The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Cross to Sergeant Claude E. Lauderdale (MCSN: 282120), United States Marine Corps, for extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty while serving as Acting Platoon Leader of Company D, Second Battalion, Twenty-Seventh Marines, FIFTH Marine Division, during action against enemy Japanese forces on Iwo Jima, Volcano Islands, 22 March 1945. Valiantly leading his platoon and supporting tanks against an enemy last-stand position which had resisted attack for seven days, Sergeant Lauderdale pushed the front lines three hundred yards into Japanese territory. Advancing through a deep canyon covered by enemy fire, he requested tank support and, in the face of accurate hostile fire, moved ahead of the front lines to reconnoiter routes for the tanks and to direct their fire against the Japanese. Exposing himself on six different occasions to point out targets for the flame thrower tanks, he contributed directly to the success of the mission and was largely responsible for keeping the casualties in his platoon at a minimum. His courage and zealous devotion to duty reflect the highest credit upon Sergeant Lauderdale and the United States Naval Service.