Lloyd Herbert Hughes
Encyclopedia
Lloyd Herbert "Pete" Hughes, Jr., (July 12, 1921 – August 1, 1943), a second lieutenant in the United States Army Air Forces
who received the Medal of Honor
for his actions in Operation Tidal Wave during World War II
.
, the only son of Lloyd Herbert Hughes, Sr., and Mildred Mae Rainey Hughes. Family and friends called him Pete. One source described his parents as Welsh immigrants, but Mildred was born in Josserand, Trinity County, Texas. The family lived in Alexandria only briefly before moving to his mother's native state of Texas.
He graduated from Refugio High School, Refugio, Texas
, in 1939 and went on to attend Corpus Christi Junior College in Corpus Christi
and Texas A&M University
in College Station
. He studied petroleum engineering
at Texas A&M and was a member of the class of 1943, but left school before graduating. A few weeks after the attack on Pearl Harbor
he joined the military. He entered the military service at San Antonio
on January 28, 1942, and was appointed an aviation cadet the same day.
On November 8, 1942, Hughes married Hazel Dean Ewing.
and Enid, Oklahoma
, Hughes received his pilot's wings at Lubbock, Texas
, on November 10, 1942. He was assigned to the 389th Bombardment Group, went to Africa
in June 1943, and participated in five combat missions in the Italy
-Romania
area.
During Operation Tidal Wave, the most highly decorated military mission in U.S. history, 179 B-24
s took off on an 18-hour, 2,400 mile round trip mission to destroy the largest of the Nazi-held oil refineries at Ploieşti
, 30 miles north of Bucharest
, Romania. This day, August 1, 1943, would end with five U.S. Air Force airmen, including 2nd Lt. Lloyd Herbert Hughes, earning the Medal of Honor for bravery; three, including Hughes, posthumously. Fifty-four aircraft never returned.
During the August 1, 1943 bombing mission over the Câmpina
oil fields north of the Ploieşti oil fields in Romania, Hughes was the pilot of a B-24 heavy bombardment aircraft flying in the last element of a formation. He arrived in the target area when the enemy defenses were thoroughly alerted by previous aircraft. He approached the target at dangerously low altitude as was planned, through intense and accurate anti-aircraft fire and densely arranged barrage balloon
s. Several hits from both large and small caliber anti-aircraft guns seriously damaged his aircraft and caused gasoline to leak from the bomb bay and left wing. The leak was so heavy that it blinded his waist gunner's view. The damage was inflicted prior to reaching the target, when Hughes could have made a forced landing in one of the surrounding grain fields. The target area was blazing with burning oil tanks and refinery equipment, with flames leaping high above the bombing level of the formation. Knowing the consequences of entering the inferno with his airplane leaking gasoline in two places, Hughes elected to carry on, rather than jeopardize the formation and the success of the attack. He flew into the wall of fire at about 30 feet above the ground and dropped his bomb load with precision.
After successfully bombing the target, he emerged from the conflagration with the left wing of his aircraft on fire. He attempted to pull up and away from the action, trying to save his plane and crew. He successfully slowed the plane's speed from 225 to 100 miles an hour. It looked as if he would be able to crash land in the dry river bed of the Prahova River
, when suddenly the left wing flew off and the plane cartwheeled into the ground. Of the ten men aboard the B-24, Hughes and five others were killed, two died of their wounds within days and two survived the crash only to become prisoners of war.
On November 13, 2010, he was inducted into the Louisiana Military Hall of Fame in Abbeville, Louisiana
.
Eight months after he was killed in action, on April 18, 1944, Hughes' Medal of Honor was presented to his wife Hazel. Hughes was the first of seven Texas A&M alumni to receive the medal for actions during World War II. On March 30, 2009, his family donated the medal to the Sanders Corps of Cadets Center
on the Texas A&M campus.
