Thomas Jerome Hudner Jr.

CRASH-LANDED IN ENEMY TERRITORY TO TRY TO RESCUE HIS WINGMAN

Thomas Jerome Hudner Jr. graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1946 and qualified as a naval aviator in 1949. He was a United States Navy aviator whose attempt to save a fellow pilot during the Battle of Chosin Reservoir became one of the Korean War’s defining rescue actions. On December 4, 1950, flying with Fighter Squadron 32 from the aircraft carrier USS Leyte, Hudner was the wingman of Ensign Jesse L. Brown, the Navy’s first African American aviator and his close friend.

Brown’s F4U Corsair was hit by anti-aircraft fire during an attack near the Chosin Reservoir. Trailing smoke, he made a forced landing in rough, snow-covered terrain behind enemy lines. Hudner circled overhead to protect him and saw that Brown was alive but trapped in the burning wreckage. Knowing the mountainside was steep, the temperature bitterly cold, and enemy forces nearby, Hudner deliberately put his own Corsair down in a wheels-up landing beside the crash. The impact wrecked his aircraft and left him on foot in the exposed position.

Hudner packed snow against the burning fuselage with his bare hands and struggled to free Brown. When he could not move him, he radioed other aircraft for a helicopter carrying an axe and fire extinguisher. Hudner and the rescue pilot worked together, but the cockpit had trapped Brown and the cold, flames, and damage defeated their efforts. Brown died at the scene. Hudner returned without his wingman, having risked his life and sacrificed his aircraft in a rescue that could not succeed.

The Navy awarded Hudner the Medal of Honor for the attempt. President Harry S. Truman presented it to him on April 13, 1951. Hudner remained in the Navy for a 27-year career, retiring as a captain in 1973. His later assignments included command of Training Squadron 24 and service as navigator and executive officer of USS Kitty Hawk during the Vietnam War. After retirement he continued serving veterans, including as Massachusetts commissioner of veterans’ services from 1991 to 1999. He died in Concord, Massachusetts, on November 13, 2017, and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

MEDAL OF HONOR 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.”

SOURCES

1. Congressional Medal of Honor Society. “Thomas Jerome Hudner Jr.” Medal of Honor recipient profile. 2. Arlington National Cemetery. “Thomas J. Hudner, Jr.” Biography and Medal of Honor citation. 3. Naval History and Heritage Command. “H-Gram 056: Korea, November–December 1950.” 4. Naval History and Heritage Command. “Capt. Thomas J. Hudner, Jr., Medal of Honor Recipient, Passes Away.” November 15, 2017.