather large number of Civil War MoHs were awarded to either designated color bearers and/or those who voluntarily took over the duty when their predecessor was wounded or killed. It took a huge set of huevos to do that during a Civil War battle.

The Other Whitey

I remember reading of some Union men, can’t remember what unit, who were forced to surrender, cut their Colors into strips, and distributed said strips among a dozen of them. They kept the strips concealed under their clothes while interned at Andersonville, then stitched them back together when they were released at the end of the war. They were able to say that they successfully protected their regiment’s Colors despite having been captured.

5th/77th FA

TOW, that cutting up and or hiding the Unit Colors happened a number of times, on both sides. I have a small piece from the 8th Geo Rgmt Colors that was not surrendered. It was documented in many sources of the open weeping when the Johnny Rebs furled their Colors for the last time. A number of those flags were returned to the states during the early 1900s. We still have some being returned today by the descendants of men who had captured them, a Georgia one very recently. Antiques Roadshow had a 36 Star US that had been captured, but the exact history of it was not known. That episode was broadcast a goodly number of years ago, and I haven’t been able to get a follow up on the disposition. It was estimated to be priceless.

Hondo, you are very correct, being a part of the Color Guard then WAS a very big freaking deal. Men would literally fight for the honor of being a part of the Color Guard before a battle, and would fight for the honor of catching/picking up a Flag if the bearer was hit. My daughters’ Maternal GGGrandfather was one of 8 killed @ Gettysburg carrying the Colors of the 26th NC. Those flags back then drew bullets worse than any door gunner or green 2LT ever thought of.

Huge set, Blue or Gray, you damn Skippy. It was one thing to fight your first battle under those tactics. You really didn’t know what to expect. Second time around, you knew what was coming and that you had maybe a 20% chance of coming out of it. Another reason why we do so much to pay Honor to these men. SCV/SUV

AnotherPat

5th/77th FA wrote:

“My daughters’ Maternal GGGrandfather was one of 8 killed @ Gettysburg carrying the Colors of the 26th NC.”

Is he listed under one of the rosters?

http://www.26nc.org/History/Wartime-Rosters/Rosters.html

We do indeed live in a small world. My Great-Great Grandfather served with the 29th NC Regiment and was wounded at Gettysburg.

rtr🐘

5th/77th FA

Honeycutt, Frank (?) I’m thinking that’s correct AP. I had given her the book on the 26th that gives all the details, and the infor I had gotten from her Mama’s g.mother years ago. There were several of the Honeycutt boys that served. They were one of the very few that used the ey spelling v the ie. We can dig thru that roster and it’ll jump out at me & jiggle my memory banks. Damn a stroke.

5th/77th FA

Franklin Honeycutt Co B. I met with a number of the re-enactors of the 26th on several occasions over the last 40 + years, Gettysburg ’81, ’88, other SE events, and when business took me to Charlotte, Smithfield, and Durham.

When I was at Bragg in 74, the family was still mainly in Charlotte/Mecklinburg,; dependopatomous and I did a lot of weekend day trips thru out the whole area they were originally from. Grandma loved her some of this young soldier back then. She appreciated my interest in their history. None of her blood grandchildren at that time cared.

5th/77th FA

BTW RTR lest we forget, it’s on the way. We’ll get a tiger by the tail.

rtr

2/17 Air Cav

Education is power and it is its own reward. The account of one selfless woman receiving the Medal of Honor, having it rescinded and, more than 100 years later, having it restored, gave rise to facts and comments regarding the history of the medal. I love this stuff and appreciate the aggregate degree of knowledge at TAH.

11B-Mailclerk

Concur, loudly, HOOAH!

This is why I tend to read TAH -last-. After all the crap and blather elsewhere, it is mind-cleansingly-refreshing to come here where most folks have clue one, are often both factually and rationally adroit, and even when we disagree most always it is civil (even if spoken bluntly).