John Morse, Jr.

The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to John Morse, Jr., First Lieutenant, U.S. Air Force, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy of the United Nations while serving as Pilot with the 111th Fighter-Bomber Squadron, 136th Fighter-Bomber Group, in action against enemy forces near Sinanju, Korea on 17 November 1951. As flight leader of four F-84 aircraft, Lieutenant Morse was briefed to find and destroy two locomotives north of Sinanju. Due to restricted visibility in the area, he ordered his flight to orbit at a safe altitude while he reconnoitered the area at low level. Exposing himself to intense ground fire, he sighted the two locomotives and made a successful skip-bombing attack, destroying one and damaging the other. Although his aircraft sustained direct hits on his first pass, Lieutenant Morse returned to attack the damaged locomotive in the face of intense and accurate ground fire from heavy and automatic weapons. Through Lieutenant Morse’s superior airmanship and aggressiveness, this highly important and hazardous mission was successfully completed.
General Headquarters Far East Command: General Orders No. 45 (June 13, 1952)