General Orders 1946 - Fort Benning

I..MEDAL OF RONOR.-By direction of tho Presid~nt, under the provisions
of the act of Congress approved Q July 1918 (wD Bull. 43, 1918), a Medal of
Honor for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the riak of lle above and
beyond the call of duty was awardcn w .qu$y by the War Department in
the name of Congress to the foilowiog-named afficcr and enlisted man:
Major Horace 8. Carst~ell Jr.. 0389757. 308th Bombardment Group, Air Corps,
Army of the United States, piloted a 8-24 bomber in a one-airplane strike against
a Japanese convoy in the South China Sea on the night of 26 October 1%. Taking
the enemy force of 12 ships escorted by at least 2 drstroyers by surprise, he made
one bombing run at 600 feet, scoring a near miss on one warship and escaping
without drawmg tire. He circled and. fully realizing that the convoy was thoroughls
alerted and would meet his next attack with a barrage of antiaircraft
fire, began a second low-level run which culminated in two direct hits on a large
tanker. A hail of steel from Japanese guns riddled the bomber, knocking out two
engines, damaging a third, crippling the hydraulic system. puncturing one gasoline
tank, ripping uncounted holes in the aircraft, and wounding the copilot,
but by magnificent display of flying skill, Major Ca?swell controlled the airplane's
pluuge toward the sea and carefully forced it into a halting climb in the diree
tion of the China shore. On reaching land, where it would have been possible to
abandon the staggcring bomber, one of the crew discovered that his parachute
had been ripped by flak and rendered useless The pilot, hoping to cross mountainous
terrain and reach a base, continued onward until the third engine failed.
He ordered the crew to hall out while he struggled to maintaln altitude and,
refusing to save himself, chose to remain with his comrade and attempt a crash
landing. He died when the airplane struck a mountainside and burned. With
consummate gallantr~ and Intrepidity, hlajor Carswell gave his life in a supreme
effort to save all members of his crew. His sacrifice, far beyond that required
of him, was in keeping with the traditional bravery of America's war heroes.
Staff Sergeant Howard B. Woodford (Army serial No. 35397941), a battalion
intelligence sergeant with the 130th Infantry Regiment, Army of the United
States, volunteered to investigate the delay In a scheduled attack by an attached
guerrilla battalion near Tahio, I.uzon, Philippine Islands, on 6 June 1945. Reaching
the line of departure, he found that the lead company, in combat for the first
time, was immobilized by intense enemy mortar, machinegun, and rifle flre which
had caused casualties to key personnel. Knowing that further failure to advance
would endanger the flanks of adjacent units as well as delay capture of the objec
tive, he immediately tmk command of the company, evacuated the wounded, reorganized
the unit under Bre, and prepared to attack. He repeatedly exposed
himself to draw revealing fire from the Japancse strong points, and then moved
AGO 3OllB-Fcb. 681120'-46