The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Cross to Lieutenant, Junior Grade Alvin Frederick Emig, United States Naval Reserve, for extraordinary heroism in operations against the enemy while serving as Pilot of a carrier-based Navy Dive Bomber in Bombing Squadron NINETEEN (VB-19), in action against enemy Japanese forces in the vicinity of the Philippine Islands, on 5 November 1944. Alert and aggressive during a strike against enemy shipping, Lieutenant, Junior Grade, Emig skillfully maneuvered his plane for advantageous striking position and, pressing home his attack at a perilously low altitude despite savage fighter opposition and in the face of intense and continuous anti-aircraft fire, succeeded ins coring a direct hit on an enemy heavy cruiser, thereby contributing materially to its subsequent sinking. By his expert airmanship and gallant devotion to duty throughout this hazardous mission, Lieutenant, Junior Grade, Emig upheld the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.