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

Citation:  1.) The President of the United States takes great pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Flying Cross to First Lieutenant Ronald J. Thomas for extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight as an F-4E Phantom Weapon Systems Officer in Southeast Asia on 29 April 1972. On that date, Lieutenant Thomas was the Weapon Systems Officer in a formation of F-4’s which struck a surface-to-air missile support facility. Although the target was a less familiar secondary one, and in spite of the extremely heavy defensive reaction that the flight encountered, the attack was successful and resulted in the destruction of a vital link in the air defense complex of North Vietnam. The professional competence, aerial skill, and devotion to duty displayed by Lieutenant Thomas reflect great credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.