The President of the United States of America takes pride in presenting the Navy and Marine Corps Medal (Posthumously) to Lieutenant John G. Downing (NSN: 0-75099), United States Navy, for heroic conduct at the risk of life not involving conflict with an armed enemy in volunteering to organize two boats from the warship to which he was attached, to remove personnel from a wrecked plane, stranded deep inshore of the edge of a reef. Fighting a high wind and imperiled by treacherous swells breaking against jagged rocks, he personally directed operations which resulted in the successful rescue of 17 officers and men without injury to either survivors of the aircraft or members of the boat crew.