For their actions in rescuing the two men, Norris was awarded the Medal of Honor and RVNN Petty Officer Nguyễn Văn Kiệt was recognized with the Navy Cross. Norris and Republic of Vietnam Navy (RVNN) commandos. Clark), who was shot down during rescue operations, were finally recovered from behind the front lines on two different nights in covert, night-time rescues carried out by U.S. Mark Clark (grandson of famed World War II General Mark W. The PAVN may have possessed information about his presence in Vietnam and his capture would have meant a huge intelligence bonanza for the Soviet Union.
Hambleton had Top Secret access to Strategic Air Command operations and was an expert in SAM countermeasures. Bat 21 was destroyed by an SA-2 surface-to-air missile (SAM) and Hambleton was the only survivor, parachuting behind the front lines into a battlefield filled with thousands of People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) soldiers.Ī 42nd TEWS Douglas EB-66E Destroyer at Takhli, Thailand.
Bat 21 was configured to gather signals intelligence, including identifying North Vietnamese anti-aircraft radar installations to enable jamming. The two aircraft were escorting a cell of three B-52s. An early morning flight of two United States Air Force EB-66 aircraft was led by Bat 20, piloted by Lt. On 2 April 1972, the Easter Offensive, the largest combined arms operation of the entire Vietnam War, was in its third day. Five additional aircraft were shot down during rescue attempts, directly resulting in the deaths of 11 airmen, the capture of two others, and another airman trying to evade capture. The rescue of Bat 21 Bravo, the call sign for Iceal "Gene" Hambleton, a navigator aboard an EB-66 aircraft shot down behind North Vietnamese lines, was the "largest, longest, and most complex search-and-rescue" operation during the Vietnam War. Iceal Hambleton, whose call sign was Bat 21 Bravo, c.
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