BOSTON — Two Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod members received two of military aviation’s most prestigious awards Friday during a ceremony at the air station.
The Distinguished Flying Cross was presented to Petty Officer 3rd Class Evan Staph and the Air Medal was presented to Petty Officer 2nd Class Derrick P. Suba for their heroic actions in February 2015 during a lifesaving rescue mission south of Nantucket.
Staph is the 144th recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross in Coast Guard history.
During the rescue, a Coast Guard Station Cape Cod MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew navigated through low visibility and near hurricane force winds to save two men aboard a sail boat disabled and adrift in 25 foot waves 150 miles south of Nantucket.
"Our purpose was to get them home," said Suba. "We kept going to make sure we got them home."
Video of the 2015 rescue is available: Coast Guard Rescues Sailors in Winter Storm