Lloyd "Pete" Hughes MOH

 When I read through this officer's Medal of Honor story, it was horrifically informative.  179 B-24 bombers took off, 54 were shot down, a 30 percent loss rate.  Given that there were 10 or 11 airmen on each that makes the casualty rate over 30%.

In case you didn't recognize the description of the mission above, this again is one of the 5 Medal of Honor Recipients from the Ploesti mission, 3 of whom received it posthumously. 

And the mission provided little change in the progress of the war.  I know that "Feces occurs" is a family version of the real version, but it should not be used in this disaster.  

Anyhow, on with Lt Hughes story.

 

 

 

 

 

Hughes' official Medal of Honor citation reads:

For conspicuous gallantry in action and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. On August 1943, 2d Lt. Hughes served in the capacity of pilot of a heavy bombardment aircraft participating in a long and hazardous minimum-altitude attack against the Axis oil refineries of Ploesti, Rumania, launched from the northern shores of Africa. Flying in the last formation to attack the target, he arrived in the target area after previous flights had thoroughly alerted the enemy defenses. Approaching the target through intense and accurate antiaircraft fire and dense balloon barrages at dangerously low altitude, his plane received several direct hits from both large and small caliber antiaircraft guns which seriously damaged his aircraft, causing sheets of escaping gasoline to stream from the bomb bay and from the left wing. This damage was inflicted at a time prior to reaching the target when 2d Lt. Hughes could have made a forced landing in any of the grain fields readily available at that time. The target area was blazing with burning oil tanks and damaged refinery installations from which flames leaped high above the bombing level of the formation. With full knowledge of the consequences of entering this blazing inferno when his airplane was profusely leaking gasoline in two separate locations, 2d Lt. Hughes, motivated only by his high conception of duty which called for the destruction of his assigned target at any cost, did not elect to make a forced landing or turn back from the attack. Instead, rather than jeopardize the formation and the success of the attack, he unhesitatingly entered the blazing area and dropped his bomb load with great precision. After successfully bombing the objective, his aircraft emerged from the conflagration with the left wing aflame. Only then did he attempt a forced landing, but because of the advanced stage of the fire enveloping his aircraft the plane crashed and was consumed. By 2d Lt. Hughes' heroic decision to complete his mission regardless of the consequences in utter disregard of his own life, and by his gallant and valorous execution of this decision, he has rendered a service to our country in the defeat of our enemies which will everlastingly be outstanding in the annals of our Nation's history.

When I was putting this post together, I ran across an interesting fact.  Lt Hughes went to Texas A&M University.  My Children did also.  We moved to College Station to be with them.  Lt Hughes and 8 other A&M Medal of Honor recipients are alumni of A&M.  I read somewhere that there is a room on campus which has pictures, memorabilia and a few of the Medals themselves.  Suffice it to say, I'm going to look a bit further into that and pay it a visit if it's true.

Peace out y'all 

Sources,

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lloyd_Herbert_Hughes

https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/hughes-lloyd-herbert-jr 

https://www.af.mil/Medal-of-Honor/Hughes/ 

 https://www.war.gov/News/Feature-Stories/Story/Article/3107011/medal-of-honor-monday-army-2nd-lt-lloyd-hughes/

https://valor.militarytimes.com/recipient/recipient-2240/ 

https://stories.tamu.edu/stories/9-medal-of-honor-recipients-remembered-for-bravery-and-exemplifying-aggie-core-values/ 

 

 

Brian Shul Sled Driver

 

OK this guy is another of my heroes for a lot of reasons.  No, not a Medal of Honor recipient, but let me tell you his story, you'll understand why he was one of my heroes.  He was one of my Instructor Pilots when I was making the transition from F-4 Pilot to Lead-In Fighter Training AT-38 Instructor Pilot.  Suffice it to say, I learned a lot from him, an awful lot.  So, let's get on with the post.

 Major Brian Shul (rhymes with School) came on active duty in the Air Force in 1970, completed pilot training and was sent to Southeast Asia as a T-28 Trojan pilot.

