Description
Gulf Medal 1990-91, bar 16 Jan to 28 Feb 1991, AAB (MW) D.S.H. McCallam D225018V Royal Navy.
A Mine Warfare Branch Specialist.
Officially impressed: “AAB(MW) D S H Mc Callam D225018V RN” Confirmed with box of issue, labelled on bottom.
Unusual to find to a member of the “Mine Warfare” Branch of the Royal Navy on this medal.
Should be David Stephen H McCallam, born Manchester, Lancashire during 1968.
The recipient served in the Mine Warfare Branch of the Royal Navy during the Gulf War, known as “Operation Desert Storm” or in England as Operation Granby during 1991.
It notes that in anticipation of the Coaltion invasion many mines were hidden in the Gulf of Kuwait leading up to the invasion:
“The Iraqis assessed that the coalition would attack primarily through an amphibious assault originating in the Gulf of Kuwait. Focusing their defences on this threat, they dedicated four heavy divisions and seven infantry divisions to defend the coast. To seaward, they laid a barrier of naval mines in a 150-mile crescent-shaped defensive minefield around the Kuwaiti coast from Paylaka Island to the Saudi–Kuwait border. The six individual mined areas consisted of a mix of ground and moored mines, thus complicating coalition mine countermeasures efforts. In total, 1,270 mines were later identified to include 302 x bottom influence UDM, Sigell-400, Manta or KMD500 mines; 745 x LUGM 145 and MYaM moored mines; 141 x drifting mines and 82 x mines on beaches including both LUGM and MYaM mines which had broken free from their moorings, plus Al-Muthena drifting mines.”
