The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Flying Cross to Lieutenant Commander (MC) Victor A. Prather, United States Navy, for heroism and extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight as a scientific observer in a balloon flight on 4 May 1961. In a flight for the purpose of collecting scientific and medical data and testing equipment, Lieutenant Commander Prather attained a height of approximately 113,500 feet, a height greater than ever before achieved by man in a balloon flight. The collection of data and test of material were a significant contribution to the scientific knowledge and to the advancement of the Navy and the United States in the fields of flight in upper air and in space.