Acts of bravery
Discussion
Couldn't resist being first in a new subforum.
I love hearing about amazing acts of bravery...doesn't need to military...but one I'd not heard of until recently was.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy_Benavidez
Hell of a life story.
I love hearing about amazing acts of bravery...doesn't need to military...but one I'd not heard of until recently was.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy_Benavidez
Hell of a life story.
Audie Murphy has to be up there, although (comparatively) well known.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audie_Murphy
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audie_Murphy
ChevronB19 said:
Audie Murphy has to be up there, although (comparatively) well known.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audie_Murphy
Obviously I've heard of him, but wasn't aware of how he'd won his MoH. Straight out of comic book that...stood stop a burning tank destroyer in a last stand firing a 50 cal.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audie_Murphy
Jane Harrison GC
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Jane_Harri...
Died age 22 attempting to rescue the survivors of a burning aircraft, when she could have chosen to escape herself.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Jane_Harri...
Died age 22 attempting to rescue the survivors of a burning aircraft, when she could have chosen to escape herself.
essayer said:
Jane Harrison GC
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Jane_Harri...
Died age 22 attempting to rescue the survivors of a burning aircraft, when she could have chosen to escape herself.
Wow...and just 22. Not heard of her before. Great addition to the thread.https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Jane_Harri...
Died age 22 attempting to rescue the survivors of a burning aircraft, when she could have chosen to escape herself.
I'm going to add David Purley for him trying to save Williamson in 73.
It's a tough watch just to warn folks.
https://youtu.be/b8Q_po7hLRs?si=KkowORA-HhRPCHAf
TGCOTF-dewey said:
essayer said:
Jane Harrison GC
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Jane_Harri...
Died age 22 attempting to rescue the survivors of a burning aircraft, when she could have chosen to escape herself.
Wow...and just 22. Not heard of her before. Great addition to the thread.https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Jane_Harri...
Died age 22 attempting to rescue the survivors of a burning aircraft, when she could have chosen to escape herself.
I'm going to add David Purley for him trying to save Williamson in 73.
It's a tough watch just to warn folks.
https://youtu.be/b8Q_po7hLRs?si=KkowORA-HhRPCHAf
I agree it is a very tough watch, and I personally will never watch it again. But bloody hell. I’ll never, ever forget the reported words of Williamson ‘For God’s sake, David, get me out of here’.
He started racing in a Lotus 6 co-owned with a friend of mine.
In a motorsport related thing, although this is personal heroism rather than a hero for others, Niki Lauda returning to racing just 6 weeks after *that* crash is either pretty admirable or a demonstration of utter dedication.
I’d probably also nominate Alex Zanardi in the same category.
Edited by ChevronB19 on Saturday 5th April 12:06
My first ever skydiving instructor in the early eighties was a guy called Dave Goodwin. Unfortunately, after a few jumps life moved on and I never saw him again. When I took up jumping again, I found out about his sad demise at the age of 67. I've copied the following from a tribute that appeared on the BPA (now British Skydiving) FB page:
Dave was flying a 206 with his partner Michelle and other family members aboard, when the plane crashed and was engulfed in flames. Dave pulled all the others from the plane receiving extensive burns. Jamie, his nephew has written, “David did sustain 95% burns to his body. He angled the plane crash so he would take the most impact, then made sure everyone got out of the plane before he did despite being engulfed in flames. Regardless of sustaining such terrible burns and being stripped naked he gave everyone the strength to keep moving and get away before the craft exploded, stayed strong and even carried Michelle’s sister who couldn't walk for 2-3 miles to get to the road. He saved the lives of all of her family and took the worst of the damage. He flagged down help and stayed incredibly strong until he knew everyone was safe. Incredible, incredible man. Four people owe him their lives and so many more are so thankful for that.“
Dave was flying a 206 with his partner Michelle and other family members aboard, when the plane crashed and was engulfed in flames. Dave pulled all the others from the plane receiving extensive burns. Jamie, his nephew has written, “David did sustain 95% burns to his body. He angled the plane crash so he would take the most impact, then made sure everyone got out of the plane before he did despite being engulfed in flames. Regardless of sustaining such terrible burns and being stripped naked he gave everyone the strength to keep moving and get away before the craft exploded, stayed strong and even carried Michelle’s sister who couldn't walk for 2-3 miles to get to the road. He saved the lives of all of her family and took the worst of the damage. He flagged down help and stayed incredibly strong until he knew everyone was safe. Incredible, incredible man. Four people owe him their lives and so many more are so thankful for that.“
During WWI my Grandfather was sent out on a no-mans land patrol to gather information about the German trenches. Unfortunately his patrol was spotted and fired upon. My Grandfather and his pal were shot and wounded. He managed to drag himself and his pal into a large shell crater. His pal died shortly afterwards and he passed in and out of consciousness.
