The President of the United States
in the name of The Congress
takes pleasure in presenting the
Medal of Honor
to
VOSLER, FORREST T.
(Air Mission)
Rank and Organization: Technical Sergeant, U.S. Army Air Corps. 358th Bomber
Squadron, 303d Bomber Group. Place and date. Over Bremen, Germany, 20 December 1943. Entered
Service at: Rochester, N.Y. Born: 29 July 1923, Lyndonville, N.Y. G.O. No.: 73,
6 September 1944.
Citation:
For conspicuous gallantry in action against the enemy above and beyond the call of duty
while serving as a radio operator-air gunner on a heavy bombardment aircraft in a mission
over Bremen, Germany, on 20 December 1943. After bombing the target, the aircraft in which
T/Sgt. Vosler was serving was severely damaged by antiaircraft fire, forced out of
formation, and immediately subjected to repeated vicious attacks by enemy fighters. Early
in the engagement a 20-mm. cannon shell exploded in the radio compartment, painfully
wounding T/Sgt. Vosler in the legs and thighs. At about the same time a direct hit on the
tail of the ship seriously wounded the tail gunner and rendered the tail guns inoperative.
Realizing the great need for firepower in protecting the vulnerable tail of the ship,
T/Sgt. Vosler, with grim determination, kept up a steady stream of deadly fire. Shortly
thereafter another 20-mm. enemy shell exploded, wounding T/Sgt. Vosler in the chest and
about the face. Pieces of metal lodged in both eyes, impairing his vision to such an
extent that he could only distinguish blurred shapes. Displaying remarkable tenacity and
courage, he kept firing his guns and declined to take first-aid treatment. The radio
equipment had been rendered inoperative during the battle, and when the pilot announced
that he would have to ditch, although unable to see and working entirely by touch, T/Sgt.
Vosler finally got the set operating and sent out distress signals despite several lapses
into unconsciousness. When the ship ditched, T/Sgt. Vosler managed to get out on the wing
by himself and hold the wounded tail gunner from slipping off until the other crewmembers
could help them into the dinghy. T/Sgt. Vosler's actions on this occasion were an
inspiration to all serving with him. The extraordinary courage, coolness, and skill he
displayed in the face of great odds, when handicapped by injuries that would have
incapacitated the average crewmember, were outstanding.
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