2023 Superior Achievement Award

Presented to: Captain Laura D. Norton

Citation: For leadership and professionalism while executing
two short notice casualty evacuations; and
developing international combat search and rescue
training

2023 Superior Achievement Award - Capt. Laura Norton

Captain Laura “FUSE” Norton managed an in-flight dynamic casualty evacuation retasking during a 2021 deployment supporting OPERATION INHERENT RESOLVE as a Combat Systems Officer in the HC-130J Combat King II. During a cargo run, she and her crew were alerted that a soldier’s condition was worsening at their base in Iraq and required urgent care from a more capable medical facility in Kuwait. She flew a 16-hour mission in order to move the wounded soldier from a contested area for the time critical surgery during which, she and her crew battled adverse weather conditions and solved a significant fuel problem in order to achieve mission success.

Additionally, during a 2022 deployment to the Horn of Africa, Captain Norton was called upon during a training exercise involving air-to-air refueling three French Mirage-2000s and two MV-22s to rapidly replan, return to base to receive more fuel, and launch to assist in the recovery of two patients from a ship in the Red Sea. During this mission she provided command and control, overwatch with her electro-optical/infrared sensor system, and multiple air-to-air refueling to the recovery vehicles: two MV-22s. The casualty evacuation resulted in two lives saved.

In January of 2023 Captain Norton led a team of ten personnel during a pre-deployment site survey and final planning conference for the international exercise ASTRAL KNIGHT in Croatia. She communicated USAF Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) training requirements to three partner nation forces as well as the host country. She acquired USAFE logistical support to enable the exercise and worked with 27 representatives to develop realistic rescue training scenarios meet the desired learning objectives of ten joint and international units.

Captain Norton is currently a CSAR Coordinator with the 71st Rescue Squadron, Moody AFB, GA and has more than 1,020 flight hours; including 214 combat hours.