William A . Jones , III William Atkinson Jones , III ( May 31 , 1922 – November 15 , 1969 ) was a United States Air Force officer and a recipient of the United States military ' s highest decoration — the Medal of Honor — for his actions in the Vietnam War . Biography . Jones joined the Air Force after graduating from West Point with the class of 1945 . By September 1 , 1968 was serving as a Lieutenant Colonel in the 602d Special Operations Squadron , operating out of Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Force Base , Thailand . On that day , Jones participated in a mission to rescue a downed pilot near Dong Hoi , North Vietnam . William Atkinson Jones , an A - 1E Skyraider pilot , risked his life in an attempted rescue mission near Dong Hoi , North Vietnam . He was an Air Commando , assigned to the 602nd Special Operations Squadron . On September 1 , 1968 , Jones led a flight of four A - 1H Skyraider aircraft on an escort mission . The flight was accompanying two helicopters sent out to rescue the pilot of an F - 4 Phantom downed about 20 miles northwest of Dong Hoi . Arriving over the area , he made several low passes across a valley to find the pilot and pinpoint enemy gun positions . On one pass , he felt an explosion beneath his aircraft and his cockpit was filled with smoke . After the smoke cleared , he continued his search and finally spotted the downed pilot near a towering rock formation . Enemy gunners occupying a position near the top of the formation opened fire on the propeller - driven Skyraider . Jones realized that the gun position had to be destroyed before a rescue could be made and that strikes against it would endanger the survivor unless his location was known . He attacked with cannon and rocket fire while relaying the pilot ' s location by radio . While making his second pass , his aircraft was hit and cockpit was set ablaze . He sought to eject but the damaged extraction system only jettisoned the canopy without pulling him from the cockpit . At the same time his transmissions to the rescue force were being blocked by repeated calls from other aircraft that he bail out . Before the fire died out , Jones was badly burned and his radio transmitters were disabled . He chose to return to base to report the downed pilot ' s exact location . Despite his severe burns , he landed his damaged aircraft safely , and insisted on passing on the vital information before receiving medical treatment . The downed pilot was rescued later that day . Jones survived his wounds and was promoted to full Colonel , but died the next year in an aircraft accident in the United States . Aged 47 at his death , he was buried in Saint Johns Episcopal Church Cemetery , Warsaw , Virginia . His Medal of Honor was presented to his widow by President Richard Nixon on August 6 , 1970 , during a ceremony at the White House . Medal of Honor citation . Colonel Jones ' official Medal of Honor citation reads : For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty . Col . Jones distinguished himself as the pilot of an A - 1H Skyraider aircraft near Dong Hoi , North Vietnam . On that day , as the on - scene commander in the attempted rescue of a downed U . S . pilot , Col . Jones ' aircraft was repeatedly hit by heavy and accurate antiaircraft fire . On one of his low passes , Col . Jones felt an explosion beneath his aircraft and his cockpit rapidly filled with smoke . With complete disregard of the possibility that his aircraft might still be burning , he unhesitatingly continued his search for the downed pilot . On this pass , he sighted the survivor and a multiple - barrel gun position firing at him from near the top of a karst formation . He could not attack the gun position on that pass for fear he would endanger the downed pilot . Leaving himself exposed to the gun position , Col . Jones attacked the position with cannon and rocket fire on 2 successive passes . On his second pass , the aircraft was hit with multiple rounds of automatic weapons fire . One round impacted the Yankee Extraction System rocket mounted directly behind the headrest , igniting the rocket . His aircraft was observed to burst into flames in the center fuselage section , with flames engulfing the cockpit area . He pulled the extraction handle , jettisoning the canopy . The influx of fresh air made the fire burn with greater intensity for a few moments , but since the rocket motor had already burned , the extraction system did not pull Col . Jones from the aircraft . Despite searing pains from severe burns sustained on his arms , hands , neck , shoulders , and face , Col . Jones pulled his aircraft into a climb and attempted to transmit the location of the downed pilot and the enemy gun position to the other aircraft in the area . His calls were blocked by other aircraft transmissions repeatedly directing him to bail out and within seconds his transmitters were disabled and he could receive only on 1 channel . Completely disregarding his injuries , he elected to fly his crippled aircraft back to his base and pass on essential information for the rescue rather than bail out . Col . Jones successfully landed his heavily damaged aircraft and passed the information to a debriefing officer while on the operating table . As a result of his heroic actions and complete disregard for his personal safety , the downed pilot was rescued later in the day . Col . Jones ' profound concern for his fellow man at the risk of his life , above and beyond the call of duty , are in keeping with the highest traditions of the U . S . Air Force and reflect great credit upon himself and the Armed Forces of his country .