A medical patrol was sent out led by Noel Chavasse. They found my Grandfather and put him on a stretcher. As they ran back to their trenches the German machine guns opened up. Chavasse received shrapnel wounds but kept running with the stretcher. My Grandfather's arms fell down from his chest and were shot up.
That night Chavasse saved the lives of twenty wounded soldiers from no-mans land. For this incredible act of bravery he received the Victoria Cross. Of 16 stretcher-bearers with Noel that night, two had received the Distinguished Conduct Medal and two the Military Medal.
Just under a year later Chavasse again showed incredible bravery whilst badly wounded and saved the lives of many wounded soldiers. Unfortunately Chavasse succumbed to his wounds and died later that night. For his bravery he was posthumously awarded another Victoria Cross. He is the only person to have been awared two Victoria Crosses during WWI.
I have been very fortunate to visit Chavasse's grave on different occasions with my parents and my wife and children.
A medical patrol was sent out led by Noel Chavasse. They found my Grandfather and put him on a stretcher. As they ran back to their trenches the German machine guns opened up. Chavasse received shrapnel wounds but kept running with the stretcher. My Grandfather's arms fell down from his chest and were shot up.
That night Chavasse saved the lives of twenty wounded soldiers from no-mans land. For this incredible act of bravery he received the Victoria Cross. Of 16 stretcher-bearers with Noel that night, two had received the Distinguished Conduct Medal and two the Military Medal.
Just under a year later Chavasse again showed incredible bravery whilst badly wounded and saved the lives of many wounded soldiers. Unfortunately Chavasse succumbed to his wounds and died later that night. For his bravery he was posthumously awarded another Victoria Cross. He is the only person to have been awared two Victoria Crosses during WWI.
I have been very fortunate to visit Chavasse's grave on different occasions with my parents and my wife and children.
Edited by RosscoPCole on Thursday 10th April 19:32
TGCOTF-dewey said:
Another great story...and nice personal connection.
Did your grandfather fully recover?
He did after spending nearly a year in various hospitals. The machine gun wounds to his arms were fixed with pioneering surgery. One of his wounds was a bullet through the back of his head and he couldn't see for nearly 6 months. Apparently he fell in love with the voice of one of the nurses. As part of his recuperation when his eyesight came back he was encouraged to paint and draw and I still have the portraits of the nurse with the voice he fell in love with.Did your grandfather fully recover?
After he left hospital and went back home and trained to be a tailor and kiltmaker and was very successful.
The only side effect was that he occasionally lost control of his grip and was known to crush a glass in his hand without. Though this happened very occasionally.
He passed away in 1981 aged 84.
RosscoPCole said:
During WWI my Grandfather was sent out on a no-mans land patrol to gather information about the German trenches. Unfortunately his patrol was spotted and fired upon. My Grandfather and his pal were shot and wounded. He managed to drag himself and his pal into a large shell crater. His pal died shortly afterwards and he passed in and out of consciousness.
A medical patrol was sent out led by Noel Chavasse. They found my Grandfather and put him on a stretcher. As they ran back to their trenches the German machine guns opened up. Chavasse received shrapnel wounds but kept running with the stretcher. My Grandfather's arms fell down from his chest and were shot up.
That night Chavasse saved the lives of twenty wounded soldiers from no-mans land. For this incredible act of bravery he received the Victoria Cross. Of 16 stretcher-bearers with Noel that night, two had received the Distinguished Conduct Medal and two the Military Medal.
Just under a year later Chavasse again showed incredible bravery whilst badly wounded and saved the lives of many wounded soldiers. Unfortunately Chavasse succumbed to his wounds and died later that night. For his bravery he was posthumously awarded another Victoria Cross. He is the only person to have been awared two Victoria Crosses during WWI.
