Jonita Ruth Bonham

Jonita Ruth Bonham. Korean War. Jonita Bonham was born on April 2, 1922 in Bennington, Oklahoma, After completing nursing school, she was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Army Air Corps Medical Corps 1944-1945. She served both in the Philippines and Japan after World War II, and then returned to the United States, resigning from active military duty. , When the Korean War broke out, 2Lt Bonham rejoined the military as a 1Lt in the United States Air Force as a Flight Nurse. She was assigned to the 801st Air Medical Evacuation Squadron in Tachikawa, Japan, Bonham had 245 hours of medical flights under her belt when serving on a C-54 plane converted into a medical evacuation aircraft the evening of September 26, 1950. The aircraft stalled, descended, and slammed into the Sea of Japan one half mile from shore. , Lt Bonham was completely submerged in the aircraft but managed to fight her way to the surface. She held onto a floating barracks bag until she was able to grab a life raft rope. Lt Bonham stayed in the water, grabbing other survivors and guiding them to the rope. It was not until 17 of them were safe that she allowed herself to be pulled into one of two available rafts. She accomplished all this with a broken cheekbone, skull fracture, broken shoulder and a broken wrist. Though she was badly wounded, she took care of others before allowing herself to be rescued. , It took nine months of hospitalization before she fully recovered. Due to her heroic actions, she was the first military woman to receive the Distinguished Flying Cross. Soon thereafter, she was promoted to Captain.