Korean War veterans were a special, albeit nearly forgotten, breed. Helicopter pilots of the era were not fearful men. At the drop of a hat, they battled horrible weather, treacherous terrain, and of course a determined enemy to rescue their fellow fighting men in peril, or die trying. They did it without hesitation. LT Koeslch is absolutely the best example. Another is the real-life rescue on which the movie “The Bridges at Toko -Ri” is based. The character Micky Rooney played in that movie was based on the real life enlisted pilot named Duane Thorin who was an actual larger than life figure in the Korean War. I attached a write-up of a story I rediscovered. Duane Thorin wrote a fictional account of the Communist treatment of captured Americans that he witnessed as a POW titled, “A Ride to Panmunjom”. It can be read online. Although seemingly not discussed publicly, the conditions endured by Koelsch formed the basis of what became SERE training (Code of Conduct). Prisoners endured horrific physical and mental torture. Some, like Koelsch, did not survive. to be fair, not all of the POWs who died in captivity were tortured to death. Some simply died as a result of the limitations of communism to sustain human life. On Sat, Nov 15, 2025 at 12:01 AM <mgbrattland@gerlecreek.com> wrote:

https://www.nhahistoricalsociety.org/honors/medal-of-honor-recipients/

*From:* Jim Sr Sturges <jwsturges@gmail.com> *Sent:* Friday, November 14, 2025 4:38 PM *To:* HeloBubbas <helobubbas@helobubbas.com> *Subject:* [Helobubbas] Korean War aviator was first helo pilot to receive MOH

*This Korean War aviator was the first helicopter pilot to receive MOH <https://www.militarytimes.com/veterans/military-history/2025/11/13/this-korean-war-aviator-was-the-first-helicopter-pilot-to-receive-moh/>*

*militarytimes.com <https://www.militarytimes.com/veterans/military-history/2025/11/13/this-korean-war-aviator-was-the-first-helicopter-pilot-to-receive-moh/>*

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