The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 2, 1926, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Flying Cross to Captain Kenneth Henry Fleming, United States Air Force, for extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight as an F-100 pilot of the 352d Tactical Fighter Squadron, Phan Rang Air Base, South Vietnam, in action in Southeast Asia on 8 December 1967. On that date, Captain Fleming was on a scramble in support of friendly troops who were under heavy fire from a large hostile force well-bunkered along a canal line in Chuong Thien Province. Captain Fleming, under extensive ground fire, in a restricted and heavily congested airspace and critically low on fuel, proceeded to successfully destroy numerous hostile bunkered positions and bring immediate relief to the contingent of friendlies exposed to the bulk of the hostile firepower. The superb airmanship and personal courage exhibited by Captain Fleming was instrumental in making Operation DAN CHI the most successful in the history of the conflict in the delta region. The professional competence, aerial skill and devotion to duty displayed by Captain Fleming reflect great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the United States Air Force.

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 2, 1926, takes pleasure in presenting a Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster in lieu of a Second Award of the Distinguished Flying Cross with Combat “V” to Captain Kenneth Henry Fleming, United States Air Force, for heroism while participating in aerial flight as an F-100 pilot of the 352d Tactical Fighter Squadron, Phan Rang Air Base, South Vietnam, in action at Bo Tuc, Republic of Vietnam, on 20 December 1967. On that date, Captain Fleming was scrambled in support of a friendly camp that was being hit hard by a large hostile force and in danger of being overrun. Captain Fleming was restricted to dropping his ordnance low level, in marginal illumination conditions and parallel to a main line of quad fifty caliber machine gun positions while being silhouetted against a raging fire from an ammunition storage area. Despite these multiple hazards, Captain Fleming elected to make numerous passes, dropping his ordnance and strafing within 25 meters of friendly positions, with extraordinary accuracy. The intrepid courage and self sacrifice under intense hostile fire displayed by Captain Fleming resulted in the saving of numerous friendly lives. The outstanding heroism and selfless devotion to duty displayed by Captain Fleming reflect great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the United States Air Force.

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 2, 1926, takes pleasure in presenting a Second Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster in lieu of a Third Award of the Distinguished Flying Cross to Captain Kenneth Henry Fleming, United States Air Force, for extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight as an F-100 tactical fighter pilot of the 352d Tactical Fighter Squadron, Phan Rang Air Base, South Vietnam, in action near Binh Long, Republic of Vietnam, on 27 January 1968. Captain Fleming, on night alert, was scrambled to provide close air support for friendly forces who were in heavy contact with an unknown number of hostile forces. The ground fire was extremely heavy from hostile forces and friendly forces were no more than four hundred meters from the desired targets, which were heavily defended hostile gun sites. Despite marginal lighting, poor visibility, and heavy ground fire, Captain Fleming succeeded in delivering his ordnance with devastating effect. Captain Fleming’s attack caused complete withdrawal of hostile forces, and ultimately saved many American lives. The attack denied the hostile force control of the area and, in fact, caused their complete withdrawal. The professional competence, aerial skill and devotion to duty displayed by Captain Fleming reflect great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the United States Air Force.