The Air Force and Coast Guard are slated to honor a fallen airman during a ceremony Tuesday in Houston, Texas.
According to a Coast Guard release, Air Force Lt. Col. Devin L. Sproston, commander of the 509th Security Forces Squadron at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, is expected to award the Airman's Medal to Senior Airman Elijah Posana, who was found deceased on Surfside Beach, Texas, on May 4, 2021.
Posana was swimming 100 yards off the beach with three cousins on May 2, 2021, when a rip current pulled them all away from the shore. Posana and his adult cousin, Ethan, instructed their two young relatives to swim parallel to the beach and pushed them toward the shore, helping them escape the rip current. A wave then separated Elijah from Ethan, carrying the airman farther out.
The Coast Guard and local law enforcement agencies searched for Posana before his father found his son's body just north of where the rip current had swept him away.
Elijah's father, Erneto, and mother, Jessica, will accept the Airman's Medal on their son's behalf.
The Airman’s Medal is awarded to an Air Force member who distinguished himself or herself by a heroic act, usually at the voluntary risk of his or her life but not involving actual combat. It is the highest medal outside of combat that an airman can receive.
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A Houston native, Posana joined the Air Force in March 2019 and was assigned to the 509th Security Forces Squadron as a defender in September 2020.
During his time at Whiteman, Posana played a significant role in securing the protection level one restricted area and was highlighted by his team. His contributions were key to the squadron earning Air Force Global Strike Command’s Outstanding Large Security Forces Unit Award and the Wing capturing the Omaha Trophy for the Best Strategic Bomber Wing for 2019.
Posana was posthumously promoted to the rank of Senior Airman and awarded the Air Force Commendation Medal.
Reach Julia LeDoux at Julia@connectingvets.com.
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