John S. Walmsley Jr.

Walmsley's crew each received a Distinguished Flying Cross for extraordinary heroism. Walmsley however, was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously on June 12, 1954. The medal was presented to his widow at Bolling Air Force Base in Washington, D.C. Four weeks after the mission, the arclights and Operation Strangle were abandoned, as leaders felt the risks and casualties of the operation outweighed the benefits.

In June 1951, Walmsley was assigned to the 8th Bombardment Squadron, 3rd Bombardment Wing, Fifth United States Air Force which flew the Douglas B-26 Invader in Korea during the Korean War. During this time, he was described as "cheerful and popular." During the early phase of the war, missions included fairly simple bombing runs with 260 pounds (120 kg) fragmentation bombs and .50 caliber machine guns. In the summer of 1951, the two sides of the conflict appeared to be reaching a truce one year after the war began. However, as the negotiations continued, North Korean and Chinese troops began moving supplies to the front lines while negotiations were taking place. The move caused United Nations (UN) troops to counter with "Operation Strangle," a new interdiction campaign designed to attack supply lines using arclights, bright lamps attached to the bottom of the aircraft, which would spot truck convoys moving at night. The arclights, with an estimated 80 million candlepower, would easily illuminate supply trains but also expose the UN aircraft to antiaircraft fire. As such, North Korean and Chinese trains were heavily equipped with such guns, and the valleys through which they traveled were heavily fortified with anti-air capability. Walmsley was one of the first pilots to volunteer for the dangerous mission.

By September 1951, Walmsley had been promoted to captain and had flown 20 missions using the arclights. At 55 or 60 missions, the "tour" would have been complete using the risky weapons. A September 12 raid was extremely successful; in it, Walmsley's B-26 attacked a convoy with 500 pounds (230 kg) bombs, destroying or damaging 16 trucks, and forcing many of the vehicle drivers off the road. Emboldened by this successful mission, Walmsley opted on September 14 to bring his bomber named "Skillful 13" (tail number 44-34314), to a mission alone in North Korea.

Born in Baltimore, Maryland, Walmsley joined the Army Air Forces and spent the 1940s as an instructor pilot in the United States and Japan, but did not see combat. He was deployed with the 8th Bombardment Squadron to the Korean War, flying B-26 Invader aircraft. During this time, Walmsley volunteered for a risky bombing campaign, Operation Strangle.

John Springer Walmsley Jr. (January 7, 1920 – September 14, 1951) was a bomber pilot in the United States Army Air Forces after World War II and the United States Air Force during the Korean War. Walmsley rose to the rank of captain and posthumously received the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions on September 14, 1951, above Yangdok, North Korea during a bombing mission.

Walmsley was born on January 7, 1920, in Baltimore, Maryland. He entered service from the city, as well, joining the United States Army Air Forces in 1944. Walmsley served mainly as a flying instructor during World War II, never seeing combat. Walmsley was then transferred to Japan in 1946 as part of the post-war occupation of that country. There, he flew bomber aircraft from 1946 to 1949. After this, he attended Air Tactical School, graduating in July 1949.