Two months prior to the initial confrontation , Spencer Stone , a then-United States Air Force senior airman , along with his friends Alek Skarlatos and Anthony Sadler , stopped a gunman on a Paris-bound train travelling from Amsterdam via Brussels in August 2015 . Stone was serving at the United States Air Force 65th Air Base Group at the time of the event . A 25-year-old Moroccan man , believed to be Ayoub El-Khazzani , was in train car No. 12 , armed with an AKM assault rifle and equipped with 270 rounds of ammunition . After being instructed by Skarlatos , Stone tackled the armed suspect , and was stabbed in the neck and eyebrow and almost lost his thumb . The event and its aftermath received attention in the U.S. and abroad , with Stone gaining international attention and recognized by U.S. Ambassador to France Jane D. Hartley for " his actions in saving countless lives " , U.S. President Barack Obama , with a ceremony held at The Pentagon to honor Stone , Skarlatos and Sadler . Stone was honored with the Airman 's Medal and a Purple Heart , among other decorations and awards
stopped a gunman
2015 Thalys train attack
Stabbing of Spencer Stone