FReeper Canteen - The Air Force Cross

The FReeper Canteen
looks at
The Air Force Cross

1. Description: The Air Force Cross consists of a bronze cross with an oxidized satin finish. Centered on the obverse of the cross is a gold-plated American bald eagle, wings displayed against a cloud formation, (as used on the seal of the Air Force). This design is encircled by a laurel wreath in green enamel, edged in gold. The reverse of the cross is blank and suitable for engraving.

2. Ribbon: The Ribbon has a very wide center stripe of Brittany blue with narrow stripes of white and red at the edges. Almost identical to the Distinguished Service Cross, except for the lighter blue center stripe, indicating the close connection of these awards.

3. Criteria: Awarded for extraordinary heroism, not justifying the award of a Medal of Honor, to any person, who while serving with the U.S. Air Force while engaged in military operations involving conflict with an opposing foreign force, or while serving with friendly foreign forces engaged in conflict against an opposing armed force in which the United States in not a belligerent party.

4. Background: Designed by Eleanor Cox, an employee of the Air Force and was sculpted by Thomas Hudson Jones of the Institute of Heraldry. The Air Force Cross was established by Congress, Public Law 88-593, on July 6, 1960, amended Section 8742 of Title 10, U.S. Code to change the designation of "Distinguished Service Cross" to "Air Force Cross" in case of awards made under Air Force Authority. This cross, therefore, is the Air Force version of the Distinguished Service Cross. The first award of the Air Force Cross was a posthumous presentation to Maj. Rudolf Anderson Jr., For extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy from 15 October 1962 to 27 October 1962. The action took place during the Cuban Missile Crisis. The Cross was presented by President Kennedy to the widow of the major at the White House.

A Total of 191 Air Force Crosses have been Awarded
- Three Vietnam War recipients earned TWO Air Force Crosses
- One Vietnam War recipient earned THREE Air Force Crosses
This list represents 187 individual men who received the Air Force Cross
- Two WWII pilots receiving late awards were presented the Air Force Cross
- The first AFC was awarded for a flight over Cuba during the Missile Crisis
- One Air Force Cross recipient was ALSO awarded the Medal of Honor
24 Air Force Cross recipients were POWs returned alive after the war.
48 Air Force Crosses were presented posthumously
- 28 of these Posthumous awards were to heroes Missing in Action and presumed dead
2 Air Force Cross recipients were Killed in Action AFTER their AFC action
22 Air Force Crosses have been awarded to Air Force ENLISTED MEN
- Twelve of these 22 enlisted men served as PJs (Pararescue)
13 Air Force Crosses have been awarded to graduates of the US Air Force Academy

The Air Force Cross awarded Airman William Pitsenbarger was upgraded to the Medal of Honor on December 8, 2000 and is not counted in the above totals.

This information from Home of the Heroes.

WARNING: MAJOR HANKIE ALERT!

Hero awarded Air Force Cross

by Terry Walker
377th Air Base Wing Public Affairs

09/16/02 - KIRTLAND AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. (AFPN) -- Senior Airman Jason D. Cunningham, a pararescueman who lost his life in Afghanistan while saving 10 lives and making it possible for seven others who were killed to come home, was posthumously awarded the Air Force Cross here Sept. 13.

The Air Force Cross is awarded for extraordinary heroism while engaged in action against an enemy of our nation. It is second only to the Medal of Honor.

"We gather to salute his bravery and to reward his heroism," said Secretary of the Air Force Dr. James Roche. "We gather to pay tribute to an airman who, on the field of battle, not only gave his life serving his nation, but also gave his life serving his fellow Americans."

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John Jumper presented the Air Force Cross to Cunningham's wife, Theresa. Cunningham's parents, Lawrence and Jackie Cunningham, also received medals from Jumper.

"In the frailty of our human existence we are ill equipped to express the extremes of our emotions," Jumper said. "For in the peak of our love or the depths of our sorrow, we have only feeble words that never truly capture the peaks and valleys of our feelings.

"I stand before you today in the humble attempt to assemble the words to honor a hero, knowing in advance that my attempt will fall short of the tribute that is his due."

Cunningham, a Carlsbad, N.M., native, joined the Air Force's elite combat rescue program and graduated pararescue technical training here in June 2001. He was deployed to Southwest Asia in February 2002.

On March 4, Cunningham was the primary Air Force combat search and rescue medic assigned to a quick reaction force in Afghanistan. The force was sent to rescue two American servicemen evading capture in austere terrain occupied by al-Qaida and Taliban forces.

