James P . Fleming James Phillip Fleming ( born March 12 , 1943 ) was a United States Air Force pilot in the Vietnam War . Born in Sedalia , Missouri , he was awarded the Medal of Honor for rescuing a 6 - man Green Beret unit , stranded between heavily - defended enemy positions , near Duc Co , Vietnam . Biography . Born in March 1943 in Sedalia , Missouri , Fleming entered military service at Pullman , Washington . In 1968 , he was an aircraft commander of a UH - 1F transport helicopter assigned to the 20th Special Operations Squadron at Ban Me Thuot in the Republic of Vietnam . On November 26 , a six - man reconnaissance team of Army Special Forces Green Berets had been lifted into Vietnam ' s western highlands , near the Cambodian border and about west of Pleiku . Hours later , they found themselves penned up next to a river , with enemy forces on the three remaining sides . The team leader ' s call for immediate evacuation was received by an Air Force forward air control ler ( FAC ) , as well as Fleming ' s nearby flight of five UH - 1s . All five helicopters , despite being low on fuel , headed toward the coordinates while the FAC briefed them on the situation . The Green Berets were taking heavy fire from six heavy machine guns and an undetermined number of enemy troops . As soon as the helicopters sighted the team ' s smoke , the gunships opened fire , knocking out two machine gun positions . One gunship was hit and crash - landed across the river , its crew picked up by another of the transports . A second transport , low on fuel , had to pull out of formation and return to base . There were only two helicopters left , Fleming ' s and one other that was almost out of ammunition . Hovering just above the jungle treetops , Fleming inspected the only clearing near enough for the troops to reach and found it impossible to land there . He instead flew over the river and hovered just above the water , with his landing skids against the bank , hoping that the special forces troops would be able to run the few yards to his helicopter safely . In addition to exposing his aircraft to ground fire , this maneuver was a balancing act that required great piloting skill . After waiting for several minutes , the reconnaissance team radioed that they couldn ' t survive a dash to the helicopter . Fleming lifted his UH - 1 out of range of the hostile fire . The FAC directed the Green Berets to detonate their mines as Fleming made a last attempt to rescue them . As the mines exploded , he again lowered his helicopter to the river bank , balancing against it , giving the Green Berets an open cargo door through which to leap to safety . The enemy soldiers concentrated their fire on the UH - 1 . The Green Berets ran for the chopper , firing as they ran and killing three Viet Cong barely from the aircraft . As they leaped through the cargo door , Fleming once more backed the helicopter away from the bank and flew down the river to safety . In a ceremony at the White House on May 14 , 1970 , President Richard Nixon presented the Medal of Honor to Fleming for his actions during the rescue . Fleming ' s other decorations include the Silver Star , the Distinguished Flying Cross and eight Air Medal s . Fleming remained in the Air Force , becoming a colonel and a member of the Officer Training School staff at Lackland Air Force Base , Texas , before his retirement in 1996 . Medal of Honor citation . Fleming ' s 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 . Capt . Fleming ( then 1st Lt . ) distinguished himself as the Aircraft Commander of a UH - 1F transport Helicopter . Capt . Fleming went to the aid of a 6 - man special forces long range reconnaissance patrol that was in danger of being overrun by a large , heavily armed hostile force . Despite the knowledge that 1 helicopter had been downed by intense hostile fire , Capt . Fleming descended , and balanced his helicopter on a river bank with the tail boom hanging over open water . The patrol could not penetrate to the landing site and he was forced to withdraw . Dangerously low on fuel , Capt . Fleming repeated his original landing maneuver . Disregarding his own safety , he remained in this exposed position . Hostile fire crashed through his windscreen as the patrol boarded his helicopter . Capt . Fleming made a successful takeoff through a barrage of hostile fire and recovered safely at a forward base . Capt . Fleming ' s profound concern for his fellowmen , and 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 .