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 Chief James Fitzmaurice, Irish Free State Air Force, for extraordinary achievement while participating in an aerial flight. Major Fitzmaurice, with his two companions, 12 – 13 April 1926, by their exceptional skill and resourcefulness succeeded in making the first westward nonstop trans-Atlantic flight by airplane from Europe to North America.