The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Flying Cross to Lieutenant Commander William Whiteley Bush, Jr., United States Navy, for extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight as Pilot of a United States Navy carrier-based dive bombing plane on 28 July 1945. As leader of a squadron of Dive Bombers he led an attack on the Japanese battleship HARUNA in Kure Harbor, Honshu, Japan, In site of intense and accurate anti-aircraft fire from enemy warships and ground installations on all sides, he pressed home his attack and released his bomb at an extremely low altitude. As a result of the attack, the HARUNA was seriously and extensively damaged. His courageous leadership and professional skill were at all times in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.