My Collection of RAF Gallantry Awards

[jonightflyer]

Greetings to all... I joined the club recently when seeking information on the Orders, Decorations and Medals of The Imperial German States and since then have explored the forums further and discovered this section.

Consequently, I thought that I would have a go at posting some images from my collection of RAF and Commonwealth Airforce gallantry groups. Not sure if I am allowed to do that as a new member but will now find out and give it a go.

These are the medals awarded to WW1 fighter pilot, Group Captain H.P. Lale, DSO, DFC & Bar. A 23 victory pilot and one of the highest scoring Bristol Fighter aces of the Great War.

Horace Percy Lale is seen here standing middle.

Edited December 21, 2006 by jonightflyer

[jonightflyer]

Next up is the AFC, DFC (US) and Air Medal with 3 Oak Leaf Clusters (US) grouping to Capt. Wessel Badenhorst, South African Air Force, who was shot down and killed in January 1951 whilst strafing the Chinese front lines in his Mustang. He was one of the original volunteers and a flight commander in the famous Flying Cheetah Squadron which South Africa sent to join the UN forces at the start of the Korean War.

[jonightflyer]

Below is the DFC group to F/L Walter Young McGregor, a New Zealander who flew shipbusting Beaufighters with 227 Squadron in the Mediterranean. He was killed in action off the island of Kos in September 1943 after being hit by Ack Ack and crashing into a ship's mast.

[jonightflyer]

From Bomber Command comes the exceptional Conspicuous Gallantry Medal (Flying) group to F/Sgt. James Mansfield Hall, 180 (Mitchell) Squadron. Only 110 CGMs (Flying) were ever awarded making this an extremely rare decoration. It is exceeded only by the VC for acts of gallantry by non-commissioned airmen.

F/Sgt Hall's citation describes how on the bomb run into the target his aircraft took a direct hit from flak with the pilot being badly wounded and rendered unconscious. Incredibly, Hall the rear gunner, took control of the stricken Mitchell which was by now in a steep dive, and although wounded himself managed to fly it back to their base in Belgium and make a successful landing. The pilot remained in hospital for the next two years but survived.

[jonightflyer]

I collect pilot and aircrew log books as these are definitive documents that record first hand the dates and incidents that we often read about in the literature.

Here for instance is the log book of F/L G.M. Castell, DFM, a wireless operator in the famous 207 Lancaster Squadron. Evident on this page is the loss of their bomb aimer during a raid to Berlin. He fell from his position in the nose of the aircraft after a collision with another Lancaster over the target. A nightmare scenario but true and recorded in this document.

He was awarded the DFM after this raid as noted in the log book. His medal group is shown below.

[jonightflyer]

An interesting AFM group won between the wars in India to a Coastal Command casualty during the Battle Of Britain.

[jonightflyer]

Finally some Luftwaffe pieces below an original painting by Nicolas Trudgian named 'Three Hundred Club' which depicts the great aces Hartmann and Barkhorn.

Beneath 'Three Hundred Club' are various Luftwaffe artifacts. They include a pilot-observer badge mainly awarded to pre-war trained pilots, a Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, and collar taps to a Hauptmann in the flying division with the tropical cap badge. All authentic pieces from WW2.

[deptfordboy]

Fantastic groups, thanks for sharing! Interesting that Lale had the India General Service Medal - could you tell me which bars as they are obscured by flash? Does anyone know the numbers of RAF who qualified for this medal? Can't have been awfully many, I suspect...

Gilbert

[jonightflyer]

Fantastic groups, thanks for sharing!

Thankyou very much.

Interesting that Lale had the India General Service Medal - could you tell me which bars as they are obscured by flash?

The IGSM 1908-35 has three clasps:- Afghanistan NWF 1919, Mahsud 1919-20 and Waziristan 1919-21.

The GSM 1918-62 has one clasp:- Southern Desert, Iraq.

[Biro]

A fantastic display of Gallantry awards that makes me seriously consider expanding my collecting interests to include the Allied forces...

Well done countryman - well done!

Marshall

[jonightflyer]

A fantastic display of Gallantry awards that makes me seriously consider expanding my collecting interests to include the Allied forces...

Much appreciated... thankyou.

[Laurence Strong]

Amazing display, Thanks for sharing

[Jacky]

Absolutely fabulous!!

DFC's

AFC's

etc etc

I like the design of those awards!

Wonderfull collection!!

If you have any more, I would be really astonished!

p.s Have you reribbonned and remounted them all??

Kind regards,

Jacky

Edited December 21, 2006 by Jacky

[blademan]

Very Nice groupings. Congrats!

[Tony]

A cracking collection you have there.

The photo of H P Lale and his mates reminds me of Biggles, I'd love to have something like that. And his awards and the others and ......

Tony

[jonightflyer]

Absolutely fabulous!! Wonderful collection!! If you have any more, I would be really astonished!

Thanks again to everyone for their kind comments... a DFC & Bar to a Mosquito pilot from my collection along with the logbook has recently returned after many years to the recipient.

