The sale of a rare British military medal to an overseas buyer has triggered a fight to keep the coveted award on UK soil, The Express reports. The medal is one of just 22 Victoria Crosses to be awarded to RAF personnel during World War Two, with this particular one going posthumously to Squadron Leader Arthur Scarf, who despite being mortally wounded in an operation in Myanmar heroically continued to fly his aircraft and crew to safety.
His award has been bought by an anonymous overseas buyer at an auction. But the Royal Air Force Museum has the opportunity to fundraise and match the sale price of £250,000.
The museum has now launched a desperate race-against-time fundraiser to keep the symbolic award in Britain. A quarter of a million pounds must be raised by April 30 to match the buyer's price.
In an online post, the museum explained: "Arthur Scarf was the recipient of the only Victoria Cross awarded to the Royal Air Force during the fighting in the Far East in the Second World War. This medal, and Arthur’s Story, are too significant to our nation's heritage to be lost from our shores. Arthur’s story can inspire future generations for many years to come."
Arthur joined the RAF in 1936 prior to the outbreak of the Second World War, and was sent to Singapore in 1939 with No.62 Squadron to join the forces in the Far East. On December 9 1941, he led a formation of Bristol Blenheim aircrafts in a daylight attack on Japanese forces that were occupying airfields in Myanmar (known as Burma at the time).
As Scarf become airborne, the airfield was swept by a formation of Japanese bombers, with the attack destroying every British aircraft that had been on the ground. Arthur realised that none of his Squadron's aircraft has survived, but chose to continue and complete his mission.
Arthur flew low for 30 miles into enemy territory, and skilfully avoided numerous attacks from the Japanese. He also released the bombs, while his crew manned the machine guns.
Despite Scarf's efforts, machine gun fire had severely damaged the Blenheim. He was mortally wounded, yet fearlessly continued to fly the aircraft to make a controlled crash at Alor Star, where his wife, pregnant with their first child, had worked as a nurse until weeks prior.
He crash-landed without causing injury to his crew, but succumbed to his wounds two hours later. Due to his bravery, Arthur was awarded the Victoria Cross posthumously in 1946, when it was presented to his widow, Mrs Elizabeth Scarf, by King George VI at Buckingham Palace.
Sharing the story on their Gofundme page, the museum asks for whatever donations people can manage: "Help us to raise the funds to keep the Victoria Cross and enable the Nation to have it on display at the Royal Air Force Museum. Arthur’s story can inspire future generations for many years to come."
To find out more about the museum, Arthur, and his medal, visit the museum's fundraiser here.
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