The Victoria Cross. Britain’s highest award for conspicuous bravery,. These things are rare and are rarely given out, especially when it comes to aviators. Since its inception, just 1,358 VC have been awarded. That’s in 167 years. Of the hundreds of thousands of aircrew that fought with the Royal air force In the Second World War, all of whom were volunteers and heroes to a man, How many of them do you think were awarded Britain’s highest honour? Just 22.
This makes the VCs awarded to the British Commonwealth airmen among the rarest of those medals awarded during the second world war. So rare in fact that owning one would be pretty incredible. What if I told you that you had a chance to buy one of these Victoria crosses today, and it actually wouldn’t cost YOU that much?
It’s time to get serious.
So serious in fact that I’m getting on camera, something I don’t do much here on my channel. But today’s video is actually important and we as a community could really make a difference and preserve a piece of the history that we all love to study.
Ok, so my title and my thumbnail on this video are probably a bit clickbaity, but it was important that you clicked today. Why? because you really could help buy a victoria cross right now, and you could stop an important historical artifact being taken away from British shores and lost to the public, pretty much forever. We have literally got weeks to achieve this, and I need your help!
Now some of my viewers don’t live in the UK, but one of the fantastic things about blighty is that our museums are for the most part totally free to visit. So this involves you potential tourists too.
Alright, this is all getting very dramatic, but this is what’s happening. We’re talking about the 8th Victoria Cross awarded to an airman chronologically, for an action during the second world war, and the only one awarded to a member of the RAF for an action against the Japanese.
So, let me first tell you why this particular Victoria cross is significant, and then I’ll tell you why it’s soon going to be lost to the public unless you choose to act to save it today. And yes, I’m laying the drama on thick and even if it makes me sound like a bit of a muppet, it’s all worth it if you do the right thing and help us save this VC.
How did Squadron Leader Arthur Scarf earn the VC?
Squadron Leader Arthur Scarf was awarded the VC nearly 5 years after his death. This is because the action which earned him Britain’s highest award took place during the chaos of Japanese attacks in the Far East.
Hollywood might have taught most people that the events of December 7th fell only on the Hawaiian Islands, however it was actually the British who took the first casualties during the war in the Pacific theatre. And it was all to do with the Japanese invasion of British Malaya.
One RAF Catalina from 205 Squadron was shot down by Japanese fighters on 7th December 1941 off the coast of Thailand, which would have made it 6th December over in Pearl Harbour. The crew had stumbled across part of the Japanese invasion force sailing across the South China Sea. However, as the aircraft’s radio had been knocked out, the British weren’t aware of this act of war. So, they did nothing.
Rather than being a surprise attack, the British and the Americans had known that Japan had its eyes on Thailand, and likely threatened the British colony of Malaya to the south. Churchill had even told the Thai government that he would treat an act of war on their nation as an attack on Britain herself.
What no one realized was how quickly the situation would deteriorate for Britain.
This was the chaos that Squadron Leader Arthur Scarf found himself in a few short days later. Having joined the RAF in 1936, Scarf had soon been posted to Malaya and by 1941 was the CO of no. 62 squadron equipped with Bristol Blenheims. In these aircraft, he and his fellow squadron mates would be hopelessly outmatched by the enemy they were soon to face.
The Japanese invasion of Thailand
The Japanese had given the Thai government an ultimatum at 11 PM on 7th of december. Let us through your country or we will attack and go through anyway. They had two hours to respond.
When no answer came, the Japanese invaded Thailand at various points around the country and as far south as Kota Bharu, right on the Malay border. It was over this last landing site that Squadron Leader Scarf would get his first taste of action. The RAF was sent in to try and stem the tide, but were soon under attack themselves
No. 62 squadron was then based at a forward airfield at Alor Star, now known as Alor Setar. This put them within range of Japanese bombers flying from Indo-China, as well as any Thai airfield the Japanese were now occupying.
The squadron was heavily attacked later 8th december and left Alor Star for an airfield further to the south to regroup.
On the 9th of December, the day after the Japanese had poured into Thailand and Malaya, no 62 squadron was ordered to attack one of those newly acquired Thai airfields.
Singora, known today as Songkhla, was the location of an airfield just 50 miles from the Malay border and a mere 200 miles from no 62 squadrons new airfield at Butterworth.
