A Master Sergeant with the U.S. Air Force was awarded the Silver Star Thursday, making him one of the most decorated men in the military

Master Sgt. Thomas Case, a TACP airman with the 18th Air Support Operations Group at Pope Field, N.C., was given the Silver Star for his actions during a firefight in Afghanistan in 2009, according to Air Force Times.

Case, a TACP airman with the 18th Air Support Operations Group at Pope Field, N.C., was awarded the Silver Star an oak leaf cluster Thursday for an overnight battle in Afghanistan in 2009 when he was assigned to a group of Army Rangers in a notoriously dangerous part of Paktia province.

Case is the seventh U.S. military member since Sept. 11, 2001, to receive two Silver Stars. He is one of three airmen to be awarded twice, joining Tech. Sgt. Ismael Villegas and Staff Sgt. Sean Harvell. Case is the first TACP airman of the group. Villegas and Harvell are combat controllers.

To read more about Case and the incredible story on why he received a second Silver Star, please visit AirForceTimes.com.