John David Hissong

Flight incident

While flying for Eastern Airlines Capt. Hissong made a night time crash landing without a single lose of life. For this action Capt. Hissong was presented with the Airmail Flyers' Medal of Honor on 4 October 1948. The presentation was made by Postmaster General Jesse M. Donaldson, on behalf of President Harry Truman This was the 10th and final award presentation for the Airmail Flyers' Medal of Honor.

Medal Citation

For extraordinary valor and achievement while piloting air mail plane No. NC 13735 on a flight from New Orleans to New York on the night of October 18, 1938. Soon after takeoff from the intermediate stop at Montgomery, Alabama for the flight to Atlanta, Georgia extreme vibrations set up in the right engine and there was progressive failure of its component parts. Fire of intense heat from escaping gasoline and oil enveloped the engine and right wing and progressed toward the cabin. The engine burned from its fittings and dropped from the plane. The pilot, with great skill and courage, manipulated the controls to compensate for loss of the engine and burning wing, kept the plane aloft until dwellings were cleared, and then landed in the darkness without landing gear in such manner that, although the burning wing was sheared off by contact with a tree, there was no impact. The passengers were freed from the plane a few seconds before it was entirely consumed. Beside three members of the plane crew, there were eleven passengers who earnestly say that they are indebted for their lives to the courage of Pilot Hissong, who alone was injured by minor burns.