More veterans who helped Britain and the US establish the nuclear bomb are to receive a medal for their contribution, the government announced.
The criteria to receive the commemorative Nuclear Test Medal has now been expanded, allowing veterans who supported the United States’ atmospheric nuclear test programme to be eligible for medallic recognition.
The review follows an urgent direction from Defence Secretary John Healey to look again at the Nuclear Test Medal criteria – a clear signal that this Government will always stand up for those who serve our country.
Minister for Veterans and People Al Carns awarded the first medal under the new criteria to Squadron Leader Peters yesterday, at the veteran’s home in Lakenheath, Suffolk.
Squadron Leader Peters took part in American tests in 1954, along with his RAF comrades, flying high-altitude air sampling missions in his Canberra aircraft to gather vital information.
Minister for Veterans and People Al Carns said:
The work that the Nuclear Test veterans did in taking part in the UK’s nuclear tests, laid the foundation for the decades of security and safety that our society benefits from even today.
The expanded criteria will now also include those who worked with our closest ally, the US, during those years of development and discovery.
It was an honour to mark this change today by awarding a medal to Squadron Leader Peters, a former RAF Canberra pilot, who made a vital contribution to the nuclear programme, as well as his distinguished service for which he received the Air Force Cross.
As a result of the changes, which have been agreed by His Majesty The King, those who played a direct role in the American atmospheric tests are now also eligible for a Nuclear Test Medal for the first time.
The Nuclear Test Medal was announced nearly two years ago to recognise and to commemorate those UK and foreign personnel who directly contributed to the development of the UK’s independent nuclear deterrent, during the UK atmospheric testing programme in the 1950s.
Nearly 5,000 veterans and next of kin have been awarded medals so far.
The Government encourages any veterans, including civilian staff or their descendants, involved in any of the American atmospheric tests during the 1950s to apply for their medal here