Bravery of Royal Naval personnel honoured

Nine members of the Royal Navy and the Royal Marines were recognised for their gallantry and meritorious service in Afghanistan, Iraq, the UK, and the rest of the world from 1 April to 30 September 2009.

Among them was Royal Marines Warrant Officer Class 1 Matthew Tomlinson whose bravery under heavy concentrated fire by the Taliban while patrolling in a Viking armoured vehicle convoy in Helmand province in May last year was recognised with the awarding of a Military Cross, one of the highest awards for gallantry.

WO1 Tomlinson was patrolling with the Armoured Support Group, part of 3 Commando Brigade, when the lead Viking was partly blown up by a mine (an improvised explosive device).

The convoy halted and then came under sustained heavy rocket-propelled grenade fire from one side from the hidden enemy.

Oblivious to his safety, WO1 Tomlinson left his Viking and ran 50 metres to the stricken vehicle, which was on fire, and helped rescue the troops in the back.

Not only did the troops have to avoid the fire and the possibility of the 4,000 rounds of ammunition exploding in the damaged Viking, but they had to dodge enemy fire while remaining aware of the ever-present danger of a second mine.

Amid this intense battle WO1 Tomlinson also directed return fire onto the Taliban and attended to the seriously injured driver of the damaged Viking with the help of soldiers of the Queen's Royal Hussars who the Vikings were escorting.

While the cab fire was spreading and ammunition was exploding they continued to administer medical care to the driver, utilising the cover of the Viking.

WO1 Tomlinson then further risked his life by searching for a Royal Marine who had been manning the gun turret on top of the damaged Viking. He found the turret had been blown some distance away with the Marine still inside, but already dead.

Running back to the Viking, he again directed return fire from supporting Welsh Guards onto the enemy. Then, with help, he recovered both the driver and the turret gunner on stretchers to relative safety. The patrol then withdrew and the casualties were flown out. In the meantime the enemy fire had been suppressed.

WO1 Tomlinson said:

"I am very proud and feel highly honoured to be recognised with the Military Cross. However, I must say that these were tragic circumstances. Also I could not have acted with the confidence I did without the assurance that I had a top team behind me. I know that if my Viking had been hit, then I know the lads would have acted in exactly the same way.

"They were effectively a band of brothers because they worked so well together. I was in charge of their welfare, morale and fighting effectiveness for seven months and I am still very proud to have served with them. The ranks of the Armoured Support Group are the real heroes."

WO1 Tomlinson now serves with 1 Assault Group Royal Marines at HM Naval Base Devonport in Plymouth as a landing craft advisor to 300 Marines.

He has previously served in Afghanistan and Iraq and been awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross for the latter.

A Royal Navy engineer, Petty Officer Alan Murphy, was awarded the Queen's Commendation for Bravery for his actions closer to home.

PO Murphy and a colleague were swept overboard by a freak 40-foot (12m) wave while they were on board the Type 23 frigate HMS Somerset off Plymouth in January last year.

PO Murphy's colleague, a Leading Hand, hit his head on the side of the ship and his lifejacket failed to inflate automatically. PO Murphy explained what happened next:

"I swam over to him and tried to manually inflate his jacket but this was impossible because of the size of the waves. It had suddenly become stormy and they were huge. So I did all I could to keep his head above water which was not easy because I was swallowing a lot of water too. After about five minutes he became unconscious.

"The ship was moving at speed and we lost sight of it at one point. But when I saw it coming back towards us it was a huge relief but it was still a massive struggle keeping hold of my colleague and trying not to swallow water myself. I tried to remain calm and confident that someone would see us very soon."

The pair spent about 15 minutes in the water before the ship's seaboat arrived on the scene:

"It seemed to come out of nowhere - I could not see it approach because of the size of the waves," said PO Murphy.

After being treated on board HMS Somerset by medics they were taken by helicopter to hospital in Plymouth. PO Murphy was released later the same day but his colleague spent two days in intensive care before making a full recovery.

PO Murphy said he only found out about the award a few days ago and was shocked at first:

"I had not thought about the incident for months as it was over a year ago and never expected anything like this. But it has sunk in now and I feel proud and honoured."

His citation reads:

"If it were not for PO Murphy's tenacity in holding on to his drowning colleague while endangering his own life in extremely inhospitable conditions, there is no doubt that his colleague would have lost his life."

Currently studying full time for a degree in electronic engineering at Portsmouth University, he transfers to the Britannia Royal Naval College at Dartmouth in September to train as an air engineer officer.

Petty Officer Richard Hicks was also awarded the Queen's Commendation for Bravery for preventing damage to an amphibious landing craft and potentially saving lives.

He was in charge of the landing craft when a fire broke out while it was being worked on by civilian contractors at HM Naval Base Devonport in Plymouth last August.

PO Hicks ordered the staff out to safety, but decided to search the landing craft in case staff remained trapped inside it.

He snatched up a fire extinguisher and ran into the smoke-logged forward engine room to spray blindly into the darkness. When the extinguisher was empty he ran out again, grabbed a second, and aimed it at the seat of the fire to suppress the flames.

However, he was forced by the smoke to leave the vessel again, having emptied the second extinguisher and run out of breath.

Members of Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service then arrived on the scene and made sure the landing craft had been fully evacuated and that the fire was put out.

PO Hicks said:

"It is my responsibility to look after staff working on the craft, so their safety is my concern. Unfortunately the fire happened at lunchtime, so it was not absolutely certain whether people were still around having a break.

"So when the alarm was raised I asked where everyone was and, when there was some doubt if everyone was safe, I had to search the craft to make sure there was nobody trapped inside.

"I grabbed the fire extinguisher and rushed down to the forward engine room which was filled with smoke. I jumped down, but couldn't see anything and just sprayed into the smoke.

"Then I could not breathe any more and the fire extinguisher was fully expended, so I ran out to get another one. I could not see a thing and it was hard to breath due to the smoke. But I felt extra heat on my side and aimed the hose there, hoping it was the seat of the fire. It seemed to work because lots of steam was generated and the smoke thinned.

"I had to get out again though and then the fire brigade arrived and I briefed them. They sent in teams with breathing apparatus and found out no-one was inside.

"I am very proud to have this award. To be honest I did not know where the fire was when I went in there, I could have landed on top of it. Luckily it all worked out."

The fire was non-suspicious and was caused by a heater. No-one was hurt.

PO Hicks's Divisional Officer, Lieutenant Dave Crawley, said:

"Richard acted in an exemplary way. He not only saved a landing craft from destruction but probably several others from damage. There was also the potential for personnel being inside, he did not know if there was anyone inside, but he acted without thinking about his safety. He fully deserves this award."

The other Royal Naval personnel to be honoured in the latest awards list were:

• Brigadier David Arthur HOOK, Royal Marines, who has been awarded the Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for his service in Afghanistan;
• Surgeon Commander Sarah Ann STAPLEY, Royal Navy, who has been awarded a Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service for her service in Afghanistan;
• Commander James Robert DEAN, Royal Navy, awarded Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his service in Iraq;
• Commander Henry Alworth Hamilton MEREWETHER, Royal Navy, awarded a Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service for his service in Iraq;
• Brigadier Rupert Paul STEARNS, Royal Marines, also awarded a Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service for service in Iraq;
• Leading Seaman Carl THOMAS, Royal Navy, awarded a Queen's Commendation for Bravery for his actions in the UK.