Navy Destroyer Named for 92-year-old Concord War Hero, Phillips Academy Graduate

ANDOVER, MA -- A little memento of the Town of Andover now sails aboard a new naval destroyer named in honor of Thomas Hudner, Jr., a Class of 1943 Phillips Academy graduate and Concord resident, who was the country's first Medal of Honor recipient from the Korean War, the Andover Townsman reports. .

Retired USN Capt. Thomas Hudner Jr. , 92, attended the christening of the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer named the USS Thomas Hudner at Maine’s Bath Iron Works in April.

Since the 1970s, only 11 vessels have been named for individuals who were living when the naming was announced, the Andover Townsman reports.

Coins and other memorabilia are typically placed under a vessel's mast for good luck. On the USS Thomas Hudner, an Andover bicentennial coin was among the items placed under the mast to represent the life and character of ship's namesake.

Hudner is the Korean War's last living Navy recipient of the Medal of Honor. In a 1951 White House ceremony, President Harry Truman praised the then lieutenant’s “uncommon valor,” for crash-landing his plane in enemy territory in an attempt to save the life of his downed wingman, Ensign Jesse L. Brown.

Brown was the nation’s first black naval aviator and the first black naval officer to lose his life in any U.S. war.

After receiving the nation’s highest military honor, Hudner — a Fall River native now living in Concord — remained on active duty for 22 years, performing 27 combat missions in Korea. In the Vietnam War he served aboard the USS Kitty Hawk as executive officer.

Hudner then served as the Massachusetts Commissioner of Veterans Services from 1991 to 1999.

Hudner and Brown had launched their F4U Corsairs on that dreadful day from the USS Leyte on the afternoon of Dec. 4, 1950, as part of a six-plane reconnaissance mission over Korea’s northeast peninsula. The Korean War was in its fifth month. The six Corsairs, four ahead and two behind, flew north to the Chosin Reservoir, where Chinese forces were closing in on the 1st Marine division.

According to Wikipedia the following happened:

On 4 December 1950, Hudner was part of a six-aircraft flight supporting U.S. Marine Corps ground troops who were trapped by Chinese forces.

At 1:38 p.m., Hudner took off from the Leyte with squadron executive officer Lieutenant Commander Dick Cevoli, Lieutenant George Hudson, Lieutenant Junior Grade Bill Koenig, Ensign Ralph McQueen, and the first African American Navy pilot Ensign Jesse L. Brown, who was Hudner's wingman. The flight traveled 100 miles (160 km) from Task Force 77's location to the Chosin Reservoir, flying 35 to 40 minutes through very harsh wintery weather to the vicinity of the villages Yudam-ni and Hagaru-ri. The flight began searching for targets along the west side of the reservoir, lowering their altitude to 700 feet (210 m) in the process.

The three-hour search and destroy mission was also an attempt to probe Chinese troop strength in the area.

Though the flight spotted no Chinese, at 14:40 Koenig radioed to Brown that he appeared to be trailing fuel. The damage had likely come by small arms fire from Chinese infantry, who were known to hide in the snow and ambush passing aircraft by firing in unison. At least one bullet had ruptured an oil line. Brown, losing oil pressure and increasingly unable to control the aircraft, dropped his external fuel tanks and rockets and attempted to land the craft in a snow-covered clearing on the side of a mountain.

Brown crashed into a bowl-shaped valley near Somong-ni, 15 miles (24 km) behind Chinese lines and in 15-degree weather. The aircraft broke up violently upon impact and was destroyed In the crash, Brown's leg was pinned beneath the fuselage of the Corsair, and he stripped off his helmet and gloves in an attempt to free himself, before waving to the other pilots, who were circling close overhead.

Hudner and the other airborne pilots thought Brown had died in the crash, and they immediately began a mayday radio to any heavy transport aircraft in the area as they canvassed the mountain for any sign of nearby Chinese ground forces. They received a signal that a rescue helicopter would come as soon as possible, but Brown's aircraft was smoking and a fire had started near its internal fuel tanks.

Hudner attempted in vain to rescue Brown via radio instruction, before intentionally crash-landing his aircraft, running to Brown's side and attempting to wrestle him free from the wreck. With Brown's condition worsening by the minute, Hudner attempted to drown the aircraft fire in snow, and pull Brown from the aircraft, all in vain. Brown began slipping in and out of consciousness, but in spite of being in great pain, did not complain to Hudner.

A rescue helicopter arrived and Hudner and its pilot, Lieutenant Charles Ward, were unable to put out the engine fire with a fire extinguisher and tried in vain to free Brown with an axe for 45 minutes. They briefly considered, at Brown's request, amputating his trapped leg. Brown lost consciousness for the last time shortly thereafter.

His last known words, which he told Hudner, were "tell Daisy I love her."

The helicopter, which was unable to operate in the darkness, was forced to leave at nightfall with Hudner, leaving Brown behind. Brown is believed to have died shortly thereafter of his injuries and exposure to the extreme cold. No Chinese forces threatened the site, likely because of the heavy air presence of the VF-32 pilots.

Hudner begged superiors to allow him to return to the wreck to help extract Brown, but he was not allowed, as other officers feared an ambush of the vulnerable helicopters resulting in additional casualties. In order to prevent the body and the aircraft from falling into Chinese or North Korean hands, the U.S. Navy bombed the crash site with napalm two days later, reciting the Lord's Prayer over the radio as they watched Brown's body consumed by flames.

Brown was the first African American U.S. Navy officer killed in the war.

Hudner receives the Medal of Honor from President Harry S. Truman on 13 April 1951. Hudner wrote a book published in October 2015, "Devotion: An Epic Story of Heroism, Friendship & Sacrafice.''

For more on this story read the Andover Townsmen and see Wikipedia.

Courtesy photo of Medal of Honor recipient ( Ret.) USN Capt. Thomas J. Hudner standing net to a portrait done by artist Chas Fagan, Phillips Academy Class of '84. The portrait will hang aboard the USS Thomas Hudner. Other courtesy photos provided by Wikipedia.