Episodes

  • The Rescue of Bat 21: Lieutenant Thomas Norris

    The Rescue of Bat 21: Lieutenant Thomas Norris
    Nov 25 2024
    In April of 1972, Lieutenant Thomas Norris was tasked to lead a mission in Vietnam to rescue Lieutenant Colonel Iceal Gene Hambleton. Hambleton had been shot down in enemy territory, and was surrounded by 30,000 enemy NVA soldiers. Rescuing Hambleton was a top priority for the U.S.. As the navigator of a light bomber (with the call sign Bat 21 Bravo), he was an expert in surface-to-air missile countermeasures and was privy to top secret strategic air command operations, so if he was captured and turned over to the Russians, it could result in “irreparable damage to American National Defense”. Norris’ team was also tasked with rescuing 1st Lieutenant Mark Clark, an aviator who had been shot down while trying to rescue Hambleton. On the night of April 10th, 1972, Norris’ team successfully evaded multiple patrols, located Clark, and brought him to safety. After two more days of unsuccessful attempts to find Hambleton, many were ready to give up the search. Norris and a South Vietnamese soldier named Petty Officer Nyguen Van Kiet decided to give it one more shot. Again they successfully maneuvered around multiple enemy patrols, and located Hambleton, who was suffering from hunger and exhaustion. On their way back, they encountered two enemy positions, and came under machine gun fire once. Both times they radioed for assistance, and allied airstrikes took out the danger. All three made it back alive. On March 6th, 1976, Lieutenant Thomas Norris was awarded the Medal of Honor for his part in the rescue. Even after many had tried and failed, Norris showed selfless dedication in the face of extreme danger, resulting in the safe return of 1st Lieutenant Mark Clark and Lieutenant Colonel Iceal Gene Hambleton. If you’d like to hear Lieutenant Hambleton tell the story from his perspective, listen to his interview on Warriors In Their Own Words. If you’d like to hear about how Norris was almost killed in a patrol that earned his teammate the Medal of Honor, listen to our episode about Lieutenant Michael Thornton. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    7 mins
  • Hunted in North Vietnam: Lieutenant Michael Thornton

    Hunted in North Vietnam: Lieutenant Michael Thornton
    Nov 11 2024
    Lieutenant Michael Thornton served in Vietnam as a Navy SEAL. On October 31st, 1972, then Petty Officer Thornton was assigned to a night-time SEAL patrol. Thornton and three South Vietnamese SEALs were led by Lieutenant Tom Norris, and tasked with gathering intel on North Vietnam’s southern advance. After taking down two enemies, Thornton was spotted, and 50 NVA soldiers began chasing him. In a five-hour firefight, Thornton retreated back to the shore while fending off the enemy. After learning that his leader, Lieutenant Norris, was presumed dead, Thornton ran 500 yards in the direction of the enemy in order to reach Norris’ last known position. There he fought off five enemies and found Norris with serious injuries to his head. Thornton put his wounded ally on his shoulders and began to head back to shore, but a friendly artillery round sent them both 20 feet into the air. After hitting the ground, Thorton put Norris back on his soldiers and realized that he was still alive. Thorton carried him 400 yards back to the beach, inflated his life jacket, and began towing him into the sea. When one of the South Vietnamese SEALs was shot in the water, Thornton towed him along as well. He swam for two hours before they were picked up by a friendly ship. On October 15th, 1972, Lieutenant Michael E. Thornton was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions on the Halloween of 1973. Lieutenant Norris had been told by his doctors that he couldn’t leave the hospital to attend the ceremony, but Thornton had other plans. On the day of the ceremony, Thornton snuck Norris out the back door of the hospital and brought him to the White House so he could attend it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    7 mins
  • The Capture of U-505: LTJG Albert L. David

    The Capture of U-505: LTJG Albert L. David
    Oct 28 2024
    Lieutenant Junior Grade Albert Leroy David served in World War II as an assistant engineering and electrical officer on the USS Pillsbury. On June 4th, 1944, the Pillsbury’s hunter-killer group located a German U-boat 150 miles off the coast of West Africa. They attacked the submarine with depth charges, seriously damaging the ship and forcing the enemy to surface. As they abandoned ship, the German crew rigged demolition charges and cut holes in the hull, hoping to sink the U-boat to prevent their enemies from recovering any sensitive information. Facing enemy fire, an erratically moving vessel, and the possibility of explosion at any minute, LTJG David led a group of nine men onto the enemy U-boat. They quickly disarmed all the explosives and stopped the ship's flooding, allowing it to be recovered and hauled to the U.S.. On board, they recovered classified materials, charts, codebooks and enigma decoding machines. This became crucial information to the U.S., allowing allies to break German map code to locate U-boats, as well as decode German submarine radio messages in real time. The technology and advanced systems recovered on the ship also provided valuable information to the U.S. As a result of this success David was promoted to Lieutenant and recommended for the Medal of Honor. Unfortunately, he passed away before he could receive it. On September 17th, 1945, just two months before the ceremony, he died of a heart attack. On November 9th, 1945 Lieutenant Albert Leroy David was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. The Medal was presented to his wife, and it now sits on display at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, along with U-505. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    5 mins
  • The Battle of Shok Valley: SSG Ronald J. Shurer II

