Medal of Honor: Charles J. Loring Jr. – Korean War – November 22, 1952

Name: Charles Joseph Loring Jr.
Rank: Major
Organization: U.S. Air Force
Unit: 80th Fighter-Bomber Squadron, 8th Fighter-Bomber Wing
Place and Date: Near Sniper Ridge, North Korea – 22 November 1952
Entered Service At: Portland, Maine
Born: October 2, 1918 – Portland, Maine
Departed: Killed in Action – November 22, 1952
Accredited To: Maine

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Summary of Action

By late 1952, the fighting around Sniper Ridge had become some of the most punishing of the Korean War. United Nations infantrymen were pinned down day after day by entrenched enemy gun positions buried deep into the ridge — positions that had resisted artillery, rockets, and repeated air strikes.

Major Charles J. Loring Jr., a seasoned pilot and World War II combat veteran, led a flight of F-80 Shooting Stars on a close-support mission to silence those guns. As he rolled his jet into a steep dive, enemy anti-aircraft batteries opened up with deadly accuracy, filling the sky around him with tracers and fragmentation bursts.

Most pilots would have pulled off the attack run — but not Loring.

Hit repeatedly, his aircraft losing control, Loring continued driving straight toward the enemy positions. At just 4,000 feet, instead of attempting an emergency pullout or bailout, he deliberately altered course — turning his stricken jet into a final, decisive strike.

Banking hard, he aimed directly at a cluster of fortified gun emplacements tearing into U.N. lines. In complete command of his aircraft even in its final seconds, Major Loring dove into the ridge itself, obliterating the enemy battery in a single, self-sacrificing impact.

His final act saved countless soldiers trapped under the guns he destroyed. It was a split-second decision — one born of courage, clarity, and absolute devotion to those fighting on the ground.

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Medal of Honor Citation

Major Loring distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. While leading a flight of 4 F-80 type aircraft on a close support mission, Major Loring was briefed by a controller to dive-bomb enemy gun positions which were harassing friendly ground troops. After verifying the location of the target, Major Loring rolled into his dive-bomb run. Throughout the run, extremely accurate ground fire was directed on his aircraft. Disregarding the accuracy and intensity of the ground fire, Major Loring aggressively continued to press the attack until his aircraft was hit. At approximately 4,000 feet, he deliberately altered his course and aimed his diving aircraft at active gun emplacements concentrated on a ridge northwest of the briefed target, turned his aircraft 45 degrees to the left, pulled up in a deliberate, controlled maneuver, and elected to sacrifice his life by diving his aircraft directly into the midst of the enemy emplacements. His selfless and heroic action completely destroyed the enemy gun emplacement and eliminated a dangerous threat to United Nations ground forces. Major Loring’s noble spirit, superlative courage, and conspicuous self-sacrifice in inflicting maximum damage on the enemy exemplified valor of the highest degree and his actions were in keeping with the finest traditions of the U.S. Air Force.