Hughes' official Medal of Honor citation reads:
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....
who received the Medal of Honor
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
for his actions in Operation Tidal Wave during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Early life and family
Hughes was born in Alexandria, LouisianaAlexandria, Louisiana
Alexandria is a city in and the parish seat of Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on the south bank of the Red River in almost the exact geographic center of the state. It is the principal city of the Alexandria metropolitan area which encompasses all of Rapides and Grant parishes....
, the only son of Lloyd Herbert Hughes, Sr., and Mildred Mae Rainey Hughes. Family and friends called him Pete. One source described his parents as Welsh immigrants, but Mildred was born in Josserand, Trinity County, Texas. The family lived in Alexandria only briefly before moving to his mother's native state of Texas.
He graduated from Refugio High School, Refugio, Texas
Refugio, Texas
Refugio is a town in Refugio County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,941 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Refugio County. Although the town's name is derived from Spanish, a vast majority of the town's residents pronounce it re-fury-oh. The Spanish pronunciation is...
, in 1939 and went on to attend Corpus Christi Junior College in Corpus Christi
Corpus Christi, Texas
Corpus Christi is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas. The county seat of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patricio counties. The MSA population in 2008 was 416,376. The population was 305,215 at the 2010 census making it the...
and Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...
in College Station
College Station, Texas
College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, situated in East Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley. The city is located within the most populated region of Texas, near three of the 10 largest cities in the United States - Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio...
. He studied petroleum engineering
Petroleum engineering
Petroleum engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the activities related to the production of hydrocarbons, which can be either crude oil or natural gas. Subsurface activities are deemed to fall within the upstream sector of the oil and gas industry, which are the activities of...
at Texas A&M and was a member of the class of 1943, but left school before graduating. A few weeks after the attack on Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
he joined the military. He entered the military service at San Antonio
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
on January 28, 1942, and was appointed an aviation cadet the same day.
On November 8, 1942, Hughes married Hazel Dean Ewing.
Military service
After attending flight school in TulsaTulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 46th-largest city in the United States. With a population of 391,906 as of the 2010 census, it is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with 937,478 residents in the MSA and 988,454 in the CSA. Tulsa's...
and Enid, Oklahoma
Enid, Oklahoma
Enid is a city in Garfield County, Oklahoma, United States. In 2010, the population was 49,379, making it the ninth largest city in Oklahoma. It is the county seat of Garfield County. Enid was founded during the opening of the Cherokee Outlet in the Land Run of 1893, and is named after Enid, a...
, Hughes received his pilot's wings at Lubbock, Texas
Lubbock, Texas
Lubbock is a city in and the county seat of Lubbock County, Texas, United States. The city is located in the northwestern part of the state, a region known historically as the Llano Estacado, and the home of Texas Tech University and Lubbock Christian University...
, on November 10, 1942. He was assigned to the 389th Bombardment Group, went to Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
in June 1943, and participated in five combat missions in the Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
-Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
area.
During Operation Tidal Wave, the most highly decorated military mission in U.S. history, 179 B-24
B-24 Liberator
The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and a small number of early models were sold under the name LB-30, for Land Bomber...
s took off on an 18-hour, 2,400 mile round trip mission to destroy the largest of the Nazi-held oil refineries at Ploieşti
Ploiesti
Ploiești is the county seat of Prahova County and lies in the historical region of Wallachia in Romania. The city is located north of Bucharest....
, 30 miles north of Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
, Romania. This day, August 1, 1943, would end with five U.S. Air Force airmen, including 2nd Lt. Lloyd Herbert Hughes, earning the Medal of Honor for bravery; three, including Hughes, posthumously. Fifty-four aircraft never returned.
