Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark. A Welsh III presents the Lance P. Sijan Leadership award to Lt. Col. Stephen Matthews, a 2014 recipient, during a ceremony in the Pentagon, Washington. , April 7, 2016. Matthews was, commander, 349th air refueling squadron, 22nd operations group, 22nd air refueling wing, McConnell Air Force Base, Kan. Among his many accomplishments Matthews spear headed the first tanker forward operating base in Afghanistan, and the first F-35B/C aerial refueling mission. The Sijan award, first presented in 1981, was named in honor of the first Air Force Academy graduate
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark. A Welsh III presents the Lance P. Sijan Leadership award to Lt. Col. Stephen Matthews, a 2014 recipient, during a ceremony in the Pentagon, Washington. , April 7, 2016. Matthews was, commander, 349th air refueling squadron, 22nd operations group, 22nd air refueling wing, McConnell Air Force Base, Kan. Among his many accomplishments Matthews spear headed the first tanker forward operating base in Afghanistan, and the first F-35B/C aerial refueling mission. The Sijan award, first presented in 1981, was named in honor of the first Air Force Academy graduate to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor. Each year it is given to a senior and junior officer, and a senior and junior enlisted member who demonstrated outstanding leadership abilities though out the year. Then Lt. Sijan was shot down over Vietnam on Nov. 9, 1967. Despite severe injuries he evaded capture for 45 days. He was promoted to Capt. while in captivity. He later died while being held at the infamous Hanoi Hilton, and was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroism. The 2014 winners are: Lt. Col. Stephen Matthews, Capt. John Sullivan, Master Sgt. Janell McGivern and Senior Airman Tristen Windel. The winners for 2015 are: Maj. Patrick Kolesiak, Capt. David Plachno, Senior Master Sgt. Justin Deisch and Tech. Sgt. Kevin Henderson. ( Air Force photo/Jim Varhegyi)
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Keywords: ., .., air, award, chief, csaf, force, gen., iii, lance, leadership, mark, pentagon, sijan, staff, washington, welsh