I have been very fortunate to visit Chavasse's grave on different occasions with my parents and my wife and children.
That’s a fantastic story, thanks for sharing thatA medical patrol was sent out led by Noel Chavasse. They found my Grandfather and put him on a stretcher. As they ran back to their trenches the German machine guns opened up. Chavasse received shrapnel wounds but kept running with the stretcher. My Grandfather's arms fell down from his chest and were shot up.
That night Chavasse saved the lives of twenty wounded soldiers from no-mans land. For this incredible act of bravery he received the Victoria Cross. Of 16 stretcher-bearers with Noel that night, two had received the Distinguished Conduct Medal and two the Military Medal.
Just under a year later Chavasse again showed incredible bravery whilst badly wounded and saved the lives of many wounded soldiers. Unfortunately Chavasse succumbed to his wounds and died later that night. For his bravery he was posthumously awarded another Victoria Cross. He is the only person to have been awared two Victoria Crosses during WWI.
I have been very fortunate to visit Chavasse's grave on different occasions with my parents and my wife and children.
Edited by RosscoPCole on Thursday 10th April 19:32
William McFadzean, a soldier in the 36th Ulster Division, threw himself on live grenades to save his comrades on the first day of the Somme. It is likely more than a few of those he saved went on to die hours later, given just how costly that first day was. He was awarded a Victoria Cross posthumously.
The interaction between Charlie Brown and Franz Stigler sticks out to me as well. Stigler refused to down a severely damaged B-17 after it had bombed Bremen, instead escorting it out of German territory. Once the B-17 reached open water, Stigler departed with a salute. Stigler was an ace - to down the stricken B-17 would have notched up another kill. And yet he neither harmed the plane nor allowed anyone on the ground to do so. Were it not for Charlie Brown attempting to find out more, Stigler might have taken that incident to the grave.
The interaction between Charlie Brown and Franz Stigler sticks out to me as well. Stigler refused to down a severely damaged B-17 after it had bombed Bremen, instead escorting it out of German territory. Once the B-17 reached open water, Stigler departed with a salute. Stigler was an ace - to down the stricken B-17 would have notched up another kill. And yet he neither harmed the plane nor allowed anyone on the ground to do so. Were it not for Charlie Brown attempting to find out more, Stigler might have taken that incident to the grave.
7mike said:
My first ever skydiving instructor in the early eighties was a guy called Dave Goodwin. Unfortunately, after a few jumps life moved on and I never saw him again. When I took up jumping again, I found out about his sad demise at the age of 67. I've copied the following from a tribute that appeared on the BPA (now British Skydiving) FB page:
Dave was flying a 206 with his partner Michelle and other family members aboard, when the plane crashed and was engulfed in flames. Dave pulled all the others from the plane receiving extensive burns. Jamie, his nephew has written, “David did sustain 95% burns to his body. He angled the plane crash so he would take the most impact, then made sure everyone got out of the plane before he did despite being engulfed in flames. Regardless of sustaining such terrible burns and being stripped naked he gave everyone the strength to keep moving and get away before the craft exploded, stayed strong and even carried Michelle’s sister who couldn't walk for 2-3 miles to get to the road. He saved the lives of all of her family and took the worst of the damage. He flagged down help and stayed incredibly strong until he knew everyone was safe. Incredible, incredible man. Four people owe him their lives and so many more are so thankful for that.“
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6467883/British-pilot-hailed-hero-crash-landing-South-African-mountain-top.htmlDave was flying a 206 with his partner Michelle and other family members aboard, when the plane crashed and was engulfed in flames. Dave pulled all the others from the plane receiving extensive burns. Jamie, his nephew has written, “David did sustain 95% burns to his body. He angled the plane crash so he would take the most impact, then made sure everyone got out of the plane before he did despite being engulfed in flames. Regardless of sustaining such terrible burns and being stripped naked he gave everyone the strength to keep moving and get away before the craft exploded, stayed strong and even carried Michelle’s sister who couldn't walk for 2-3 miles to get to the road. He saved the lives of all of her family and took the worst of the damage. He flagged down help and stayed incredibly strong until he knew everyone was safe. Incredible, incredible man. Four people owe him their lives and so many more are so thankful for that.“
RosscoPCole said:
He did after spending nearly a year in various hospitals. The machine gun wounds to his arms were fixed with pioneering surgery. One of his wounds was a bullet through the back of his head and he couldn't see for nearly 6 months. Apparently he fell in love with the voice of one of the nurses. As part of his recuperation when his eyesight came back he was encouraged to paint and draw and I still have the portraits of the nurse with the voice he fell in love with.
