AWARDED DFC: 1
CONFLICT/SPACE FLIGHT/EVENT:  -
MODEL:  B-26

Citation:  1.) The President of the United States takes great pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Flying Cross to Captain Clarence A. Kirley for extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight in the North African Theatre of Operations as Pilot of a B-26 type aircraft. On 14 September 1943, while piloting the lead plane of a formation of thirty-six medium bombers, flying ground support of the Fifth Army at Salerno, Captain Kirley's plane was hit in both engines by intense anti-aircraft fire just as he reached the initial point. Realizing the vital importance of the target and the formation's dependence on his lead plane, Captain Kirley courageously determined to continue the long bomb run before seeking personal safety. Through the concentrated anti-aircraft barrage, Captain Kirley steadied his crippled plane long enough to accomplish great damage to numerous enemy installations and to the Auletta Road Junction through which German troops were being evacuated from the Potenza area. Then, with one engine feathered and the other pouring oil and sputtering, he successfully brought his crew and plane to safety in Sicily. Captain Kirley's proficiency in combat and intrepid devotion to duty reflect great credit upon himself and the Armed Forces of the United States.