How did Hugh Thompson protect Vietnamese women and children at My Lai?

During the My Lai Massacre, Warrant Officer Hugh Thompson took courageous action to protect Vietnamese civilians from U.S. forces. Upon observing wounded civilians from his scout helicopter, he initially marked their locations with smoke grenades to signal for medical aid. After discovering that these individuals had been killed, he intervened directly when he spotted a squad of U.S. soldiers converging on more than a dozen women and children.1

Thompson landed his helicopter between the civilians and the advancing soldiers. He ordered his crew—door gunner Lawrence Colburn and crew chief Glenn Andreotta—to man their weapons to deter the soldiers if necessary. Thompson then coordinated with other helicopter crews to ferry the civilians to safety, effectively preventing their execution. For these acts of extraordinary bravery, Thompson and his crew were later awarded the Soldier’s Medal.1