Washington Post The crew of the Navy surveillance plane that collided with a Chinese fighter jet over the South China Sea will receive the Air Medal for heroism, and the pilot, Lt. Shane Osborn, is expected to receive the Distinguished Flying Cross, senior defense officials said yesterday. Also, Osborn and the senior enlisted man on the flight, Senior Chief Nicholas Mellos, will receive the Meritorious Service Medal for their exemplary conduct during the emergency landing and the 11 days afterward in which all 24 crew members were held by the Chinese military on Hainan Island. The presentations are to be made Friday by Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld in a ceremony at Andrews Air Force Base.

-- Anonymous, May 17, 2001