The President of  the  United States takes  pleasure in  presenting  a  gold star in lieu of the third DISTINGUISHED FLYING CROSS to

for service as set forth in the following

                 CITATION:

                               "For heroism and extraordinary achievement  in aerial flight while  serving  as Commanding Officer of  Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 364, Marine Aircraft Group  Sixteen,  First Marine Aircraft Wing  in  connection with combat operations against the enemy in  the Republic of Vietnam.  Late on the  morning  of 6 October  1969,  Lieutenant  Colonel  Dunbaugh  launched  as Section Leader  of a flight of two CH-46 transport helicopters assigned the miss- ion of transporting medical supplies and  personnel to An Hoa  under  extremely adverse  weather  conditions,  including a  ceiling of  100 to  200 feet  and  heavy rains which had grounded flights earlier that morning.  While en route, his flight was diverted to Liberty Bridge  where four Marines  were stranded in a fifty-foot tower by the river which was swollen by monsoon rains.With complete disregard for  his own safety,  Lieutenant  Colonel  Dunbaugh  resolutely  maneuvered  his aircraft  through torrential rains and  winds gusting to twenty knots to the tower which threatened  to collapse at any time.  Undaunted by  the constant threat  of hostile fire and the lack of communication with the men on the tower, he  boldly maneuvered  his CH-46 to  hovering positions  and adopted other  means during the ensuing five hours in an attempt to rescue the endangered Marines.  As a last resort, he  dropped a  line with  four life  preservers  attached into  the water  for their  use should the  tower collapse.   The Marines immediately grabbed the line and  signaled  the pilot to  tow them ashore.  When one  of  the men lost his grip and began  to float  downstream,  Lieutenant Colonel Dunbaugh skillfully  man- euvered his helicopter to match the speed of the river and  succeeded in rescuing the Marine.   Subsequently  receiving  an urgent request to  evacuate  a seriously wounded Marine, he continued to ignore the hazardous weather conditions as he maneuvered at low altitude into an area infested with enemy mines to extract the casualty.   He  then  responded  to  an  emergency  request  for the retrograde of equipment  and  ammunition from a  flood-stranded element  of a  Marine  regi- ment and successfully completed  the  mission.   Lieutenant Colonel Dunbaugh's courage, superior  airmanship, and  unwavering  devotion  to duty in  the face of great personal danger were  in keeping with the highest traditions  of the Marine Corps and of the United States Naval Service."