During the August 1, 1943 bombing mission over the Câmpina
Câmpina
Câmpina is a city in Prahova county, Romania, north of the county seat Ploieşti, located on the main route between Wallachia and Transylvania. In 2003, the city celebrated 500 years since its founding.-History:...
oil fields north of the Ploieşti oil fields in Romania, Hughes was the pilot of a B-24 heavy bombardment aircraft flying in the last element of a formation. He arrived in the target area when the enemy defenses were thoroughly alerted by previous aircraft. He approached the target at dangerously low altitude as was planned, through intense and accurate anti-aircraft fire and densely arranged barrage balloon
Barrage balloon
A barrage balloon is a large balloon tethered with metal cables, used to defend against low-level aircraft attack by damaging the aircraft on collision with the cables, or at least making the attacker's approach more difficult. Some versions carried small explosive charges that would be pulled up...
s. Several hits from both large and small caliber anti-aircraft guns seriously damaged his aircraft and caused gasoline to leak from the bomb bay and left wing. The leak was so heavy that it blinded his waist gunner's view. The damage was inflicted prior to reaching the target, when Hughes could have made a forced landing in one of the surrounding grain fields. The target area was blazing with burning oil tanks and refinery equipment, with flames leaping high above the bombing level of the formation. Knowing the consequences of entering the inferno with his airplane leaking gasoline in two places, Hughes elected to carry on, rather than jeopardize the formation and the success of the attack. He flew into the wall of fire at about 30 feet above the ground and dropped his bomb load with precision.
After successfully bombing the target, he emerged from the conflagration with the left wing of his aircraft on fire. He attempted to pull up and away from the action, trying to save his plane and crew. He successfully slowed the plane's speed from 225 to 100 miles an hour. It looked as if he would be able to crash land in the dry river bed of the Prahova River
Prahova River
The Prahova River is a river of Southern Romania, which rises from the Bucegi Mountains, in the Southern Carpathians and flows into the Ialomiţa...
, when suddenly the left wing flew off and the plane cartwheeled into the ground. Of the ten men aboard the B-24, Hughes and five others were killed, two died of their wounds within days and two survived the crash only to become prisoners of war.
On November 13, 2010, he was inducted into the Louisiana Military Hall of Fame in Abbeville, Louisiana
Abbeville, Louisiana
Abbeville is a town in and the parish seat of Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, United States, 150 miles west of New Orleans. The population was 12,257 at the 2010 census...
.
Medal of Honor
Sanders Corps of Cadets Center
The Sam Houston Sanders Corps of Cadets Center is a museum on the campus of Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas, dedicated to the school's Corps of Cadets....
on the Texas A&M campus.
Hughes' official Medal of Honor citation reads:
For conspicuous gallantry in action and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. On August 1943, 2d Lt. Hughes served in the capacity of pilot of a heavy bombardment aircraft participating in a long and hazardous minimum-altitude attack against the AxisAxis PowersThe Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
oil refineries of Ploesti, Rumania, launched from the northern shores of Africa. Flying in the last formation to attack the target, he arrived in the target area after previous flights had thoroughly alerted the enemy defenses. Approaching the target through intense and accurate antiaircraft fire and dense balloon barrages at dangerously low altitude, his plane received several direct hits from both large and small caliber antiaircraft guns which seriously damaged his aircraft, causing sheets of escaping gasoline to stream from the bomb bay and from the left wing. This damage was inflicted at a time prior to reaching the target when 2d Lt. Hughes could have made a forced landing in any of the grain fields readily available at that time. The target area was blazing with burning oil tanks and damaged refinery installations from which flames leaped high above the bombing level of the formation. With full knowledge of the consequences of entering this blazing inferno when his airplane was profusely leaking gasoline in two separate locations, 2d Lt. Hughes, motivated only by his high conception of duty which called for the destruction of his assigned target at any cost, did not elect to make a forced landing or turn back from the attack. Instead, rather than jeopardize the formation and the success of the attack, he unhesitatingly entered the blazing area and dropped his bomb load with great precision. After successfully bombing the objective, his aircraft emerged from the conflagration with the left wing aflame. Only then did he attempt a forced landing, but because of the advanced stage of the fire enveloping his aircraft the plane crashed and was consumed. By 2d Lt. Hughes' heroic decision to complete his mission regardless of the consequences in utter disregard of his own life, and by his gallant and valorous execution of this decision, he has rendered a service to our country in the defeat of our enemies which will everlastingly be outstanding in the annals of our Nation's history.
See also
- List of Medal of Honor recipients for World War II