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română русский svenska українська 粵語 中文 edit links article talk english read edit view history tools tools move to sidebar hide actions read edit view history general what links here related changes upload file permanent link page information cite this page get shortened url switch to legacy parser print export download as pdf printable version in other projects wikimedia commons wikidata item appearance move to sidebar hide from wikipedia the free encyclopedia united states air and space forces service cross medal not to be confused with the distinguished flying cross a lower precedence award award air force cross type military medal service medal awarded for extraordinary heroism in combat presented by united states department of the air force 1 2 eligibility united states air force airmen and united states space force guardians 3 reverse status currently awarded established november 1 1965 effective july 6 1960 1 first award january 8 1964 4 final award december 10 2020 5 total 203 as of 2026 a total awarded posthumously 50 total recipients 198 as of 2026 service ribbon precedence next higher medal of honor equivalent army distinguished service cross naval service navy cross coast guard coast guard cross next lower department of defense defense distinguished service medal department of homeland security homeland security distinguished service medal the air force cross afc is the united states air force usaf and u s space force s ussf second highest military decoration for airmen and guardians who distinguish themselves with extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force 6 the medal is awarded to any person while serving in any capacity with the usaf or ussf who distinguish themselves by heroism which is extraordinary but not sufficient for the award of a medal of honor the air force cross is equivalent to the distinguished service cross of the u s army the navy cross of the u s naval services and the coast guard cross of the u s coast guard collectively these awards known as the service crosses 7 8 prior to july 6 1960 members of the usaf were awarded distinguished service cross origins edit originally entitled the distinguished service cross air force 9 the air force cross was first proposed in 1947 after the creation of the usaf in september that year as an independent armed service the medal was designed by eleanor cox an employee of the usaf and was sculpted by thomas hudson jones of the u s army institute of heraldry the air force cross was established by public law pl 86 593 10 on 6 july 1960 and made effective through an amendment to title 10 usc section 8742 1 july 6 1960 by pl 86 593 in chapter 857 sections 8742 8744 and 8745 of title 10 usc to substitute air force cross for distinguished service cross and inserted air force cross in sections 8748 and 8749 11 12 prior to july 6 1960 usaf airmen were awarded the distinguished service cross 1 additional awards of the air force cross are annotated by oak leaf clusters 13 criteria for award edit title 10 chapter 857 section 8742 air force cross award the president may award an air force cross of appropriate design with ribbons and appurtenances to a person who while serving in any capacity with the air force or space force distinguishes themselves by extraordinary heroism not justifying the award of a medal of honor 1 while engaged in an action against an enemy of the united states 2 while engaged in military operations involving conflict with an opposing foreign force or 3 while serving with friendly foreign forces engaged in an armed conflict against an opposing armed force in which the united states is not a belligerent party 14 15 the medal is usually presented by the secretary of the air force in a formal ceremony at the pentagon 1 description edit the medal consists of a bronze cross with an oxidized satin finish centered on the cross is a gold plated american bald eagle wings displayed against a cloud formation from the crest of the department of the air force seal 1 16 encircled by a laurel wreath finished in green enamel the reverse side of the medal is blank and may be engraved in capital letters with the recipient s rank abbreviated first name middle initial last name and branch of service 12 the ribbon and service ribbon is brittany blue edged with red and bears a narrow white vertical stripe inside the red edges the ribbon is almost identical to that of the army s distinguished service cross except for the lighter blue center stripe indicating the close connection of these awards 12 awards edit the first award of the air force cross was made posthumously to usaf major rudolf anderson a u 2 pilot for extraordinary heroism during the cuban missile crisis in 1962 12 as of september 2026 there had been 203 awards of the air force cross to 198 individuals three were retroactively awarded for actions in world war ii 17 one hundred eighty were awarded for heroism in the vietnam war 18 and four for