Source

 As one can pretty well ascertain, this wasn't a fabulous aircraft for fighting an air war.  But being fairly slow, a pilot could make out a lot more details than say a pilot in an F-4.  He served as a Foreign Air Advisor teaching other SouthEast Asian Air Forces how to do close air support to troops in contact with the enemy.  On his 213th mission, he was shot down and crashed in the jungle.  One of the drawbacks to the T-28 is that it is fueled with AvGas, basically high octane gas much like in your car, albeit much more flammable.  Unfortunately when he crashed, he was knocked unconscious and the plane caught fire.  Special Forces folks came and pulled him out of the flames.  Suffice it to say he was severely burned and it took a few days before he could be airlifted out of the jungle and provided with more effective medical treatment. Doctors in the hospital in Okinawa didn't believe he would survive but they did their best to treat him.  He was airlifted to Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio when he was capable of traveling. He then underwent 15 operations over the next year.

He underwent several months of physical training with a personal goal of returning to flying status.

OK, to refresh,  severely burned, not expected to live, over a year in the hospital.  Wow! A lot, just to be alive!

 However, at the end of that, he passed a flying physical and began flying again!

Talk about "Never Give Up! Never Surrender", Brian Shul is the epitome of that.

His next flying assignment was in the SR-71.  I'll let him tell you a story about that in the video at the end of this post. 

Brian Shul on the right, his Back Seater Walt Watson on the left

Brian Shul about to refuel his SR-71 on a KC-135

 

Brian in a Selfie while flying WAY High and WAY FAST

 

 

 Now on to that video I promised you.  Pretty Humorous and put an Airline Pilot in his place. Pay attention to his airspeed reading in this video.  After a few whiskeys, he told me that he had significantly slowed down to this speed.  Wouldn't/Couldn't tell me, no matter how may whiskey's I pried him with, how fast he HAD been going!

 The guy that taught me the meaning of "Never give up, Never surrender!"  Miss you Brian, see you in the great beyond.

Peace out y'all 

Sources

 https://usaf.patchcollector.nl/2026/05/18/brian-https://

https://sleddriver.square.site/

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Shul 

https://theaviationist.com/2023/05/24/the-sled-driver-has-flown-west/ 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AyHH9G9et0&t=358s 

 

Richard Etchberger MOH

 

This is a VERY interesting story. Chief Master Sergeant (CMS) Richard Etchberger was born March 5, 1933 and was killed in action March 11, 1968.  Interestingly, he wasn't awarded the Medal of Honor until September 21, 2010.

That should pique your curiosity.  Which brings us to his story which is quite fascinating. I will try to summarize it, but, I strongly recommend you clicking the link and read it.  I'll still be here when you get back.  President Reagan's statement of "Where do we find such men?" applies in triplicate to Chief Etchberger.

A quick summary, a radar station was built in Laos which could direct US aircraft to bombing targets in North Vietnam regardless of time of day or weather.  Obviously, the North Vietnamese weren't happy about it, so they launched an attack against the site.

During the attack Chief Etchberger was killed.  As I mentioned, the details of the attack can be found in the link above.

Then politics got involved.  Because the site was in Laos and although "approved" by the Laotian government, it was a secret.  Since it was a "secret" and the US wasn't supposed to have troops in Laos and even though his actions were "above and beyond the call of duty", Chief Etchberger was awarded the Air Force Cross, USAF's second highest award.  His sons had no knowledge about how their father died having been told he died in a helicopter accident.  In the early 2000's, USAF veterans began lobbying to have the medal upgraded.  In 2008, Michael B. Donley, Secretary of the Air Force approved the upgrade which was also approved by Congress in 2009 and presented to his 3 sons in 2010.  

And, IMHO, it was well deserved.

Chief Etchberger's Medal of Honor Citation

The President of the United States of America, authorized by act of Congress, March 3, 1863, has awarded, in the name of the Congress, the Medal of Honor to Chief Master Sgt. Richard L. Etchberger, United States Air Force, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life, above and beyond the call of duty.

