General GEORGE E. STRATEMEYER was commanding General, Far East Air Forces when he distinguished himself by repeated acts of extraordinary heroism in the Korean Campaign during the period 14 July to 28 September 1950. During the early days of the conflict, General Stratemeyer personally performed aerial reconnaissance of advanced airfields which were under attack by enemy aircraft and under fire by ground weapons, enabling him to plan immediately the most effective utilization of his combat air forces in the initial defensive phase. He directed the evacuation by air of American citizens from those advanced fields, continually subjecting himself to great danger. Subsequent flights were made in unarmed and unescorted aircraft to forward air strips to appraise the situation during the gradual, forced withdrawal of our troops. Personally, and at the risk of his life, in order to direct comprehensively the efforts of the Far East Air Forces in close support of the Eighth Army in Korea, he pressed forward on the ground by vehicle and on foot to the outermost advanced positions. The first hand knowledge gained by General Stratemeyer from these reconnaissance missions was invaluable to him in planning the coordination of air support with ground combat activity, and contributed largely in enabling the ground troops to wrest the initiative from the enemy and assume the offensive in driving the invading enemy from the area south of the 38th Parallel. Where courageous leadership was the practice, General Stratemeyer’s dauntless and inspirational leadership was conspicuous, reflecting great credit on himself and the United Nations Armed Forces.

General Stratemeyer joined the Legion of Valor in 1961 and resided in Florida.