    The Battle of Shok Valley: SSG Ronald J. Shurer II
    Oct 14 2024
    SSG Ronald J. Shurer served in the U.S. Army Special Forces (Green Berets) as a Medical Sergeant. On April 6th, 2008, his unit embarked on Operation Commando Wrath, a mission to capture or kill high-value targets in Shok Valley. The operation would later be named The Battle of Shok Valley. For six hours, Shurer and his unit came under RPG, machine gun, sniper, and small arms fire on the mountain. During that time, Shurer put himself in harm's way numerous times to provide aid to his wounded comrades. On October 1st, 2018, Ronald J. Shurer II was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions in Shok Valley. Thanks to Shurer’s incredible bravery, not a single American died in the battle. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    6 mins
  • The Ultimate Sacrifice: Pvt. Christian and Pvt. Johnson

    The Ultimate Sacrifice: Pvt. Christian and Pvt. Johnson
    Sep 30 2024
    On June 3rd, 1944, Private Herbert Christian and Private Elden Johnson were on a patrol looking for enemy Germans. At 1am, they were ambushed, and came under suffocating fire from nearly all sides. Seeing no other options, Christian and Johnson stood up amidst the fire and advanced, drawing the enemy’s attention away from their allies and towards themselves. Despite the odds, and Christian even having his leg shot off, they were both able to travel 20 yards and kill multiple enemies before finally being gunned down. In the end, their diversion worked, and 12 of their allies were able to escape to safety. Both Private Herbert Christian and Private Elden Johnson were later awarded the Medal of Honor for the courageous sacrifice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    6 mins
  • The Fighting Field Music: Sgt. Darrell S. Cole

    The Fighting Field Music: Sgt. Darrell S. Cole
    Sep 16 2024
    Sergeant Darrell S. Cole initially served during World War II as a bugler. He didn’t like the job, and wanted to serve with his unit so badly that he twice took it upon himself to mount unmanned machine guns and join the battle. For this he became known as “The Fighting Field Music”. Due to his accomplishments and persistence, he was eventually assigned to a machine gun and became squad leader. During the Battle of Iwo Jima, Sgt. Cole lead his section onto the shore and up the beach through heavy fire. As they advanced, they were pinned down twice by a total of 5 protectedJapanese machine guns. Under intense fire,Cole destroyed all five on his own with a machine gun, grenades, and his pistol. After destroying the fifth, he was killed by an enemy grenade. On April 17th, 1947, Darrell S. Cole was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his courage, determination, and sacrifice during the Battle of Iwo Jima. Thanks to Cole, his unit was able to storm the remaining fortifications and seize their objective during a critical period of the battle. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    5 mins
  • The Battle of A Shau Part II: CSM Bennie G. Adkins

    The Battle of A Shau Part II: CSM Bennie G. Adkins
    Sep 2 2024
    The Battle of A Shau was a brutal battle that took place in the northern part of South Vietnam. More aptly described as a multi-day defense, less than 450 soldiers faced an onslaught of 2,000 NVA attackers. In this two-part episode, we tell the full story of the battle, and reveal why two of the camp’s defenders, Col. Bernard Francis Fisher and CSM Bennie G. Adkins, were both awarded the Medal of Honor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    14 mins
  • The Battle of A Shau Part I: Col. Bernard Francis Fisher

    The Battle of A Shau Part I: Col. Bernard Francis Fisher
    Aug 19 2024
    The Battle of A Shau was a brutal battle that took place in the northern part of South Vietnam. More aptly described as a multi-day defense, less than 450 soldiers faced an onslaught of 2,000 NVA attackers. In this two-part episode, we tell the full story of the battle, and reveal why two of the camp’s defenders, Col. Bernard Francis Fisher and CSM Bennie G. Adkins, were both awarded the Medal of Honor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    21 mins