Chief Master Sgt. Richard L. Etchberger distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism on March 11, 1968, in the country of Laos. While assigned as Ground Radar Superintendent, Detachment 1, 1043rd Radar Evaluation Squadron. On that day, Chief Etchberger and his team of technicians were manning a top-secret defensive position at Lima Site 85 when the base was overrun by an enemy ground force. Receiving sustained and withering heavy artillery attacks directly upon his unit's position, Chief Etchberger's entire crew lay dead or severely wounded. Despite having received little or no combat training, Chief Etchberger single-handedly held off the enemy with an M-16, while simultaneously directing air strikes into the area and calling for air rescue. Because of his fierce defense and heroic and selfless actions, he was able to deny the enemy access to his position and save the lives of his remaining crew. With the arrival of the rescue aircraft, Chief Etchberger without hesitation repeatedly and deliberately risked his own life, exposing himself to heavy enemy fire, in order to place three surviving wounded comrades into rescue slings hanging from the hovering helicopter waiting to airlift them to safety. With his remaining crew safely aboard, Chief Etchberger finally climbed into the evacuation sling himself, only to be fatally wounded by enemy ground fire as he was being raised into the aircraft.

Chief Etchberger's bravery and determination in the face of persistent enemy fire and overwhelming odds are in keeping with the highest standards of performance and traditions of military service. Chief Etchberger's gallantry, self-sacrifice, and profound concern for his fellow men, at risk of his life, above and beyond the call of duty, reflect the highest credit on himself and the United States Air Force.

A lot of things were done wrong in Vietnam and a lot of good folks were killed because of that.  Chief Etchberger, IMHO, was one of the best.  I'm glad President Reagan stood up for him and hope he took it out on the chickens of a fecal nature (you know what I mean) that wouldn't stand up for the Chief when it happened.   

Rest in peace Chief! 

References

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Etchberger

https://www.af.mil/Medal-of-Honor/Etchberger/ 

https://www.cmohs.org/recipients/richard-l-etchberger

 

Leon Vance MOH

 

 

Another WOW Medal of Honor recipient.  He did a lot of excellent flying and was lucky through most of his flying career. Which will be the focus of this post.

This recipient's name was Leon Vance, born and raised in Enid Oklahoma.  I'm sure it's just a coincidence that the USAF Air Base located in Enid is named Vance AFB.  

Or maybe not a coincidence. 

 

 Major Vance was promoted to Captain in April 1942 and Major in July 1942. He was also promoted to LtCol in September 1943.  Of course a lot of things are going on.  First, not everyone comes back from missions, including senior officers.  Second, the Army Air Forces are expanding exponentially. Leaders are needed.

 

 

 But it was with a bit of difficulty to leave his wife and daughter and do his duty.

 

 Major Vance flew his first combat flight to bomb a Luftwaffe airfield on May 30th, 1944. Shortly thereafter he was promoted to Lt Col. 

On June 5th 1944, he was assigned as the flight lead of the squadron.  As such, he wasn't the assigned pilot or co-pilot rather stationed behind them near the radio compartment so he could direct the formation if needed.  As they approached the target, the AAA, unsurprisingly, got very heavy and a shell hit their bomber, killing the pilot and setting an engine on fire.  The co-pilot was initially knocked unconscious, but recovered and pulled the aircraft out of the dive.  LtCol Vance's right foot was nearly severed by the explosion and was trapped in the bulkhead.  However, he as able to assist the co-pilot in recovering the aircraft from the dive, putting out fires and shutting down damaged engines.  After recovering the airplane, he was able to dislodge his foot and bandage his leg.  They headed for home, but as they crossed the channel, they concluded that the bomber could not be landed safely, so LtCol Vance directed the crew to bail out.  He thought the radio operator was too injured to bail out, so LtCol Vance decided to fly the aircraft back over the channel and ditch it to save him.  Upon ditching, he evacuated the aircraft realizing that the radio operator had bailed out with the crew.  Successfully leaving the bomber, he was rescued.

Now, for the hard part.  His injury was so serious that he was sent back to the states for treatment.  Somewhere over the Atlantic, the aircraft was lost and crew and passengers declared dead.

Rest in peace, Hero! 

