The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Flying Cross to Lieutenant Commander Robert P. Yerex, United States Coast Guard, for extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight while serving as aircraft commander of Coast Guard HH-60J helicopter 6011 on the night of 12 November 1999. The crew was engaged in the rescue of three survivors from the 52-foot fishing vessel BECCA DAWN, which sank in a winter storm 160 miles northwest of Sitka, Alaska. Lieutenant Commander Yerex expertly piloted CG 6011 through 45-knot winds and one-quarter mile visibility in snow showers to reach the BECCA DAWN. Homing on the vessel’s emergency beacon, he located three survivors clinging together, struggling to remain afloat in the 35-45 foot confused seas. Lieutenant Commander Yerex quickly realized that maintaining a stable hover was impossible. Keeping the helicopter clear of waves and the survivors in sight was a physical struggle that fully taxed the entire aircrew. Sixty-five knot wind gusts buffeted the helicopter and filled the air with freezing spray. Severe turbulence flung the aircraft about the pitch-black sky, inducing dramatic uncommanded nose attitude changes, causing severe spatial disorientation for both pilots. In the face of these terrible conditions he maintained his composure and struggled to position the aircraft to hoist the survivors. After a heroic and exhausting 15-minute struggle, he held position atop the survivors long enough for the flight mechanic to deliver the basket and recover the first survivor. He repeated the struggle, successfully battling the elements during another 15-minute struggle to deliver the basket. This time the remaining survivors climbed into the basket and were lifted to safety. After a desperate but unsuccessful attempt to locate the forth crewman, Lieutenant Commander Yerex delivered the survivors to safety in Yakutat, Alaska. Lieutenant Commander Yerex’s actions, aeronautical skill, and valor were instrumental in the rescue of three lives. His courage, judgment, and devotion to duty are most heartily commended and are in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Coast Guard.