He was a major at the time of the actions for which he received the award, but he retired and received the award as a lieutenant colonel. This includes a nine-member team of six pallbearers, a chaplain, an officer-in-charge or noncommissioned-officer-in-charge and a bugler.Īt the gravesite, the MoH recipient is also entitled to a special headstone with gold lettering.Īuthor’s Note: An earlier version of this story referred to Medal of Honor Recipient and Lt.
Do medal of honor recipients fly in the us for free? full#
Medal of Honor recipients are guaranteed a burial with full military honors - an honor otherwise only guaranteed to retirees and active duty service members. Headstones with gold lettering and full burial honors There have even been cases of American presidents saluting MoH recipients.Ħ. While military members aren’t required to salute Medal of Honor recipients, they are encouraged to do so as long as the recipient is physically wearing the medal, even when the recipient is in civilian clothes.Īlso, while military salutes in other situations are always up the the rank structure - meaning the junior soldier salutes the senior one - anyone may render a salute to a MoH recipient first.
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Lewis Millett salutes the flag during a memorial ceremony commemorating the bravery of his men during the Korean War. Special status in the exchange of salutes Many of these facilities have reserved spaces for MoH recipients.ĥ. Service members with an MoH also get lifelong access to other military benefits like the commissary, on-post gyms and pools and recreational facilities. Special parking spots at on-base amenities MoH recipients get preferred access, meaning they can jump the line.Ĥ. Medal recipients are granted lifelong access to the military’s “Space A” travel, which allows active duty military members, some veterans and their dependents to hitch rides in empty seats on military planes. The recipient’s base retirement pay is also raised by 10 percent. This stipend was originally $10 a month in 1916 but has climbed to $1,299 per month. The number of slots changes from year to year, but the total number of names that state senators can put forward represents an annual “quota.”īut as a recognition of the sacrifice that MoH recipients have made for their country, recipients’ children can bypass this part of the selection process and put their name in for consideration regardless of whether there are open slots in that state’s academy quota.Įvery Medal of Honor recipient is entitled to a monthly stipend on top of all other pay or retirement benefits. 1st Class Christopher Fincham)Įvery American senator can nominate up to 10 candidates from their state for each of an allotted number of seats in the next freshman class at the Army, Navy and Air Force military academies. Preferred access to military academies for their dependents Here are 6 special benefits that serve as an enduring “thank you” from the American people:ġ. government give to medal recipients to acknowledge their sacrifice. The celebrity that goes with the medal allows recipients to cast light on issues that affect veterans and active duty troops.īut in addition to the intangible benefits like honor and stature, there are some tangible benefits that the military and the U.S. Receiving the Medal of Honor confers a great deal of prestige on the recipient as well as an acknowledgement that the recipient and their unit members went through an especially dire and dangerous experience or gave a heavy sacrifice for the American people. Charles Kettles became the newest recipient of the Medal of Honor, America’s highest honor for military valor.