Before landing, his MH-47E Chinook helicopter received rocket-propelled grenade and small-arms fire, disabling the aircraft and forcing it to crash-land. Crewmembers formed a hasty defense and immediately suffered three fatalities and five critical casualties.

The citation accompanying Cunningham's Air Force Cross reads, "Despite effective enemy fire, and at great risk to his own life, Airman Cunningham remained in the burning fuselage of the aircraft in order to treat the wounds. As he moved his patients to a more secure location, mortar rounds began to impact within 50 feet of his position.

"Disregarding this extreme danger, he continued the movement and exposed himself to enemy fire on seven separate occasions. When the second casualty collection point was also compromised, in a display of uncommon valor and gallantry, Airman Cunningham braved an intense small arms and rocket-propelled grenade attack while repositioning the critically wounded to a third collection point."

The citation continues, "Even after he was mortally wounded and quickly deteriorating, he continued to direct patient movement and transferred care to another medic. In the end, his distinct efforts led to the successful delivery of 10 gravely wounded Americans to life-saving medical treatment."

In remarks that seemed to capture Cunningham's spirit, Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force Gerald Murray, said, "The former Navy petty officer considered joining the SEALS, but became an Air Force PJ. His reasoning? While other special operators search and destroy, PJs search and save."

Cunningham was laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery on March 11. (Courtesy of Air Force Materiel Command News Service)

To read more about this Airman, including a poem written by his brother, click here.
And be warned, you'll need your hankie.

Please remember:

The Canteen exists to support our military heroes serving all over the world and their families. There are lots of places around Free Republic to talk about politics and debate your views. Please try to keep it out of the Canteen. We want to keep the Canteen a place where the guys and gals who are serving can sit down, kick their shoes off and relax and not have to keep their guard up.
Thanks for your help!
Now go out there and have FUN!!!!
*HUGS!*

On This Day In History

Birthdates which occurred on November 28:
1628 John Bunyan England, cleric/author (Pilgrim's Progress)
1632 Jean-Baptiste Lully Florence Italy, composer (Bellerophen)
1757 William Blake English poet/painter (Songs of Innocence & Experience)
1785 Achille-Charles duc de Broglie, French PM (1835-36)
1805 John Stephens US archeologist; founded study of Central America
1810 William Froude England, engineer, naval architect
http://www.btinternet.com/~philipr/froude.htm
1820 Friedrich Engels Germany, social philosopher; Marx's collaborator
1821 Nikolai Nekrasov Russia, poet/journalist (Who Can be Happy in Russia?)
1866 Henry Bacon architect (Lincoln Memorial)
1881 Stefan Zweig Vienna Austria, poet/essayist/dramatist (Beware of Pity)
1902 Victor Jory Dawson City Canada, actor (Kings Row, Manhunt)
1908 Claude Levi-Strauss Belgium, social anthropologist (Structure Anthro)
1916 Guy Lapebie France, 100K cyclist (Olympic-silver-1936)
1920 Cecilia Colledge England, figure skater, competed in Olympics at 11 (1932)
1925 Gloria Grahame Los Angeles CA, actress (Sue-Rich Man Poor Man)
1925 Virginia Hewitt Shreveport La, actress (Carol-Space Patrol)
1929 Berry Gordy Jr Detroit, record company owner (Motown)
1931 Hope Lange Redding Ridge CT, actress (Ghost & Mrs Muir)
1942 Paul Warfield NFL/WFL wide receiver (Cleveland, Miami, Memphis)
1943 Randy Newman singer (Short People, I Love LA, Raindrops)
1949 Alexander Godunov Russia, composer/dancer (Bolshoi) defected 1979
1949 Paul Shaffer Thunder Bay Ont, orchestra leader (SNL, David Letterman)
1950 Ed Harris Tenafly NJ, actor (Right Stuff, Swing Shift, Walker, Coma)
1964 Cornelia Guest debutante (Debutante's Guide to Life)

Deaths which occurred on November 28:
1058 Kazimierz I Restaurator, duke of Poland (1034-58), dies
1262 Shinran founder of Japan's True Pure Land Buddhist sect, dies
1499 Edward Plantagenet, 18th Count of Warwick, beheaded
1545 Jacob van Liesveld printer/"heretic" (Refeyen), beheaded
1680 Giovanni L Bernini, Italian sculptor/painter, dies

1794 Friedrich von Steuben, Prussian/US inspector-general of Washingtons army, dies at 64
http://www.ushistory.org/valleyforge/served/steuben.html

