Staff Sgt. Marc Coopershedfield, 301st Fighter Wing Honor Guard member, lays a wreath on the resting place of Maj. Horace Carswell on the anniversary of this death to remember his sacrfices and pay homage. Major Carswell was shot down over China on Oct. 26, 1944, and the base, in Fort Worth, Texas, was named after the major in 1948. The base now called Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth Carswell Field, Texas, is home to all branches of the U.S. armed forces. (U.S. Air Force Photo/Tech. Sgt. Julie Briden-Garcia)

Wreath laid to remember Medal of Honor recipient

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Ross Wood
  • 301st Fighter Wing
Fort Worth, TEXAS --  Horace Seaver Carswell, Jr. (July 18, 1916 - October 26, 1944) was a major in the United States Air Force who served in World War II. He is the namesake of former Carswell Air Force Base, now Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, Texas. 

On October 26, 2007, two members from the 301st Fighter Wing Base Honor Guard, Master Sgt. Ross Wood and Staff Sgt. Marc Coopershedfield, paid homage to his supreme sacrifice with a wreath-laying ceremony at his grave site. Major Carswell is interred at the Oak Wood cemetery family plot in Fort Worth, next to his parents. He was a highly decorated pilot during WWII whose personal courage and sacrifice personify the term "Our Greatest Generation." 

He was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Distinguished Service Cross, the Air Medal, and the Purple Heart. These medals were presented to his wife, Virginia, on December 20, 1944, and July 21, 1945. Major Carswell was also awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously on February 4, 1946. 

The Medal of Honor citation states: 

He piloted a B-24 bomber in a one-plane strike against a Japanese convoy in the South China Sea on the night of 26 October 1944. Taking the enemy force of 12 ships escorted by at least two destroyers by surprise, he made one bombing run at 600 feet, scoring a near miss on one warship and escaping without drawing fire. He circled, and fully realizing that the convoy was thoroughly alerted and would meet his next attack with a barrage of antiaircraft fire, began a second low-level run which culminated in two direct hits on a large tanker. 

A hail of steel from Japanese guns riddled the bomber, knocking out two engines, damaging a third, crippling the hydraulic system, puncturing one gasoline tank, ripping uncounted holes in the aircraft, and wounding the copilot; but by magnificent display of flying skill, Maj. Carswell controlled the plane's plunge toward the sea and carefully forced it into a halting climb in the direction of the China shore. 

On reaching land, where it would have been possible to abandon the staggering bomber, one of the crew discovered that his parachute had been ripped by flak and rendered useless. The pilot, hoping to cross mountainous terrain and reach a base, continued onward until the third engine failed. 

He ordered the crew to bail out while he struggled to maintain altitude. Refusing to save himself, he chose to remain with his comrade and attempt a crash landing. He died when the airplane struck a mountainside and burned. 

With consummate gallantry and intrepidity, Maj. Carswell gave his life in a supreme effort to save all members of his crew. His sacrifice, far beyond that required of him, was in keeping with the traditional bravery of America's war heroes. 

It is the hope of the 301st Fighter Wing Base Honor Guard that the wreath-laying ceremony will become an annual event to honor this local hero.