ALBURQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO - A former Moody Air Force Base, Georgia, airman will be awarded the Air Force's highest decoration. <br>
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Senior Airman Jason Cunningham is a New Mexico native killed while treating wounded servicemen in Afghanistan. <br>
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Cunningham will be the 22nd recipient of the Air Force Cross and only the second since 1975. <br>
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Cunningham, a pararescueman with the 38th Rescue Squadron at Moody Air Force Base, will be awarded the Air Force Cross posthumously in September at Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque. <br>
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The Air Force Cross is awarded for extraordinary heroism displayed by U.S. and foreign military personnel and civilians. The only higher award is the Medal of Honor. <br>
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Congress established the Air Force Cross in 1960. Before then, enlisted airmen were decorated with the Distinguished Service Cross. <br>
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The 26-year-old Cunningham, who left behind a widow and two young children, was among 13 troops in a helicopter deployed to rescue wounded Navy SEALs caught in enemy fire. <br>
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A rocket-propelled grenade brought down the chopper and the troops immediately came under fire. As casualties mounted, Cunningham, a specially trained medic, treated the wounded while exposed to sniper and mortar fire. <br>
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He was eventually hit with two bullets but continued treating others. Cunningham died more than seven hours after he was shot.