1827 Dov Baer Schneersohn Lubavitch leader/author (Imirei Binah), dies
1859 Washington Irving, US author (Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Rip van Winkle), dies
1899 Adrian the la Rey son of South african general dlr: dies in battle, dies at 19
1939 James A Naismith creator of basketball, dies at 78
1945 Dwight Davis donator of the Davis cup, dies
1954 Enrico Fermi, Italian/US physicist (Nobel 1938), dies at 53
1962 Queen Mother Wilhelmina of Netherlands, dies at 82
1964 Charles Meredith actor (Court of Last Resort), dies at 70
1971 Wasfi Tal Jordan's PM, assassinated in Cairo
1976 Rosalind Russell (Actress) dies at 68
1977 Trevor Bardette actor (Clanton-Legend of Wyatt Earp), dies at 75
1981 Natalie Wood, Actress (West Side Story) drowned off Santa Catalina, Calif., at 43
1983 Christopher George actor, dies at 54 of a heart attack
1987 Choh Hao Li bio-chemist prof (isolated growth hormones), dies at 74
1994 Jeffrey Dahmer, [Butcher of Milwaukee], Serial killer/cannibal, beaten to death in prison at 34
1994 Jerry Rubin, US anti-war activist (Youth Party), dies at 56
1994 Ronald "Buster" Edwards, Great Train Robber, commits suicide at 62

Take A Moment To Remember
GWOT Casualties

Iraq
28-Nov-2003 1 | US: 1 | UK: 0 | Other: 0
US Sergeant Ariel Rico Mosul - Ninawa Hostile - hostile fire - mortar attack

28-Nov-2004 6 | US: 6 | UK: 0 | Other: 0
US Private 1st Class Stephen C. Benish Ramadi - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire
US Sergeant Carl W. Lee Ramadi - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire
US Staff Sergeant Michael B. Shackelford Ramadi - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire
US Sergeant Trinidad R. Martinezluis As Sadiyah - Diyala Non-hostile - vehicle accident
US Lance Corporal Charles A. Hanson Jr. Babil Province Hostile - hostile fire
US Lance Corporal Adam R. Brooks Babil Province Hostile - hostile fire

Afghanistan
A GOOD DAY

http://icasualties.org/oif/
Data research by Pat Kneisler
Designed and maintained by Michael White
//////////
Go here and I'll stop nagging.
http://soldiersangels.org/heroes/index.php

On this day...
0741 St Gregory III ends his reign as Catholic Pope
1340 Battle of Salado Spain: last Moor invasion driven back
1520 Ferdinand Magellan begins crossing Pacific Ocean
1729 Natchez Indians massacre most of the 300 French settlers and soldiers at Fort Rosalie, Louisiana.
1795 US pays $800,000 & a frigate as tribute to Algiers & Tunis
1853 Olympia established as capital of Washington Territory
1861 Confederate congress officially admits Missouri to the CSA
1862 Battle at Cane Hill, Arkansas (475 casualties)
1864 3rd day of Battles at Waynesboro/Jones's Plantation, Georgia
1871 Ku Klux Klan trials began in Federal District Court in SC
1872 The Modoc War of 1872-73 began in Siskiyou County, northern California
1895 America's 1st auto race starts; 6 cars, 55 miles, winner averages 7 MPH
1901 Gustav Mahler's 4th Symphony in G, premieres
1905 Arthur Griffith forms Sinn Fein in Dublin.
1916 First (German) air attack on London
1919 US-born Lady Astor elected 1st female member of British Parliament

1922 Capt Cyril Turner (RAF) gave 1st skywriting exhibition (NYC). Turner spelled out "Hello USA. Call Vanderbilt 7200." 47,000 called.

