WASHINGTON -- An airman credited with single-handedly taking Al Qaeda fighters before giving up his own life to protect his teammates has been recognized with the nation’s top military honor.

  • Tech. Sgt. John Chapman died in 2002
  • He was on a rescue mission in the mountains of Afghanistan when he died
  • He and his family lived near Pope Air Force base in Fayetteville

Tech. Sgt. John Chapman, who died in a firefight in Afghanistan in 2002, was awarded the Medal of Honor in a ceremony at the White House Wednesday afternoon.

"In this final act of act of supreme courage, John gave his life for his fellow warriors,” said President Donald Trump during the event, before giving the award to the late airman’s widow.

Chapman is the first member of the Air Force to receive the award for an action that took place after the Vietnam War.

Just months after 9/11, Chapman was on a rescue mission in the mountains of Afghanistan, aimed at retrieving a teammate knocked from a helicopter by enemy fire.

 

 

 

 

 

In a battle with Al Qaeda fighters, Chapman was critically injured and knocked unconscious. His teammates left the mountain, believing he was dead.

“He knew what kind of danger he was exposing himself to, the enormous risk that he placed himself in,” said Ret. Col. Ken “RZ” Rodriguez, who was Chapman’s commander and teammate.

The award comes after an investigation by the Air Force that spanned several months. That investigation unearthed new evidence, allowing for a better picture of the airman’s final moments.

Drone footage shows that after being hit, Chapman regained his faculties and continued fighting alone for an hour. He died clearing the way for a U.S. helicopter to arrive.

“His whole life, he was a medal of honor winner, because he always put other people before himself,” said Terry Chapman, the airman’s mother.

 

 

Chapman grew up in Connecticut and enlisted in 1985. He and his family lived near Pope Air Force base in Fayetteville, N.C. It was there he had a different title: father to two girls.

“He walked through the door and he was daddy, he was bathing them in the pool, playing with Barbie dolls, reading bedtime stories,” said Valerie Nessel, Chapman’s widow.

Chapman’s family says the award is validation for what they believe was an act of heroism by Chapman.

All told, seven service members died in the Battle of Takur Ghar. Chapman’s family says he would have wanted all of them to be recognized.

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