What's a medal worth?

LETTERS: I was interested in your headline about medals being dished out. This has been going on for yonks.

Look at any list, it invariably includes the CO, the ADJ, RSM, a couple of NCOs and a lone private.

As in my own case, I served in North Africa during World War Two. The SWO came in to our signals office and said: "Mention in dispatches – who wants it?"

We'd all done the same duties so laughingly we said: "Give it to George, he's been here longest."

Lo and behold, for carrying out his duties under enemy air attacks – a mention in dispatches etc etc.

The sickening sequel was the very next citation on the list for a Flight Sgt who drove a burning petrol bowser away from the hangers, across the runway until it exploded, killing him. Of course he got a mention in dispatches.

Honestly, I'm glad I wasn't George.

I could never have lived with myself and certainly never be proud of my "oak leaves". But that's service life for you.

Sometimes, after a raid the pilot would get a DSO, the navigator a DFC and one crew member a DFM, yet they'd all done the same job under the same conditions at the same time. The others got nothing.

As I've said it's just the way it's done and it has been going on for ages.

Just think of the New Year's honours list, when a bloke can get an MBE for plonking on a guitar or kicking a football, for which he gets well paid anyway.

Hey-ho that's life, isn't it?

Eric Stanley

Shrewsbury