Orders, Decorations and Medals

A rare Second World War M.B.E. group of eight awarded to Wing Commander V. A. Gittins, Royal Air Force, awarded the Soviet Order of the Red Star for services as Engineering Officer of 151 R.A.F. Hurricane Wing in Russia

The Order of the British Empire, M.B.E. (Military) 2nd type; 1939-45 Star; Burma Star; Defence and War Medals, with M.I.D. oak leaf; General Service 1918-62, 1 clasp, S.E. Asia 1945-46 (Act. Wg. Cdr., R.A.F.); Royal Air Force L.S. & G.C., G.VI.R., 1st issue (345670 F/Sgt., R.A.F.); U.S.S.R., Order of the Red Star, silver and enamel, the reverse officially numbered ‘364369’, in its case of issue, the first seven mounted as worn, generally good very fine (8) £800-1000

M.B.E. Warrant dated 17 March 1941.

M.I.D. London Gazette 2 June 1943.

Order of the Red Star announced in Soviet War News 24 March 1944.

Wing Commander V. A. Gittins, M.B.E., A.R.Ae.S., first joined the Royal Air Force in February 1921 and served in China in 1927, and H.M.S. Glorious at Malta in 1931 and 1937. Gittins was appointed Chief Technical Officer of the Royal Air Force Hurricane Wing sent to Russia in 1941. Compirising Nos. 81 and 134 Squadrons, 151 Wing began operations at Vaenga, near Murmansk, on 11 September that year and returned to the UK in December, having engaged the Luftwaffe with success, and familiarised Russian pilots and groundcrew with their new charges. Flight Lieutenant Gittins was in charge of the 30 groundcrew responsible for unpacking and erecting the 15 Hurricanes, and maintenance thereafter. For these services he was awarded the Russian Order of the Red Star, one of several Soviet awards to 151 Wing. It is probable that his M.B.E. was awarded for similar services. In 1944 he was C.T.O. with No. 51 O.T.U. at Cranfield, and in 1945 he went to Burma. After V.J. Day he was posted to Java as Command Engineer Officer, Netherlands East Indies. He returned to the UK in 1946 where he remained until 1953 when he retired from the R.A.F. In 1959 he was commissioned into the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve as Wing Commander, Commanding Sussex Wing, Air Training Corps.

The group is sold with a good quantity of original material including: Warrant for the M.B.E.; M.I.D. Certificate; three booklets relating to the Soviet award; numerous photographs including an interesting album 1924-33, which covers his pre-war service, with many good photographs of aircraft and incidents, many aboard the aircraft carrier Glorious; Medical Record Card; several commission documents and a quantity of correspondence.