Although it was hard to part with such a magnificent group, I am glad to report that F/L Trotman is now going to be able to bequeath his medals to his grandson which was the raison d'etre for his world wide search to retrieve them. F/L Trotman has been reunited with his medals and log book after more than twenty years, such is the nature of the internet.

This page from his log book highlights raids (shown in red) from his first operational tour as a Wellington skipper in 1942.

The next page details missions from his second tour of duty in 1944/45 as a Mosquito pilot in which he made eighteen visits to Berlin, each time to deliver a 4000 lb cookie and for which he was awarded the DFC and Bar.

F/L Trotman's awards include the DFC and Bar and the Aircrew Europe Star, and below them is displayed a telegram from Bomber Harris congratulating him on the award of his first DFC.

[Jacky]

wonderfull group too!!

How comes that this group was with you while he probably wouldnt have sold it.

Was it stolen from his house 20 years ago???

Did you get refunded?

And much better did you have picturs of this handover??

I like such stories, they're just like fairytales

Kind regards,

Jacky

p.s is the AirCrew Europe with clasp Battle of Britain or

France & Germany or Atlantic??

[Jacky]

Next up is the AFC, DFC (US) and Air Medal with 3 Oak Leaf Clusters (US)

I'm sorry, but if I look quite closely, it appears that 2 of the oak leaves are silvered and one is bronze.

This would mean that the silver ones are 5 oak leaves, thus he would have 11 oak leaves.

Kind regards,

Jacky

[jonightflyer]

Wonderful group too!! How comes that this group was with you while he probably wouldn't have sold it.

Was it stolen from his house 20 years ago??? Did you get refunded? And much better did you have pictures of this handover??

I like such stories, they're just like fairytales

P.S. Is the AirCrew Europe with clasp Battle of Britain or France & Germany or Atlantic??

Hi Jacky... thanks for your interest.

Flight Lieutenant Trotman told me that he had sold his medals during a time of hardship over twenty years ago. They passed through several owners before he began a long search to retrieve them and found them with me through the www. There are no photos of the handover as we live in different countries and yes, he graciously recompensed me in facilitating their return.

The clasp on the Aircrew Europe Star is France and Germany.

[jonightflyer]

I'm sorry, but if I look quite closely, it appears that 2 of the oak leaves are silvered and one is bronze. This would mean that the silver ones are 5 oak leaves, thus he would have 11 oak leaves.

Your eyesight is good... two silver, one bronze is how the medals came from the family in South Africa. Strange as there are only citations for 3 clusters before Capt. Badenhorst was KIA.

[deptfordboy]

Wow, the story gets better and better, and you showed yourself a 'gent' in arranging the return of the medals to their rightful owner. Xmas has obviously come early to F/L trotman!

Cheers

Gilbert

[Dave B]

Absolutely fantastic groups, I am extremely envious! Thanks so much for showing and kudos to you for returning F/L Trotmans awards

Dave

[Jef]

Hello,

I'm really impressed by your collection. Congratulations.

Concerning the logbooks, I have a question. Have two logbooks from the same person, and their contents are almost identically. The first is an Observer and Air Gunners Flying Log Book. The second one is a Navigator's Air Bombers and Air Gunner's Flying Log Book. So the books are almost identically. The titles of the books differs and the first log book is more detailed. An example: F/Sgt Nicolson's dog Rex regurlarly flew together with the crew on training missions. Every flying hour of Rex is mentioned.

The second book is mentioning the same training missions, but Rex isn't mentioned.

My question: does a member of the aircrew had an official logbook and a more personal one? Or what should be the reason of these two different log books which are covering the same period.

If want you to know more of that Lancaster see http://gmic.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=9086 and http://gmic.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=9167

With kind regards, merry Christmas,

Jef

[jonightflyer]

Wow, the story gets better and better, and you showed yourself a 'gent' in arranging the return of the medals to their rightful owner. Xmas has obviously come early to F/L trotman!

F/L Trotman's medals came home to him just after Christmas last year so he has been reunited with them for almost a year now.

[jonightflyer]

Concerning the logbooks, I have a question. Have two logbooks from the same person, and their contents are almost identically. The first is an Observer and Air Gunners Flying Log Book. The second one is a Navigator's Air Bombers and Air Gunner's Flying Log Book. So the books are almost identically. The titles of the books differs and the first log book is more detailed. An example: F/Sgt Nicolson's dog Rex regurlarly flew together with the crew on training missions. Every flying hour of Rex is mentioned. The second book is mentioning the same training missions, but Rex isn't mentioned.

My question: does a member of the aircrew had an official logbook and a more personal one? Or what should be the reason of these two different log books which are covering the same period. With kind regards, merry Christmas, Jef.

Hi Jef, in my experience it would be most unusual for an operative during the war to be maintaining two log books. Often these guys were so tired that they had trouble accurately recording everything in one book (as they were required to do by regulations). I was told by a navigator in 207 Squadron that they often filled out their log books several days after a raid and in some instances got other people to do it for them! He believed many mistakes and inaccuracies were able to creep into these documents due to this... very understandable under the circumstances.