heroism during the 1975 mayagüez incident immediately following these are sometimes counted with the vietnam war awards 19 two were awarded for the 1991 gulf war one to usaf pararescueman timothy a wilkinson for the 1993 battle of mogadishu in somalia and three were awarded for heroism during operation anaconda in afghanistan in 2002 two to usaf pararescuemen keary miller and jason cunningham and one to special tactics technical sergeant john chapman a combat controller one was awarded to combat controller zachary rhyner for actions in the shok valley afghanistan on april 6 2008 20 another was awarded to usaf pararescueman msgt ivan ruiz for heroism in kandahar province afghanistan dec 10 2013 21 on october 17 2017 the air force cross was awarded to staff sergeant richard hunter for actions against the taliban in kunduz province afghanistan on november 2 2016 22 on april 20 2017 ssgt chris baradat was presented with the air force cross for his actions in the sono valley kunar province on april 6 2013 while serving as a qrf combat controller with the 21st expeditionary special tactics squadron 23 on september 21 2020 a combat controller not named was awarded the air force cross for actions during the battle of khasham 24 fifty awards have been posthumous including 30 to members missing in action twenty four have been awarded to enlisted personnel including 12 pararescuemen seventeen graduates of the united states air force academy have been presented the award and 13 were awarded for conduct while a prisoner of war there have been five multiple recipients james h kasler three awards john a dramesi two awards leland t kennedy two awards robinson risner two awards garry gordon cooper two awards notable recipients edit ssgt zachary rhyner receiving the air force cross from secretary of the air force michael b donley maj benvolio palladino then msgt palladino for heroic actions in combat while in helmand provence afghanistan in 2015 his actions saved more than 20 service members and more than 30 afghani women and children gen charles g boyd pow for almost seven years and the only vietnam era pow to reach the four star rank lt col charlie l brown one of the three recipients of the award for actions during world war ii while serving with the united states army air forces the predecessor of usaf msgt john a chapman awarded posthumously for heroism in the battle of takur ghar during the war in afghanistan later upgraded to the medal of honor flt lt garry gordon cooper royal australian air force assigned to usaf 19th tactical air support squadron during vietnam war as a forward air controller was shot down during an observation helicopter mission and was instrumental in saving the injured brigade commander only non us serviceman to receive afc 25 col george e bud day medal of honor recipient and vietnam war pow capt charles b chuck debellevue f 4 weapon systems officer ace credited with six mig kills the most of any u s aviator during the vietnam war msgt tsgt at the time timothy a wilkinson for actions that resulted in saving the lives of three u s army rangers during operation gothic serpent col john a dramesi vietnam era pow who led the only organized escape from the hanoi hilton with edwin atterberry maj urban l drew one of the three recipients of the award for actions during world war ii while serving with the united states army air forces the predecessor of usaf cmsgt richard etchberger usaf airman who died in the battle of lima site 85 award later upgraded to medal of honor lt gen john p flynn vietnam war fighter pilot and pow a2c duane d hackney pararescueman decorated for valor in vietnam maj gen paul johnson an a 10 pilot during the gulf war helped rescue a downed pilot behind enemy lines lt col james h kasler vietnam war fighter pilot and pow only recipient of three awards capt leland t kennedy vietnam war rescue helicopter pilot recipient of two awards brig gen robin olds world war ii and vietnam war fighter pilot triple ace col ralph parr korean war fighter ace also a recipient of the distinguished service cross a1c william h pitsenbarger pararescueman and the first enlisted recipient award later upgraded to medal of honor msgt zachary rhyner a combat controller in the battle of shok valley during the war in afghanistan 1st lt karl w richter fighter pilot killed in action in vietnam col james robinson risner vietnam war fighter pilot and pow and first living recipient received two awards maj r stephen ritchie usaf pilot ace of the vietnam war retired as a brigadier general lt col ronald e storz o 1 bird dog pilot and vietnam war pow who died in captivity in 1970 capt dale e stovall vietnam war helicopter pilot who rescued roger locher from north vietnam flying further than any other sar pilot retired as a brigadier general col robert m white x 15 test pilot and f 105 commander see also edit combat action medal notes edit including two air force crosses upgraded to the medal of honor references edit 1 2 3 4 5 6 air force manual 