Recent Recipients
Since the Vietnam War, as of September 2012, only eight Air Force Crosses have been awarded — two during Operation Desert Storm, one during the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu and five during Operation Enduring Freedom:
| Name | Rank | Unit | Date of action | Occupation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paul T. Johnson | Captain | 354th Tactical Fighter Wing | January 21, 1991 | A-10 Pilot | Led search for downed U.S. pilot deep inside enemy territory allowing for the pilot to be successfully rescued. |
| William F. Andrews | Captain | 10th Tactical Fighter Squadron | February 27, 1991 | F-16 Pilot | After being shot down by air defenses near Basra, Iraq he directed friendly air forces to utilize flares preventing them from being shot down by Iraqi surface-to-air missiles. |
| Timothy A. Wilkinson | Technical Sergeant | 24th Special Tactics Squadron | October 3-4, 1993 | Pararescue (PJ) | Saved the lives of multiple rangers despite significant self risk. |
| John Chapman | Technical Sergeant | 24th Special Tactics Squadron | March 4, 2002 | Combat Controller (CCT) | Gallantry near Gardez, in the eastern highlands of Afghanistan during the Battle of Takur Ghar. |
| Jason D. Cunningham | Senior Airman | 38th Rescue Squadron | March 4, 2002 | Pararescue (PJ) | Ten injured soldiers survived the Battle of Takur Ghar due to his medical care despite a mortal wound. |
| Zachary Rhyner | Senior Airman | 21st Special Tactics Squadron | April 6, 2008 | Combat Controller (CCT) | For gallantry during the Battle of Shok Valley, calling in over 50 attack runs, preventing his Special Forces team from being overrun by enemies. |
| Robert Gutierrez Jr. | Staff Sergeant | 321st Special Tactics Squadron | October 5, 2009 | Combat Controller (CCT) | For saving the Special Forces team he was attached to by repeatedly calling in close air support despite a chest wound. |
| Barry F. Crawford, Jr. | Captain | 321st Special Tactics Squadron | May 4, 2010 | Special Tactics Officer (STO) | For risking his life during a fourteen hour long ambush to guide in a MEDEVAC while also calling in close air support which allowed for ground forces to ex-filtrate without massive casualties. |
Read more about this topic: Air Force Cross (United States)
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“The proclamation and repetition of first principles is a constant feature of life in our democracy. Active adherence to these principles, however, has always been considered un-American. We recipients of the boon of liberty have always been ready, when faced with discomfort, to discard any and all first principles of liberty, and, further, to indict those who do not freely join with us in happily arrogating those principles.”
—David Mamet (b. 1947)