Army Pilot Eric Slover Awarded Medal of Honor for Role in Venezuela Raid

During President Donald Trump's State of the Union address, Army Chief Warrant Officer 5 Eric Slover was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his role as the lead Chinook helicopter pilot in a January raid in Venezuela. Despite sustaining multiple gunshot wounds to his leg and hip from enemy fire while landing near a heavily fortified compound in Caracas, Slover maintained control of the helicopter, completed the troop insertion, and helped protect his fellow soldiers. The operation aimed to capture then-President Nicolás Maduro on drug trafficking charges and involved significant covert planning.