1925 Famed NHL goalie Georges Vezina collapses in a game & dies of TB 4months later
1925 The Grand Ole Opry, Nashville's famed home of country music, made its radio debut on station WSM.
1929 Adm Richard E Byrd makes 1st South Pole flight
1929 Ernie Nevers scores all 40 pts for Chicago Cards vs Bears (NFL record)
1934 Churchill tells Premier Baldwin not to under estimate German air power
1936 "Pennies From Heaven" hits #1 on the pop singles chart by Bing Crosby
1939 Nazi Gov-Gen of Poland, Hans Frank organizes Judenrat
1942 Nearly 500 die in a fire that destroyed Coconut Grove nightclub in Boston MA
1943 FDR, Churchill & Stalin met at Tehran to map out strategy
1948 "Hopalong Cassidy" premiers on TV
1948 1st Polaroid camera sold
1958 Chad becomes an autonomous republic within the French community
1958 Congo & Mauritania become autonomous members of French community
1960 Mauritania gains independence from France (National Day)
1963 1st million copy record prior to release "I Want to Hold Your Hand"
1963 Beatles "She Loves You" returns to #1 on UK record chart
1963 The Crusher beat Verne Gagne in St. Paul Mn., becomes NWA champ
1964 Mariner 4 launched; 1st probe to fly by Mars
1966 Coup in Burundi overthrows monarchy; a republic is declared
1967 The 1st pulsating radio source (pulsar) detected
1972 Los Angeles Dodgers trade Frank Robinson to California Angels
1973 Arab League summit in Algiers recognizes Palestine
1974 Bowie Kuhn suspends George Steinbrenner for 2 years
1979 Air New Zealand DC-10 crashes in Antarctica killing 257
1983 9th Space Shuttle Mission-Columbia 6-is launched
1986 Reagan administration exceeds SALT II arms limitations for 1st time
1987 South African Airways Boeing 747 crashes into Indian Ocean, 159 die
1988 Picasso's "Acrobat & Harlequin" sells for $38.46 million
1989 Rickey Henderson signs record $3,000,000 per year Oak A's contract
1991 Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev expressed unhappiness over reports that the United States might move toward diplomatic recognition of Ukraine after the republic's upcoming independence referendum
1994 Norway votes against joining European Union
2000 George W. Bush's lawyers asked the U.S. Supreme Court to bring "legal finality" to the presidential election by ending any further ballot recounts; Al Gore's team countered that the nation's highest court should not interfere in Florida's recount dispute.
2001 Ahmed Abdel-Rahman (35), a top al Qaeda operative and son of the blind sheik linked to the 1993 WTC bombing, was captured

Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Albania : Independence Day (1912)
Chad, Burundi : Republic Day (1966)
Mauritius : Independence Day (1960)
Panama, Canal Zone : Independence Day
UAE : Accession of the Ruler of Abu Dhabi
US : Leftover Week (Day 2)
US : Ski Patrol Day
Make Your Own Head Day
National Diabetes Month

Religious Observances
Ang : Commemoration of Kamehameha & Emma
RC : St Catherine Labour‚, virgin
RC : Commemoration of St James of La Marcha, confessor
RC : Commemoration of St Joseph Pignatelli, Spanish Jesuit
RC : Commemoration of St Catherine Labour‚, virgin
Moslem : Night of the Ascent (Rajab 27, 1418 AH)

Religious History
1739 English revivalist George Whitefield wrote in a letter: 'Follow after, but do not run before the blessed Spirit; if you do, although you may benefit others, and God may overrule everything for your own good, yet you will certainly destroy the peace of your own soul.'
1863 Thanksgiving was first observed as a regular American holiday. Proclaimed by President Lincoln the previous month, it was declared that the event would be observed annually, on the fourth Thursday in November.
1904 Death of Jeremiah E. Rankin, 76, American Congregational clergyman. He authored a number of hymns during his life, including "Tell It To Jesus" and "God Be With You Till We Meet Again."
1950 A constitutional convention (comprised of 14 Protestant, Anglican, and Eastern Orthodox denominations) met in Cleveland, Ohio, and brought into being the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Today, the NCCC serves to administer disaster relief, strengthen family life, provide leadership training, and promote world peace.
1984 Pope John Paul II completed the last of 133 homilies in St. Peter's Square on the theme, "Theology of the Body." It was the first time in public catechesis that a pope made use of higher criticism of the Old Testament and freely cited a number of Protestant theologians.

Source: William D. Blake. ALMANAC OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1987.

Toilet paper now in basic black
Agence France-Presse (Lisbon)
November 24, 2005

UPMARKET bathrooms across Europe can now choose a chic new shade of toilet paper - basic black.
Some internet savy Australians buying online already have it on their loo rollers.
Portuguese paper producer Renova introduced its line of black toilet paper in Spain and Portugal earlier this year and has just put it into French shops, a company official said today.
"The intensity of the interest in this product we got from all over the world was unexpected," said Renova's international brand manager, Jose Manuel Pinheiro.

The firm plans to launch the product, aimed at designer hotels and restaurants, in the US and Canada early next year after receiving a high number of orders via its internet site, he said.
The Portuguese company, based in Torres Novas, 120km north-east of Lisbon, has received online orders from as far away as Australia and Japan for what he said is the world's first-ever black toilet paper.

Renova charges 2.50 euros ($4) a roll, or six euros for a pack of six rolls, of the black toilet paper, a colour it describes as "elegant, rebellious, alternative and eternally fashionable".

Thought for the day :
"To see a world in a Grain of Sand,
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand,
And eternity in an hour."
William Blake

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