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Auction: 20003 - Orders, Decorations and Medals
Lot: 157

(x) Three: Leading Seaman (Radar) D. A. Nothers, Royal Navy, who was slightly burned and who survived the sinking of H.M.S. Coventry on 25 May 1982

South Atlantic 1982, with rosette (AB(R) D A Nothers D179891D HMS Coventry); General Service 1962-2007, 2 clasps, Gulf, Air Operations Iraq (LS(R) D A Nothers D179891D RN), second clasp loose on riband; Jubilee 2002, nearly extremely fine and most rare in combination (3)

D. Andrew Nothers, a native of Swanliffe, was born in 1963 and joined the Royal Navy in October 1979. A contemporary newspaper cutting gives further details and quotes from the recipient (surname given as Mather). H.M.S. Coventry, a Type 42-class Destroyer launched in 1974, served during the Falklands War under the command of Captain D. H. Dyke, initially as part of the air defence vanguard for the two aircraft carriers, H.M.S. Hermes and Invincible. On 25 May 1982 Coventry was attacked and hit by three Argentinean bombs, and sank in less than 30 minutes, with the loss of 19 killed and 30 injured. The majority of the surviving crew were rescued by H.M.S. Broadsword. Nothers was taken to South Georgia with slight burns over his eye and recalls the sinking:

'There was thick smoke and we all scrambled to abandon ship. We jumped overboard into the water and pulled ourselves into lifeboats. Then it was just a case of paddling away as fast as we could from the burning ship.'

Sold together with two identity tags, named box of issue for the GSM, Coventry cap tally, Service of Remembrance programme, cap Badge and research.

Subject to 5% tax on Hammer Price in addition to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium.

Sold for
£1,900

Starting price
£600