The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Flying Cross to Lieutenant Commander Herman L. Ray, United States Navy, for heroism and extraordinary achievement as Commander of a Patrol Plane in bombing raids on Japanese shipping in Kiska Harbor, Territory of Alaska, in June 1942. Flying through low-handing clouds, the pilot dropped his bombs and strafed the targets from very low altitude under withering fire from Japanese anti-aircraft batteries. Successfully avoiding the cloud-shrouded mountains surrounding the harbor, he brought his battered plane safely to the base.