Medal of Honor Citation

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty on 5 June 1944, when he led a Heavy Bombardment Group, in an attack against defended enemy coastal positions in the vicinity of Wimereaux, France. Approaching the target, his aircraft was hit repeatedly by antiaircraft fire which seriously crippled the ship, killed the pilot, and wounded several members of the crew, including Lt. Col. Vance, whose right foot was practically severed. In spite of his injury, and with 3 engines lost to the flak, he led his formation over the target, bombing it successfully. After applying a tourniquet to his leg with the aid of the radar operator, Lt. Col. Vance, realizing that the ship was approaching a stall altitude with the 1 remaining engine failing, struggled to a semi-upright position beside the copilot and took over control of the ship. Cutting the power and feathering the last engine he put the aircraft in glide sufficiently steep to maintain his airspeed. Gradually losing altitude, he at last reached the English coast, whereupon he ordered all members of the crew to bail out as he knew they would all safely make land. But he received a message over the interphone system which led him to believe 1 of the crewmembers was unable to jump due to injuries; so he made the decision to ditch the ship in the channel, thereby giving this man a chance for life. To add further to the danger of ditching the ship in his crippled condition, there was a 500-pound bomb hung up in the bomb bay. Unable to climb into the seat vacated by the copilot, since his foot, hanging on to his leg by a few tendons, had become lodged behind the copilot's seat, he nevertheless made a successful ditching while lying on the floor using only aileron and elevators for control and the side window of the cockpit for visual reference. On coming to rest in the water the aircraft commenced to sink rapidly with Lt. Col. Vance pinned in the cockpit by the upper turret which had crashed in during the landing. As it was settling beneath the waves an explosion occurred which threw Lt. Col. Vance clear of the wreckage. After clinging to a piece of floating wreckage until he could muster enough strength to inflate his life vest he began searching for the crewmember whom he believed to be aboard. Failing to find anyone he began swimming and was found approximately 50 minutes later by an Air-Sea Rescue craft. By his extraordinary flying skill and gallant leadership, despite his grave injury, Lt. Col. Vance led his formation to a successful bombing of the assigned target and returned the crew to a point where they could bail out with safety. His gallant and valorous decision to ditch the aircraft in order to give the crew member he believed to be aboard a chance for life exemplifies the highest traditions of the U.S. Armed Forces.  

 

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leon_Vance

https://www.af.mil/Medal-of-Honor/Vance/ 

https://www.militarytimes.com/veterans/military-history/2025/08/05/one-foot-in-the-grave-moh-pilot-bombed-nazis-despite-severed-limb/ 

  

Harl Pease, MOH

 

This is a tough one.  It touches on the horrors of war.  So, be prepared.

 

Source

 

In October 1941, the 19th Bombardment Group of which Capt Pease was a member deployed to Clark Field in the Phillipines.  On December 20th the Group evacuated the Phillipines to Queensland where they launched 16-18 hour missions to attack Japanese bases. 

I got the following portion of the story from this link in Wikipedia.  I've tried and can't describe it any better, so I've copied it in full. 

On August 6, 1942, one engine of Pease's B-17 failed during a mission, forcing a return to its base at Mareeba Airfield for repairs. The 19th BG had already scheduled a "maximum effort" mission against Rabaul, New Britain, on August 7 but Pease and his crew, with their aircraft out of commission, were not scheduled. Pease understood the importance of the mission and was determined to rejoin the group. Only one B-17 at Mareeba was able to fly, a "war-weary" bomber relegated to training. Its engines needed an overhaul, some armament had been dismounted, and the electric fuel-transfer pump had been used for replacement parts. Pease had a fuel tank installed in the bomb bay, with a handpump rigged to transfer fuel, and in less than three hours, was en route to Port Moresby with his crew, all of whom had also volunteered for the mission. They landed at 1:00 a.m. after working or flying almost continuously since 6:00 a.m. the previous day.

With only three hours' crew rest, Pease took off with the group to attack Rabaul's Vunakanau airdrome. While 40 to 50 miles (64 to 80 km) from the target, the group was attacked by more than 30 Japanese fighters. Pease and his crew claimed several of the fighters, fought their way to the target, and bombed successfully, but sustained heavy damage in the attacks.