Victoria Cross Citation
What happened next can best be described in the official citation. It reads
The following details are given in the London Gazette of June 21st 1946 as the event of the day remained unknown until that time:
On December 9th, 1941, all available aircraft from the Royal Air Force Station, Butterworth, Malaya, were ordered to attack the advanced operational base of the Japanese Air Force at Singora, Thailand. The aircraft were about to take off when the enemy made a combined dive-bombing and low-level machine gun attack on the airfield, destroying or damaging all save the Blenheim piloted by Squadron Leader Scarf.
Airborne just as the attack started, this officer witnessed the disaster, but decided to press on to Singora in his single aircraft. Despite severe opposition, including attacks by numerous enemy fighter planes, Squadron Leader Scarf completed his attack successfully, but was mortally wounded in so doing.
He made a valiant attempt to return to his base, but owing to his wounds had to make a forced landing at Alor Star, accomplishing this without injury to his crew. He died in hospital shortly afterward. Squadron Leader Scarf displayed supreme heroism in the face of tremendous odds and his splendid example of self-sacrifice will long be remembered.
The tragic legacy of Arthur Scarf
Perhaps the saddest part of Arthur Scarf’s story was that he died just before he was to become a father. His pregnant wife who he’d only married a few weeks previously, was a nurse who was based at Alor Star, where Scarf died two hours after performing an emergency landing which saved the lives of his two crew members.
His pregnant wife,nee Elizabeth Lunn, known as Sally, who he’d only married a few months previously, was a nurse who was based at Alor Star, where Scarf died two hours after performing an emergency landing which saved the lives of his two crew members.
Along with Scarf, these two men received awards for their bravery during the attack after the war. Sergeant Paddy Calder, who later reached the rank of Squadron Leader, was awarded a Distinguished Flying Medal and Sergeant Cyril Rich, who was killed in action in 1943 received a posthumous Mention in Despatches.
There are some reports that suggest Arthur scarf’s new bride was present when he was brought to the hospital and may even have given him a blood transfusion, before he died from his wounds on the operating table. Whatever the truth, it was another tragic story of lives ripped apart by war.
Phyllis Briggs, Nursing Sister, Alor Star Hospital described what actually happened:
“Suddenly an ambulance arrived, it was Pongo Scarf, a young RAF officer I knew well. His plane had crash landed in a field nearby and Pongo was badly injured. He was given a blood transfusion but his condition was hopeless. His wife was one of our nursing sisters but during the previous day she had left Alor Star with the rest of the Service wives, so poor Pongo died without seeing her again. I was determined that he would be buried properly.
We managed to get a coffin from the jail. Another sister came along with me in my Morris 8 and we followed the ambulance bearing the coffin to the local cemetery where a grave was dug. On our way we met two army padres driving towards us. I stopped the car and asked them if they would come with us to say a prayer, so later when I saw Sally I could tell her that we had done all we could.”
The citation, as might be expected, almost plays down the condition Scarf was in. Reportedly, his left arm was shattered by a Japanese bullet and he received a huge wound to his back and chest. He must have flown like this for the best part of an hour to cover the 120 miles from Singora to Alor star, all the time bleeding profusely.
What’s more, according to Donald Pearson, a close personal friend, Scarf’s navigator Paddy Calder was also hit during the fight, and may not have been able to direct his pilot home. However other reports suggest that it was Calder and Rich who helped hold Scarf in his seat and assisted in the landing in any way they could.
Despite this heroic act, the story of Arthur Scarf would not be officially recognized for another 5 years. In the chaos of the Malayan campaign those who knew what he had done could not get the story out, and his wife would not be presented with the award until after the hostilities were over.
And now, more than 80 years after the event, this part of history is again slipping away from us. But you can help keep this remarkable artifact in the right hands and ensure that it remains on display for future generations and not locked away by a private collector.
To do that I’m going to ask you to do three things. Firstly, please like the video because that will help this video spread further across YouTube. Also, please leave a comment “#savethescarfvc” because that will also help us spread this story further.
Lastly, please click on this video on screen where I’m going to explain exactly what we need to do as a community to save this victoria cross. I’m asking you to click on the video because that will make YouTube like us and have the video buried because I’ve sent you immediately off the platform. So, see you in a moment on the next video.
