Falklands War Navy 60th Anniv VE/VJ Day cover signed by Alan...

Estimate

£10 - £14

Falklands War Navy 60th Anniv VE/VJ Day cover signed by Alan Watt Admiral First Sea Lord 08.05.05 WW2 FDC. Alan William John West, Baron West of Spithead, GCB, DSC, PC (born 21 April 1948) is a retired admiral of the Royal Navy and formerly, from June 2007 to May 2010, a Labour Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the British Home Office with responsibility for security and a security advisor to Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Prior to his ministerial appointment, he was First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff from 2002 to 2006. In 1980 he was promoted to commander and took command of the frigate HMS Ardent and deployed to the Indian Ocean taking part in the first Armilla Patrol. In 1982 he laid a wreath off Norway, on the spot inside the Arctic Circle where the previous Ardent had been sunk in 1940 by the German battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. Shortly after, the ship deployed to the South Atlantic for the Falklands War, where she was sunk in Falkland Sound on 21 May during the successful retaking of the islands. West was the last to leave the sinking ship and was subsequently awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his leadership. West led the victory parade through the City of London on return from the Falkland Islands. He remains the President of the HMS Ardent Association. Single Vendor collection. Good condition. We combine postage on multiple winning lots and can ship worldwide. UK postage from £5.99, EU from £7.99, Rest of World from £9.99.