Michael Thornton’s Heroic Rescue Mission in North Vietnam

On October 31, 1972, Michael E. Thornton took part in a high-risk mission near Cửa Việt Base, along the Quảng Trị Province coast, just south of the Demilitarized Zone. His team included SEAL Lieutenant Thomas R. Norris and three seasoned Vietnamese Special Forces (LDNN) members who had previously worked with Thornton. The group traveled by boat until nightfall, then paddled a rubber raft closer to shore and swam the remaining distance. After reaching land, they navigated through North Vietnamese encampments, gathering intelligence throughout the night.

They soon realized they had gone too far north and were inside North Vietnam, where they encountered heavily fortified bunkers and large numbers of North Vietnamese troops. Carefully patrolling through the area, they continued to gather intelligence. On the beach, they encountered a two-man North Vietnamese patrol; the South Vietnamese members tried to capture them, while Thornton pursued one soldier who attempted to flee. Thornton neutralized him, but this led to about 50 North Vietnamese soldiers pursuing him. He and his team engaged in evasive maneuvers, which kept the enemy uncertain about their numbers. During this exchange, Thornton was injured by a grenade. When he called for naval gunfire support, both nearby destroyers were unable to assist due to enemy shore batteries.

Over the next four hours, the five men held off approximately 150 enemy soldiers. Norris attempted to summon support from Vietnamese junk boats equipped with mortars, but the destroyers prohibited them from entering the firing line. With the enemy closing in, Norris ordered a retreat toward the beach, where they moved in leapfrog fashion. As they withdrew, Norris managed to contact the USS Newport News, requesting artillery support. As Norris covered their retreat, he was struck by a bullet to the head, severely wounding him.

One of the South Vietnamese members, seeing Norris fall, assumed he was dead. However, upon learning of Norris’ fall, Thornton ran nearly 400 yards back to retrieve him. Reaching Norris, he found him gravely injured. Despite the enemy closing in, Thornton carried Norris on his shoulders toward the beach, just as shellfire from the Newport News struck the shoreline, halting the enemy advance. The blast threw Thornton and Norris into the air, but Thornton quickly recovered, finding Norris still alive.

Thornton then dragged Norris into the surf and began swimming with him. When one of the Vietnamese soldiers was injured and unable to swim, Thornton assisted him as well, pushing both men out to sea while dodging bullets hitting the water around them. The Newport News, unaware of their survival, left the area. Thornton tended to Norris’ wound as best as he could while swimming for hours. Eventually, one of the Vietnamese soldiers was picked up by a junk boat and reported that the Americans were presumed dead. Thornton, however, fired Norris’ AK-47 to signal their position and was eventually rescued and taken aboard the Newport News, where he carried Norris to surgery. Despite the doctor’s bleak prognosis, Norris survived.

For his actions, Thornton was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Richard Nixon on October 15, 1973. The man he saved, Thomas Norris, later recovered and was awarded the Medal of Honor in 1976 for his own heroic rescue of two downed pilots in April 1972. Thornton continued his service, receiving a commission in 1982 as a limited duty officer and retiring as a lieutenant in 1992.