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 Lieutenant Dieudonne Costes, French Army Reserves, for extraordinary achievement while participating in an aerial flight. Lieutenant Costes and Lieutenant Commander Joseph Lebriz, displaying exceptional skill, initiative, and resourcefulness, made an extremely hazardous aerial journey of 35,000 miles, in the course of which they arrived in the United States in February 1926, by air, after making the first nonstop flight across the South Atlantic.