Eric Slover and 100-Year-Old Navy Pilot Receive Medals of Honor During State of the Union
eric slover, a 45-year-old Army Chief Warrant Officer Five, and 100-year-old retired Navy Capt. E. Royce Williams were each presented the Medal of Honor by President Trump during the 2026 State of the Union; the ceremony marked the first time a president awarded the medal during the annual address. Updated on February 24, 2026, 11: 30 p. m. EST.
Eric Slover honored in the Capitol gallery
Chief Warrant Officer 5 Eric Slover received the Medal of Honor in the Capitol gallery after entering the chamber with his wife to a standing ovation and chants of "USA, USA, USA. " Slover, 45, appeared in full dress uniform and relied on a walker to steady himself while Lt. Gen. Jonathan Braga, commander of Joint Special Operations Command, placed the medal around his neck.
What Trump said about the Jan. 3 raid and Operation Absolute Resolve
The president said Slover was the flight lead in the cockpit during a Jan. 3 mission called Operation Absolute Resolve, the raid that captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. Trump described the first Chinook approaching a heavily fortified Caracas compound under cover of darkness, coming under intense machine‑gun fire from multiple directions as thousands of enemy soldiers and Russian and Chinese military technology defended the site.
Injuries, actions and recognition for eric slover
Trump said Slover was hit repeatedly, sustaining serious wounds to his leg and hip—"one bullet after another, " the president said—and that Slover absorbed multiple shots but kept control of the helicopter long enough to let door gunners suppress the threat and allow the mission to proceed. Trump quoted Slover as telling his co‑pilot after landing, "I'm about ready to pass out. " The president said Slover's actions prevented what could have been "a catastrophic crash deep in enemy territory. "
Slover’s service record and awards listed
Slover enlisted in the Army in 2005. His recorded decorations named at the ceremony include the Distinguished Flying Cross with V Device, the Purple Heart, the Bronze Star with one oak leaf cluster, the Meritorious Service Medal with one oak leaf cluster, the Air Medal with C Device, the Air Medal with numeral 3, the Army Commendation Medal with one oak leaf cluster, the Army Achievement Medal with three oak leaf clusters, the Combat Action Badge, the Senior Army Aviator Badge, the Master Aviator Badge, the Parachutist Badge, the Air Assault Badge and the Army Service Ribbon.
Retired Navy Capt. E. Royce Williams and a classified Korean War dogfight
Trump also presented the Medal of Honor to retired Navy Capt. E. Royce Williams, now 100 years old, for actions in a secret 1952 mission during the Korean War. Williams was part of a half‑hour aerial engagement in which he fought seven Soviet MiG‑15 fighter jets and shot down four of them. Military accounts later described the encounter as the longest aerial engagement in U. S. Navy history.
Details of Williams’ mission and later recognition
Williams flew a Grumman F9F Panther during the engagement in blizzard conditions over the Sea of Japan and sustained more than 200 bullet strikes to his jet. After his aircraft was struck, he guided the damaged plane back to an American aircraft carrier at high speed, saying he had considered ejecting but judged the frigid waters too perilous. He was instructed to keep the clash secret and for decades spoke of it to no one. Details surfaced only years after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Three years ago Williams was awarded the Navy Cross, and he had previously received the Silver Star. Rep. Darell Issa, whose San Diego‑area district includes Williams’s home, pressed for the retired pilot to receive the Medal of Honor; last year lawmakers waived the statutory five‑year limit to allow the decoration. Issa wrote earlier this month that Williams’s heroism and valor during "more than 35 harrowing minutes almost 70 years ago" saved the lives of fellow pilots and shipmates. The president called Williams earlier this month, and First Lady Melania Trump placed the medal around Williams’s neck at the ceremony.
The State of the Union presentations highlighted two very different chapters of American combat history: a recently publicized special operations aviation mission that the president said led to Maduro’s capture, and a classified Cold War engagement that only emerged from the archives decades later.
Trump also said that 10 other service members who took part in the raid would receive medals at a later White House ceremony; that later ceremony is the next confirmed event linked to the evening's honors.
