The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Sergeant Robert Franklin Hixon (ASN: 34838676), United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy while serving with Company L, 3d Battalion, 337th Infantry Regiment, 85th Infantry Division, in action against enemy forces in the vicinity of Casoni di Romagna, Italy, on 2 October 1944. In a heavy fog over a sparsely forested area on the forward slope of an Apennine Mountain peak, Sergeant Hixon ventured out of his foxhole to make a hasty reconnaissance of his sector. Discovering a German tank which had maneuvered behind American positions, he boldly climbed aboard, opened the unlocked turret, pointed his pistol into the compartment and, without firing a shot, forced the crew of four to surrender. Turning over the prisoners to other members of his unit, Sergeant Hixon led a squad of rocket gunners back to a second tank. With a bazooka, the squad destroyed the tank and captured one member of the crew. Sergeant Hixon’s courage and skillful execution of a difficult operation exemplify the highest traditions of the military forces of the United States and reflect great credit upon himself and the United States Army.