Robert E. Femoyer B-17 Radio Operator Awarded Medal of Honor

Oct 03 , 2025

Robert E. Femoyer B-17 Radio Operator Awarded Medal of Honor

Robert E. Femoyer’s voice crackled through a sky torn by flak and gunfire—each transmission a grim act of defiance against death. Mortally wounded, barely able to breathe, he refused silence. Refused to quit until every plane in his squadron had the coordinates to make it home. This was no mere radio operator. This was a man welded to his mission by grit and an unyielding will.

Background & Faith

Born in Morgantown, West Virginia, in 1921, Femoyer was a son of the Appalachian hills—hard soil, honest people. He carried a steady faith, the kind forged in Sunday church pews and quiet prayers whispering through the coal dust.

His belief wasn’t just personal; it was a code. “Let us not grow weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” (Galatians 6:9). Robert lived by that. A scholar first, a man who dreamed beyond the war, but when called, he answered without hesitation.

The Battle That Defined Him

November 2, 1944—altitude 25,000 feet above enemy territory. The sky was a gauntlet over Merseburg, Germany, an industrial heart pounding with anti-aircraft fire. Femoyer’s B-17 was hit, shrapnel tearing into his side, blood filling his chest. The pain was a ragged beast clawing at his lungs.

Still, he climbed back to the radio shack. Radio operator meant life or death for the whole crew. Femoyer knew their survival depended on his ability to relay precise position reports, dodging fighters and flak bursts.

With every breath hotter and shallower than the last, he kept the squadron updated—steady, clear, alive with desperation. His voice was a lifeline, calloused and calm. Command headquarters credited his endurance for avoiding a deadly trap.

He never faltered despite the bullet that turned his ribs to splinters. When the last plane cleared the target area and headed for home, Femoyer finally collapsed.

Recognition

Robert E. Femoyer was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously—the nation’s highest tribute to valor. The citation captures the brutal grace of his sacrifice:

“With complete disregard for his own personal safety, and in spite of agonizing pain, he remained at his post until the completion of the mission, thereby providing vital information without which the successful defense of the group could not have been accomplished.”

Brigade commander Colonel Richard C. Sanders called him “the finest radio operator... one of the bravest men I have ever known.”[1]

Legacy & Lessons

Femoyer’s story cuts to the marrow of what combat means—sacrifice in its purest form. It’s a story not about glory, but of relentless duty when the body screams for mercy. His sacrifice gave dozens of airmen a second chance at life.

“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:13). Femoyer lived this truth under frigid November skies, trading his last breaths for theirs.

His legacy burns beyond medals. It’s a call to bear our wounds openly, to embrace faith in the face of fear, and to fight on—not for fame, but for purpose.

The enemy was death—he didn’t run.

In every scar, there’s a story of endurance; in every survivor, a debt of honor we must never forget.

Sources

1. United States Army Center of Military History, Medal of Honor Citations: World War II (Philip A. Crowl, “Tidal Wave: The Mission to Ploesti,” Army Historical Series)