The President of the United States of America takes pride in presenting the Distinguished Flying Cross (Posthumously) to Commander Clarence W. Stoddard, Jr. (NSN: 0-521896), United States Navy, for extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight while engaged in combat operations against insurgent communist guerrilla forces in Southeast Asia on 10 June 1965. Commander Stoddard, as strike coordinator, planned and led an aerial striking group of twelve fighter planes on an attack against the thermal power plant in North Vietnam in the face of heavy cloud cover, thunderstorms, rain and low visibility in the target area. Placing his own section of aircraft directly over the target and above the bombing pattern, he coordinated the simultaneous attacks of propeller aircraft and jets and pinpointed specific targets to be bombed within the power plant complex. In order to mark many of these target positions, he made numerous strafing attacks, thereby showing the way for other aircraft. As a direct result of his efforts, a possible deteriorating situation was averted and 75 per cent of the entire power plant complex was destroyed.