Michael J. Novosel

Michael J. Novosel, Sr. (September 3, 1922 - April 2, 2006) of Enterprise, Alabama served in the United States military in three wars: World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. He flew the B-29 Superfortress bomber in World War II. In order to serve in the Vietnam War, he gave up the rank of lieutenant colonel in the Air Force Reserve to become a chief warrant officer in the Army. For his bravery in conducting a medical evacuation under fire in this conflict, he was awarded the United States' highest military decoration, the Medal of Honor.

Biography
He was born in Pittsburgh-area town of Etna, Pennsylvania, the son of Croatian immigrants, and grew up during the Great Depression.

At the age of 19, Novosel joined what was then the Army Air Corps. That was just ten months prior to Pearl Harbor, and by 1945, he was a captain flying B-29 Superfortress bombers in the war against Japan. He left the service for a brief time due to reductions in force after the war was over and settled in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, to raise his family.

Novosel joined the U.S. Air Force Reserves and went back on active duty to again serve his country during the Korean War. He left the service again in 1953 and was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel in the Air Force Reserve in 1955.

In 1963, Novosel was working as a commercial airline pilot when he decided to return to active military duty. By then, he was 41 and the Air Force did not have space for any more officers in the upper ranks. Novosel made the decision to give up his rank of lieutenant colonel in the Air Force to join the Army and fly helicopters as a chief warrant officer (CW4) with the elite Special Forces Aviation Section. He served his first tour in Vietnam flying medevac helicopters (Dustoff) with the 283rd Medical Detachment. His second tour in Vietnam was with the 82nd Medical Detachment. During that war, Novosel flew 2,543 missions and extracted 5,589 wounded personnel, among them his own son, Michael J. Novosel, Jr. (the following week Michael J. Novosel, Jr. returned the favor by extracting his father after he was shot down).

On the morning of October 2, 1969, he set out to evacuate a group of South Vietnamese soldiers who were surrounded by the enemy near the Cambodian border. The soldiers' radio communication was lost and their ammunition expended. Without air cover or fire support, Novosel flew at low altitude under continuous enemy fire. He skimmed the ground with his helicopter, while his medic and crew chief yanked the wounded men on board. He completed 15 hazardous extractions, was wounded in a barrage of enemy fire and momentarily lost control of his helicopter, but when it was over, he had rescued 29 men, for which he would be awarded the Medal of Honor. Novosel completed his tour in March 1970.

When Novosel retired as the senior warrant officer with the Warrant Officer Candidate Program in 1985, he had been a military aviator for 42 years and was the last World War II military aviator in the U.S. to remain on active flying duty. Novosel accumulated 12,400 military flying hours, including 2,038 in combat.

While residing in Enterprise, Alabama during his retirement, Novosel remained active in the military community. He frequently was invited as an honored guest for military lectures and ceremonies across the nation. He co-piloted the liftoff of the In the Shadow of the Blade mission in 2002. His book, Dustoff - The Memoir of an Army Aviator, was published in 1999. Diagnosed with a recurrent cancer in November 2005, he underwent a series of highly successful treatments at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. The cancer tumor was greatly reduced in December 2005 and January 2006. In February 2006, Novosel concluded chemotherapy and other treatments and waited to regain strength in preparation for surgery on March 7. His prognosis appeared excellent. Despite new and innovative procedures to reduce trauma, he never fully recovered from the shock of the surgery. He died on April 2, 2006, and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors on April 13.

Honors
In 1971, President Richard Nixon placed the nation's highest award for valor in combat, the Medal of Honor, around Novosel's neck. Among his many other awards, Novosel received the Distinguished Service Cross (which was later upgraded to the MOH), Distinguished Service Medal, Distinguished Flying Cross with two Oak Leaf Clusters, Bronze Star with Oak Leaf Cluster, and the Purple Heart.

He was inducted into the Army Aviation Hall of Fame in 1975. Upon his retirement, he received a rare honor for a living hero when the main street at Fort Rucker, Alabama was renamed "Novosel Street." He also received his final award, the Distinguished Service Medal, during his retiring ceremony.