U.S.
Korean War Navy pilot receives Medal of Honor on Tuesday, inducted into Pentagon’s Hall of Heroes on Wednesday
From staff and wire reports
February 25, 2026
First lady Melania Trump presents the Congressional Medal of Honor to World War II Navy pilot Capt. Royce Williams as President Donald Trump delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress in the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026. (Matt Rourke/AP)
Royce Williams, a Navy pilot credited with shooting down four Soviet fighter jets during the Korean War, received a Medal of Honor during President Donald Trump’s State of the Union Address on Tuesday night.
On Wednesday, he was inducted into the Pentagon’s Hall of Heroes.
During Trump’s speech, a military aide was seen bringing the esteemed award down the stairs of the House gallery where Melania Trump and Williams were sitting. The First Lady placed the medal around his neck as a standing ovation took over the chamber.
Williams finally received the medal for his heroic actions during a secret mission in 1952.
“He didn’t even want to tell his wife. But the legend grew and grew,” Trump said about the mission. “But tonight, at 100 years old, this brave Navy captain is finally getting the recognition he deserves.”
On Wednesday, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Secretary of the Navy John Phelan and Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle inducted Williams into the Pentagon’s Hall of Heroes.
“I know how momentous this moment is, and I never imagined myself or allowed myself to think it was going to happen to me,” Williams said. “I imagined it as God reaching in and dipping His hand in to pick somebody up for the most unusual reasons and displaying him in front of his fellow citizens.”
Retired U.S. Navy Capt. E. Royce Williams, who received the Medal of Honor during the State of the Union address, is inducted to the Hall of Heroes at the Pentagon in Arlington, Va., on Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2026. (Jared Mancuso/U.S. Navy)
On Nov. 18, 1952, Williams was piloting an F9F-5 Panther when he encountered seven Soviet MiG-15s. Williams, a lieutenant at the time, shot down four of the fighters and survived a 37-millimeter round to his fuselage. Though his plane was badly damaged, he managed to make a safe landing on the deck of the USS Oriskany aircraft carrier off the North Korean coast.
After the mission, he was directed to keep silent about the high-stakes dogfight that pitted him against Soviet aviators at the peak of the Cold War.
Contributing: The Associated Press