1945 files give hope in fight to award SAS hero with VC medal

WARTIME commando hero Paddy Mayne may have missed out on the Victoria Cross because of an admin error, documents seen for the first time suggest.

- 

Just days before a Parliamentary debate on awarding the medal posthumously, supporters called the new evidence a potential "sea change" in their campaign.

The 1945 documents, uncovered by historians and seen by the Daily Express, give a new insight into why Lt Col Robert Blair "Paddy" Mayne's VC - the highest military decoration for gallantry was rejected.

Born in County Down, Northern Ireland, Paddy, one of the SAS's founding members, has been called the bravest man to never win the VC.

The inspirational military leader, who died, aged 40, in a car accident in 1955, was recommended for the gong after risking his life to save his troops from an ambush in Germany in 1945. But instead, the nomination was downgraded to a third bar of the Distinguished Service Order.

Error

After coming across a letter from a senior British officer, historians now believe there was a "misinterpretation" of the rules.

It states Paddy's heroic actions were not regarded by a committee as "quite up to VC standard", as "it was not a single-handed act of heroism" because another officer provided covering fire.