Above and beyond: The Aviation Medals of Honor

Flight Journal, Feb 2003 by DeGroat, Robert S

Above and Beyond:

The Aviation Medals of Honor

by Barrett Tillman. Smithsonian Institution Press, 750 Ninth St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20560-0950; 294 pages; 95 B&W images; $29.95.

Since 1918, more than 100 U.S. pilots and crew have been awarded the Medal of Honor-the highest U.S. military decoration. Though established by Congress in December 1861 from the U.S. Navy medal (the U.S. Army version was introduced in July 1862), it is improperly known as the "Congressional Medal of Honor." Remarkably, it also seems the criteria for which it is awarded change almost every time it's presented.

Author and historian Barrett Tillman, who is familiar to regular Flight Journal readers, has produced the inspiring and thought-provoking "Above and Beyond: The Aviation Medals of Honor." The work includes a combination of survivors' interviews and superior research that creates a very readable accurate history.

Awardees include some of the most famous names in American aviation, but for all the Rickenbackers, Doolittles and Bongs, even more names border on being virtually unknown. There is B-17 navigator Lt. David Kingsley, who gave up his parachute to one of his crew before his plane went down; captured Korean War helicopter pilot Lt. John Koelsch, who as a POW provided only name, rank and serial number in what became the well-known American military code of conduct. In Vietnam, Maj. Patrick Brady used three Huey helicopters in his attempts to evacuate 52 men. All are heroes. Many never lived to see their medals. All deserve to be remembered for their selfless acts of heroism. This book is a good start.