After leaving the target area, Pease's crippled B-17 fell behind the rest of the formation. Once again attacked by fighters, he was seen to jettison the burning bomb bay fuel tank before falling back out of sight. Pease and his crew were presumed killed in action. Before the B-17 crashed, however, Pease and another crew member were able to bail out; both were captured and taken to a POW camp in Rabaul.  Pease languished there until October 8, 1942. On that date, Pease, three other Americans, and two Australians were forced to dig their own grave, then were beheaded. Postwar, the remains of three of Pease's crew were found and identified; however, the remains of Pease and those killed with him were not recovered 

B-17 similar to the one flown in this post

Source

 

December 2 1942, the Medal of Honor was presented to Captain Pease's parents by President Roosevelt.  The recommendation had been issued by Major General Kenney with an endorsement personally written by General MacArthur.  

You'll notice that some of the factors in this story did not make it into the Citation below. 

Medal of Honor Citation

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action with the enemy on 6–7 August 1942. When 1 engine of the bombardment airplane of which he was pilot failed during a bombing mission over New Guinea, Capt. Pease was forced to return to a base in Australia. Knowing that all available airplanes of his group were to participate the next day in an attack on an enemy-held airdrome near Rabaul, New Britain, although he was not scheduled to take part in this mission, Capt. Pease selected the most serviceable airplane at this base and prepared it for combat, knowing that it had been found and declared unserviceable for combat missions. With the members of his combat crew, who volunteered to accompany him, he rejoined his squadron at Port Moresby, New Guinea, at 1 a.m. on 7 August, after having flown almost continuously since early the preceding morning. With only 3 hours' rest, he took off with his squadron for the attack. Throughout the long flight to Rabaul, New Britain, he managed by skillful flying of his unserviceable airplane to maintain his position in the group. When the formation was intercepted by about 30 enemy fighter airplanes before reaching the target, Capt. Pease, on the wing which bore the brunt of the hostile attack, by gallant action and the accurate shooting by his crew, succeeded in destroying several Zeros before dropping his bombs on the hostile base as planned, this in spite of continuous enemy attacks. The fight with the enemy pursuit lasted 25 minutes until the group dived into cloud cover. After leaving the target, Capt. Pease's aircraft fell behind the balance of the group due to unknown difficulties as a result of the combat, and was unable to reach this cover before the enemy pursuit succeeded in igniting 1 of his bomb bay tanks. He was seen to drop the flaming tank. It is believed that Capt. Pease's airplane and crew were subsequently shot down in flames, as they did not return to their base. In voluntarily performing this mission Capt. Pease contributed materially to the success of the group, and displayed high devotion to duty, valor, and complete contempt for personal danger. His undaunted bravery has been a great inspiration to the officers and men of his unit.

 As I said, a hard story to read.

Peace out y'all 

Sources 

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harl_Pease

https://www.lanbob.com/lanbob/H-42Auth/PH93P-MOH.htm  

https://historynet.com/old-soldiers-pacific-b-17-armed-transports/     B-17 Pic

 

Museum of the American GI

OK, folks, a somewhat similar yet different posting than I have been doing lately. Mrs J and I had a little time on our hands (OK a LOT of time on our hands) and decided to do a bit of exploration of things in our new city of residence.  So, it's a Sunday Afternoon, there's a Soccer game between Argentina and Honduras in Texas A&M's football stadium (US Football stadium).  91,102 people showed up.  This meant that 91,102 people would not be driving around looking for things to do.  So,  it was remarkably quiet and relaxing.  

We decided we'd visit the Texas Museum of the American G.I. which is just south of town.  There was a lot of cool paraphernalia there  ranging back to just after the Civil War all the way up through Afghanistan.  Uniforms, weapons, cooking paraphernalia,  everything an army would need to conduct a campaign . 

 

 

There was one exhibit that sobered me quite a bit.

 

These were the dogtags or replica's of dogtags of Texas Veterans killed in the Vietnam War.  All of them donated by the families who had lost relatives or friends there.

Source

Talk about sobering.  3417 are presently there.  I would suspect there are many more not displayed yet.

