AWARDED DFC: 1
CONFLICT/SPACE FLIGHT/EVENT:  Vietnam
MODEL:  F-4

Citation:  1.) The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the DISTINGUISHED FLYING CROSS to Commander Robert A. McMurtray, Jr., United States Navy, for heroism and extraordinary achievement in aerial flight on 19 April 1966 as pilot of a fighter aircraft in Fighter Squadron Two Hundred Thirteen, embarked in USS Kitty Hawk (CVA-6 3.) during operations against hostile forces in North Vietnam. Commander (then Lieutenant Commander) McMurtray was the flight leader of a flight of five aircraft assigned the task of antiaircraft-fire suppression in support of an attack by Attack Carrier Air Wing ELEVEN against a key enemy installation known to be heavily defended by surface-to-air guided missiles, antiaircraft artillery, and enemy fighter aircraft. Despite adverse weather conditions which required navigation at altitudes fifty to one hundred feet above the water, he skillfully maintained the position of his element, so as to preserve the integrity of the attack formation and to be in position to execute a precisely-timed attack on the target defenses in coordination with the assault of the bomber group. Arriving in the objective area, Commander McMurtray displayed outstanding airmanship in the presence of great personal danger as he maneuvered his element through an intense barrage of antiaircraft fire, resolutely diving on the gun installations assigned and silencing them with multiple rocket hits. As a result of his courageous and effective personal contribution to the strike, the bomber group was able to inflict extensive damage to this important enemy installation, and to retire without damage. Commander McMurtray's performance was in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.