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Old 22nd Dec 2012, 14:48
  #30 (permalink)  
Tankertrashnav
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: SW England
Age: 77
Posts: 3,896
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What is it about the European Bombing Campaign that sets it apart from the other major ones in that Theatre to be denied a Campaign Medal in its own right?
As I hope I made clear in my original post, I am not criticising this gentleman, just the decision to retrospectively alter the way campaign medals were awarded at the end of WW2. It was decided that rather than seek to reward individual formations, the medals would be awarded by theatre, with all participants in that theatre receiving the same star, irrespective of casualty rates. If, therefore, you consider the air war over Europe as a theatre, all participants, whether Bomber Command, Fighter Command etc (right down to SOE Lysanders) received the same star, although I never understood the decision to start awarding the France and Germany Star after D Day instead of the Aircrew Europe Star. Similarly Coastal Command, whose theatre of operation was over the sea received the same campaign star as the Royal Navy - the Atlantic Star.

Attempting to mess around with this system at this late date is only going to stir up old inter-service rivalries and lead to dissatisfaction.
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