In any case, this is an excellent museum.  Lots of guides all over the museum who can answer just about any question you might have about it.  Well designed, the flow is smooth and easy to get around.  Highly recommend a visit (even if you have to fly from Rhode Island, just sayin’).

Peace out y'all! 

Sources you might find interesting

https://americangimuseum.org/

https://americangimuseum.org/discover/exhibits/texas-heroes-exhibit/

 

Forrest L. Vosler MOH

 Ok, folks another Medal of Honor Hero to discuss.  Today's story is about Tech Sergeant Forrest L. Vosler.  Sgt Vosler was a radio operator and gunner on B-17s.

 

 Staff Sergeant Vosler deployed to the European theater in October of 1943.  Remember that Air Superiority was not attained by the Allies until mid-1944.  So, missions over Germany were dangerous and very costly in casualties. On Dec 20th 1944, his crew and he took off on a mission to attack Bremen Germany with a target time of noon.

One thing the Germans had at the time to counter the airstrikes, was AAA (anti-aircraft artillery for those not in the know).  They had a lot of that, an awful, awful lot of that.  In fact most of the Allied air losses were due to AAA.  But on this mission, the AAA was augmented by 125 German Fighters.  

27 Bombers were lost (10 crewmembers per plane) and the bomber Sergeant Vosler was aboard was shot up and ditched in the English Channel.  Obviously given that this was December, the water was extremely cold.  The tailgunner had been severely injured by the German Fighters.  Sgt Vosler made his way to the back of the aircraft and pulled him out of it.  The crew was getting the life raft out and set up.  Sgt Vosler was injured and could not see out of one eye.  He noticed that the tail gunner was sliding off the wing into the channel.  Sgt Vosler grabbed him and pulled him back onto the wing and held on to him and an aircraft antenna so as to not slide back in the sea.

He was awarded the Medal of Honor for going beyond his duty to save members of his crew.  Because of his injuries which caused blindness in the one eye and poor eyesight in the other, he was medically discharged from the Army Air Force.

 

 On September 6, 1944, President Roosevelt presented him with the Medal of Honor.

Source

He died of heart attack on February 17, 1992 at Titusville, Florida, at the age of 68. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

 

Medal of Honor Citation

For conspicuous gallantry in action against the enemy above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a radio operator-air gunner on a heavy bombardment aircraft in a mission over Bremen, Germany, on 20 December 1943. After bombing the target, the aircraft in which T/Sgt. Vosler was serving was severely damaged by antiaircraft fire, forced out of formation, and immediately subjected to repeated vicious attacks by enemy fighters. Early in the engagement a 20-mm. cannon shell exploded in the radio compartment, painfully wounding T/Sgt. Vosler in the legs and thighs. At about the same time a direct hit on the tail of the ship seriously wounded the tail gunner and rendered the tail guns inoperative. Realizing the great need for firepower in protecting the vulnerable tail of the ship, T/Sgt. Vosler, with grim determination, kept up a steady stream of deadly fire. Shortly thereafter another 20-mm. enemy shell exploded, wounding T/Sgt. Vosler in the chest and about the face. Pieces of metal lodged in both eyes, impairing his vision to such an extent that he could only distinguish blurred shapes. Displaying remarkable tenacity and courage, he kept firing his guns and declined to take first-aid treatment. The radio equipment had been rendered inoperative during the battle, and when the pilot announced that he would have to ditch, although unable to see and working entirely by touch, T/Sgt. Vosler finally got the set operating and sent out distress signals despite several lapses into unconsciousness. When the ship ditched, T/Sgt. Vosler managed to get out on the wing by himself and hold the wounded tail gunner from slipping off until the other crewmembers could help them into the dinghy. T/Sgt. Vosler's actions on this occasion were an inspiration to all serving with him. The extraordinary courage, coolness, and skill he displayed in the face of great odds, when handicapped by injuries that would have incapacitated the average crewmember, were outstanding. 

 

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forrest_L._Vosler 

https://www.war.gov/News/Feature-Stories/story/Article/2874805/medal-of-honor-monday-army-tech-sgt-forrest-l-vosler/ 

https://www.thisdayinaviation.com/20-december-1943/