 Medal of Honor, the highest honor a grateful nation can award its military heroes for acts of courage, self-sacrifice, and dedication above and beyond the call of duty. The history of America's survival is written in the blood of its fighting people whose devotion knew no limits. For the past 50 years, fighting men who wore the silver wings came from all over America when their country called. They learned to fly, they learned to fight, and they never flinched from facing combat. Some lived through two world wars. Many paid the full price. This is their story. The year was 1943. From the historic Casablanca Conference, a number of decisions emerged to speed the downfall of the Nazi war maker. One was a program of combined bombing operations. The RAF was to continue its night bombing attacks while the American Air Force would concentrate on daylight precision bombing of selected targets. Around the clock destruction of enemy industry, transportation, and supply sources was to bring the Third Reich to its knees. Combined bombing operations had been underway six weeks when Flight Officer John Morgan made his fateful flight. The mission? To wipe out the AGO Fluxoichwerk, producer of the German FW190 fighters, located about 90 miles southeast of Berlin. The deepest daylight raid yet attempted. A force of 120 B-17 flying fortresses was to take off from scattered English bases loaded with bombs and ammo, some equipped with extra fuel tanks for the long, dangerous flight. There was seemingly no surprise element to confuse the enemy as the planes reached their rendezvous point in the sky. Their progress was marked on German radar and the news flashed to waiting Luftwaffe groups. However, the direction of the flight toward the much-bombed Kiel-Hamburg area was a faint. At on schedule, 39 of the B-17s broke away and began their perilous journey inland. Even before reaching the German coast, the B-17 on which Flight Officer Morgan served as co-pilot was attacked by a large force of enemy fighters. They knocked out the oxygen system to the tail, waist, and radial gun positions. A frontal attack shattered the windshield and a 30-caliber shell hit the pilot in the head, leaving him in a crazed and semi-conscious condition. He fell over the steering wheel, tightly clamping his arms about it. Flight Officer Morgan at once grasped the controls from the wounded pilot and by sheer strength pulled the airplane back into formation, despite the frantic resistance of the pilot. The waist, tail, and radio gunners had lost consciousness from lack of oxygen. Hearing no fire from their guns, Morgan believed they had bailed out. In the face of this desperate situation, he made his decision to continue the flight to the target. For two hours, he flew in formation, with one hand at the controls and the other holding off the clutching grip of the crazed pilot, before the navigator entered the steering compartment and relieved the situation, making the completion of the mission possible. It was not a cheap victory, but the enemy paid a bigger price. Recon photos showed the amazing accuracy of the bombing. The vital Fokervolf 190 plant was rendered useless for a long time. Newly promoted Lieutenant John C. Morgan was awarded the Medal of Honor for his miraculous and heroic performance. The citation read in part, or conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty while participating on a bombing mission over occupied continental Europe.