Robert E . Galer Brigadier General Robert Edward Galer ( October 24 , 1913 – June 27 , 2005 ) was a naval aviator in the United States Marine Corps who received the Medal of Honor for heroism in aerial combat during the Battle of Guadalcanal in World War II . He went on to command Marine Aircraft Group 12 during the Korean War and retired a few years after in 1957 . Biography . Early life . Robert Galer was born in Seattle , Washington , October 24 , 1913 . He attended the University of Washington and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in commercial engineering in 1935 , at which time he began elimination flight training at the Naval Reserve Aviation Base , Seattle . Marine Corps career . In June 1936 , he began his Aviation Cadet flight training at the Naval Air Station Pensacola , Florida , and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the U . S . Marine Corps , July 1 , 1936 . Following his designation as a Naval Aviator in April 1937 , he was transferred to the 1st Marine Brigade in Quantico , Virginia , for duty with Aircraft One . In July of the same year , he was assigned to a course of instruction at the Basic School in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania . Following the completion of his studies in June 1938 , he was ordered to the New York Navy Yard , but shortly thereafter was transferred to the Virgin Islands where he served with Marine Scouting Squadron 3 ( VMS - 3 ) in St . Thomas . He was advanced to first lieutenant in July 1939 . World War II . First Lieutenant Galer was returned to the United States in June 1940 and in July reported to the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing in San Diego , California and assigned to Marine Fighting Squadron 2 ( VMF - 2 ) . On 29 August 1940 , Galer ditched Grumman F3F - 2 , BuNo " 0976 " , c / n 374 , off the coast of San Diego while attempting a landing on the . ( The fighter was rediscovered by a navy submarine in June 1988 , and recovered on 5 April 1991 . It was restored at the San Diego Aerospace Museum ) . In January 1941 , he was ordered to Hawaii and was appointed a captain in March 1941 . Galer was serving at the Marine Corps Air Station Ewa , Oahu with Marine Fighting Squadron 211 ( VMF - 211 ) when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7 , 1941 . In May 1942 , Galer assumed command of Marine Fighting Squadron 224 ( VMF - 224 ) and on August 30 , 1942 led the squadron to Guadalcanal , where they became part of the Cactus Air Force . It was while in command of VMF - 224 that Galer would be credited with 11 confirmed victories and be awarded the Medal of Honor and a rare British Distinguished Flying Cross for the same acts of heroism . Following the presentation of the Medal of Honor by President Franklin D . Roosevelt at the White House on March 24 , 1943 , Maj . Galer was ordered to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar , where he served as Assistant Operations Officer . Shortly after being promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel in November 1943 , he was ordered to return to the Hawaiian Islands , where he became Chief of Staff , Marine Air , Hawaiian Area . In May 1944 , Lt . Col . Galer was named as Operations Officer , 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing . He served as an observer during the Palau Islands and Iwo Jima campaigns while on temporary duty from the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing . His next assignment found him as Training Officer of Provisional Air Support Command , Fleet Marine Force , Pacific . He again returned to the United States in June 1945 and reported to the Marine Barracks , Naval Air Training Base , Corpus Christi , Texas , in July as officer in charge of a cadet regiment . He remained in that capacity until August 1947 , at which time he was assigned as a student at the Armed Forces Staff College in Norfolk , Virginia . In June 1948 , he reported to the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing , at the Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point , North Carolina , where he served as Operations and Training Officer . He joined Headquarters Squadron - 2 at that station in April 1949 and was transferred April 26 , 1950 to the Naval Air Station San Diego , California . He served there as Marine Planning Officer and , later , as Assistant Chief of Staff for Plans , on the Staff of the Commander , Air Force , U . S . Pacific Fleet . During his assignment , he was promoted to colonel in March 1951 . Korean War . Colonel Galer sailed in March 1952 for Korea , where he saw duty as Assistant Chief of Staff , G - 4 ( Supply ) , of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing until the following May . He was then named Commanding Officer of Marine Aircraft Group 12 ( MAG - 12 ) , and , for extraordinary achievement on July 11 , 1952 , was awarded a Gold Star in lieu of a second Distinguished Flying Cross . According to the citation accompanying this medal , he " led a maximum effort strike of Marine attack aircraft against a heavily defended industrial area in the North Korean capital city of Pyongyang . " Colonel Galer was also awarded the Legion of Merit with Combat " V " for his service in Korea . On August 5 , 1952 , he was shot down behind enemy lines by anti - aircraft fire while leading a flight of 31 warplanes against targets near the North Korean port city of Wonsan . He was later rescued by a HO3S - 1 helicopter flown by 1st Lt . E . J . McCutcheon . After a period of hospitalization , he returned to duty at Marine Corps Air Station El Toro , California , in October 1952 , as Assistant Chief of Staff , G - 1 ( Personnel ) , and later , G - 3 ( Operations ) , of Aircraft , Fleet Marine Force , Pacific . He was enrolled as a student in the Air War College , Maxwell Air Force Base , Montgomery , Alabama , in July 1953 . Upon graduation from the College the following June , he was transferred to Headquarters Marine Corps , Washington , D . C . , where he became Assistant Director , Guided Missiles Division , Bureau of Aeronautics , Department of the Navy . He served in that capacity until January 1956 , when he became Acting Director . The following June he was awarded a Master ' s degree in Engineering Administration from The George Washington University , Washington , D . C . For exceptionally meritorious service in combat , he was advanced to brigadier general upon his retirement on July 31 , 1957 . Brigadier General Galer died on June 27 , 2005 in Dallas , Texas . Medals and decorations . A complete list of Brig . Gen . Galer ' s medals and decorations include :