After he left hospital and went back home and trained to be a tailor and kiltmaker and was very successful.
The only side effect was that he occasionally lost control of his grip and was known to crush a glass in his hand without. Though this happened very occasionally.
He passed away in 1981 aged 84.
Good old innings that. I'm amazed he got away so few long term effects given his wounds.After he left hospital and went back home and trained to be a tailor and kiltmaker and was very successful.
The only side effect was that he occasionally lost control of his grip and was known to crush a glass in his hand without. Though this happened very occasionally.
He passed away in 1981 aged 84.
Was the nurse your Gran then?
7mike said:
My first ever skydiving instructor in the early eighties was a guy called Dave Goodwin. Unfortunately, after a few jumps life moved on and I never saw him again. When I took up jumping again, I found out about his sad demise at the age of 67. I've copied the following from a tribute that appeared on the BPA (now British Skydiving) FB page:
Dave was flying a 206 with his partner Michelle and other family members aboard, when the plane crashed and was engulfed in flames. Dave pulled all the others from the plane receiving extensive burns. Jamie, his nephew has written, “David did sustain 95% burns to his body. He angled the plane crash so he would take the most impact, then made sure everyone got out of the plane before he did despite being engulfed in flames. Regardless of sustaining such terrible burns and being stripped naked he gave everyone the strength to keep moving and get away before the craft exploded, stayed strong and even carried Michelle’s sister who couldn't walk for 2-3 miles to get to the road. He saved the lives of all of her family and took the worst of the damage. He flagged down help and stayed incredibly strong until he knew everyone was safe. Incredible, incredible man. Four people owe him their lives and so many more are so thankful for that.“
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6467883/British-pilot-hailed-hero-crash-landing-South-African-mountain-top.htmlDave was flying a 206 with his partner Michelle and other family members aboard, when the plane crashed and was engulfed in flames. Dave pulled all the others from the plane receiving extensive burns. Jamie, his nephew has written, “David did sustain 95% burns to his body. He angled the plane crash so he would take the most impact, then made sure everyone got out of the plane before he did despite being engulfed in flames. Regardless of sustaining such terrible burns and being stripped naked he gave everyone the strength to keep moving and get away before the craft exploded, stayed strong and even carried Michelle’s sister who couldn't walk for 2-3 miles to get to the road. He saved the lives of all of her family and took the worst of the damage. He flagged down help and stayed incredibly strong until he knew everyone was safe. Incredible, incredible man. Four people owe him their lives and so many more are so thankful for that.“
ChevronB19 said:
TGCOTF-dewey said:
essayer said:
Jane Harrison GC
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Jane_Harri...
Died age 22 attempting to rescue the survivors of a burning aircraft, when she could have chosen to escape herself.
Wow...and just 22. Not heard of her before. Great addition to the thread.https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Jane_Harri...
Died age 22 attempting to rescue the survivors of a burning aircraft, when she could have chosen to escape herself.
I'm going to add David Purley for him trying to save Williamson in 73.
It's a tough watch just to warn folks.
https://youtu.be/b8Q_po7hLRs?si=KkowORA-HhRPCHAf
I agree it is a very tough watch, and I personally will never watch it again. But bloody hell. I’ll never, ever forget the reported words of Williamson ‘For God’s sake, David, get me out of here’.
He started racing in a Lotus 6 co-owned with a friend of mine.
In a motorsport related thing, although this is personal heroism rather than a hero for others, Niki Lauda returning to racing just 6 weeks after *that* crash is either pretty admirable or a demonstration of utter dedication.
I’d probably also nominate Alex Zanardi in the same category.
Edited by ChevronB19 on Saturday 5th April 12:06
ruggedscotty said:
Thanks for sharing, I'd not seen that article.Gassing Station | History | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff