SENATE RESOLUTION

                             8741

By Senators Jacobsen, Johnson, Spanel, Benton, Brown, Carlson, Costa, Deccio, Eide, Fairley, Finkbeiner, Franklin, Fraser, Gardner, Hale, Hargrove, Haugen, Hewitt, Hochstatter, Honeyford, Horn, Kastama, Keiser, Kline, Kohl-Welles, Long, McAuliffe, McCaslin, McDonald, Morton, Oke, Parlette, Poulsen, Prentice, Rasmussen, Regala, Roach, Rossi, Sheahan, Sheldon, B., Sheldon, T., Shin, Snyder, Stevens, Swecker, Thibaudeau, West, Winsley, Zarelli

     WHEREAS, The Distinguished Flying Cross Medal of Honor is awarded to officers or enlisted persons of the Armed Forces of the United States who distinguished themselves in actual combat in support of operations by "heroism or extraordinary achievement while participating in an aerial flight"; and

     WHEREAS, The Distinguished Flying Cross, authorized by an Act of Congress of July 2, 1926, was awarded first to Captain Charles A. Lindbergh, for his solo flight of 3,600 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927, a feat which electrified the world and made Lindy one of America's most popular heroes; and

     WHEREAS, The first Distinguished Flying Cross to be awarded to a Navy man was to Commander Richard E. Byrd, of the United States Navy Air Corps, on May 9, 1926, for his exciting flight to and from the North Pole; and

     WHEREAS, Amelia Earhart also received the Distinguished Flying Cross; hers was the only such award to a civilian, as an executive order on March 1, 1927, ruled that Distinguished Flying Cross Awards should not be conferred on civilians; and

     WHEREAS, The state of Washington has produced several notables who received the Distinguished Flying Cross in combat.  Pappy Boyington, a member of the Flying Tigers, and Commander of the famed Black Sheep Squadron; James Wiley, a member of the famed Red Tailed Devils, known as Tuskeegee Airmen; John Ehrlichman, a Seattle lawyer and aide to President Nixon; Dennis Braddock, Secretary of the Department of Social and Health Services; and many more; and

     WHEREAS, The Northwest Chapter of the Distinguished Flying Cross Society is a nonprofit organization dedicated to honoring the history and traditions of those who have been awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Senate recognize and commend those Washington citizens who have received the highest military honor for aviators, an honor in precedence above the Purple Heart and just below the Congressional Medal of Honor; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate stand in support of the Northwest Chapter of the Distinguished Flying Cross Society, the second fastest growing chapter in the United States after only six months of existence; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be immediately transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate to the Northwest Chapter of the Distinguished Flying Cross Society.

I, Tony M. Cook, Secretary of the Senate,

do hereby certify that this is a true and

correct copy of Senate Resolution 8741,

adopted by the Senate February 18, 2001.

TONY M. COOK

Secretary of the Senate