36 2806 10 june 2019 p 64 pdf archived from the original pdf on 9 february 2022 retrieved 29 december 2020 dod instruction 1348 33 dod military decorations and awards program pdf executive services directorate march 29 2018 archived from the original pdf on september 29 2018 retrieved september 29 2018 h r 6395 116th congress 2019 2020 william m mac thornberry national defense authorization act for fiscal year 2021 january 2021 major rudolf anderson jr air force link usaf archived from the original on 3 march 2009 retrieved 9 february 2009 a tribute to persistence secaf presents air force cross to special tactics airman u s air force news retrieved december 21 2020 air force instruction 36 2803 table 2 1 e publishing af mil pdf archived from the original pdf on 2013 02 16 retrieved 2013 03 10 skovlund joshua 6 january 2025 the first americans to earn the distinguished service cross were two army nurses task purpose north equity llc archived from the original on 13 january 2026 the distinguished service cross or its sister awards the navy cross or air force cross which are often collectively referred to as the service crosses distinguished flying and air service crosses army and navy register washington d c army and navy register publishing company 7 march 1925 p 234 air force cross archived from the original on 2012 09 15 retrieved 2011 05 28 86th us congress 6 jul 1960 public law 86 593 pdf us congress 6 july 1960 archived pdf from the original on 2022 01 18 title 10 u s c chapter 857 section 8742 amended 1960 pl 86 593 s 1 7 6 july 1960 74 stat 332 air force cross award 1 2 3 4 air force cross air force link usaf retrieved 18 october 2010 title 10 sub title d air force part ii personnel chapter 857 awards and decorations 8744 cornell university law school retrieved 9 february 2009 title 10 u s c chapter 857 section 8742 air force cross award title 10 sub title d air force part ii personnel chapter 857 awards and decorations 8742 cornell university law school retrieved 8 february 2009 united states air force seal 3 crest air force cross ac tracesofwar com www tracesofwar com there were actually 182 awards during the vietnam war but two to airman william h pitsenbarger and chief master sergeant richard etchberger were later upgraded to the medal of honor vietnam war and mayagüez incident air force cross recipients pdf ramsey john airman gets medal for valor fayetteville observer march 11 2009 p 1 maj craig savage afsoc public affairs pj s extraordinary heroism earns air force cross published december 17 2014 secaf awards air force cross 10 medals to air commandos u s air force retrieved 2017 10 18 christopher baradat s air force cross air force magazine retrieved 24 august 2019 rempfer kyle kyle_rempfer 1 june 2024 a jsoc operator received the air force cross for the battle of khasham 2nd only to the medal of honor doesn t appear the dod ever publicized it tweet via x formerly twitter recipient s name is redacted in the released information usaf air force cross certificate for fltlt garry g cooper actions 18 aug 1968 signed 20 mar 1981 awarded 4 dec 2021 external links edit wikimedia commons has media related to air force cross united states alphabetical recipients list home of the heroes archived 2018 07 17 at the wayback machine listing of vietnam war air force cross recipients air force cross awarded 40 years late air force times march 31 2008 v t e awards and decorations of the united states department of the air force decorations medal of honor air force cross distinguished service silver star medal legion of merit distinguished flying cross airman s medal bronze star medal purple heart meritorious service medal air medal aerial achievement air and space commendation air and space achievement unit awards presidential unit citation gallant unit citation meritorious unit air and space outstanding unit air and space organizational excellence service medals combat action medal combat readiness air force good conduct space force good conduct remote combat effects campaign medal air and space campaign nuclear deterrence operations service medal service ribbons outstanding airman of the year air and space recognition overseas service short tour overseas service long tour air and space expeditionary service air and space longevity developmental special duty nco pme graduate basic training honor graduate marksmanship air and space training retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title air_force_cross_ united_states oldid 1370283916 categories awards and decorations of the united states air force awards and decorations of the united states space force awards established in 1960 courage awards hidden categories articles with short description short description is different from wikidata use american english from march 2026 all wikipedia articles written in american english commons category link from wikidata webarchive template wayback links this page was last edited on 20 august 2026 at 05 44 utc page was rendere...