As has been said before, Martin only took over as OC CXX a very short time before this tragic event. Despite his short time on the Sqn he did know several of those lost very well as a result of his previous tours on the fleet.
He had to put up with the press, many 'behind the scenes' duties related to the losses, keeping his Sqn going at home and whilst deployed on Ops, and much more, all whilst going through his own grieving process. For those that know Martin you will have seen how many more grey hairs he gained whilst dealing with the aftermath of XV230. Yes, the VO's deserve recognition for the huge part they played, but them not receiving awards should not detract from Martin getting his.
For the families to come out and effectively say that he was partly responsible for the loss of their loved ones is misguided, at best. IMHO he did an exceptional job and deserves this award.
Well done Sir
MadMark!!!
