Today The Telegraph publishes photographs of the nine living recipients of the Victoria Cross. I was struck by the fact that five of them are from 'down under there' which confirms my deeply held belief that not only are they all bonkers down there but they are lucky with it! Anyway, this is my feeble but sincere salute to them all:
Keith Payne won his Victoria Cross in May 1969, for his actions in South Vietnam with the Australian Army Training Team. During an attack by a North Vietnamese force of superior strength, he directly exposed himself to enemy fire, and 'temporarily held off the assaults by alternately firing his weapon and running from position to position collecting grenades and throwing them at the assaulting enemy.' He did all this despite wounds in the hands and arms.Picture: Stephen Lock/The Telegraph
Willie Apiata was awarded his Victoria Cross for saving a wounded comrade while under fire in Afghanistan, in 2004. He was serving with the New Zealand SAS. His citation states: 'In total disregard of his own safety, Lance Corporal Apiata stood up and lifted his comrade bodily. He then carried him across the seventy metres of broken, rocky and fire swept ground, fully exposed in the glare of battle to heavy enemy fire and into the face of returning fire from the main Troop position.'Picture: Getty
Mark Donaldson won his Victoria Cross for actions in Afghanistan in September 2008. During a sustained enemy ambush, he rescued a severely injured coalition force interpreter, running across 80 metres of open ground under intensive fire to reach the man and carry him back to safety.Picture: Stefan Postles/Getty
Ben Roberts-Smith won his Victoria Cross while serving with the Australian SAS in Afghanistan in 2010. His citation reports that, 'demonstrating extreme devotion to duty and the most conspicuous gallantry, Roberts-Smith, with a total disregard for his own safety, stormed the enemy position' during a mission to kill or capture a senior Taliban commander.
Daniel Keighran won his Victoria Cross for his actions at the Battle of Derapet in 2010, during the War in Afghanistan, while serving with the 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment. Keighran, 'with complete disregard for his own safety', repeatedly exposed himself to enemy fire to draw fire away from a team treating a battle casualty.Picture: Getty
