ISAF medal

[colonel_kurtz]

I've done 2 tours of HERRICK, and although I received my campaign medal, I was never given the ISAF medal. I was never all that bothered as I can't wear it anyway, however I'm now thinking
1. It might be worth a few quid one day
2. It's a nice keepsake to pass on to my nipper
3. I'm entitled to the f*cking thing so why should I go without just because my regiments admin is up it's own hoop?

I've moved regiments since my last tour. I went in to see the clerks who gave me the standard shrugged shoulder and suggested I call JPAC. I understand that JPAC would deal with campaign medals, but is the ISAF gong a seperate thing altogether?

Before starting on an epic journey of phone calls, letters, forms, blank looks and shrugged shoulders, has anyone already been through this process that can point me in the right direction?

 

[FourZeroCharlie]

Fill your boots here:

http://www.aco.nato.int/page16506538.aspx

or here:

http://www.awardmedals.com/nato-isaf-afghanistan-medal-p-18450.html

 

[Hobo-Ken]

MOD will not help with this as it's not a UK medal. It's between you and NATO unfortunately. I asked the same question and was told by my CoC to buy one off ebay instead!

I didn't feel inclined to pay for it however, so got a mate to grab me a buckshee one on a subsequent Herrick.

 

[Daxx]

This ^

 

[theoriginalphantom]

anyone know if you are supposed to get one for every tour, or just get one regardless of how often you went there?

 

[colonel_kurtz]

Ah so that's why I didn't receive it. The unit should have applied for the gongs whilst we were deployed. That's odd, they're normally so efficient.

Cheers for the replies, but if I have to pay then I won't bother. I won't ever buy myself a medal on principle. If I'm going to do that then I might as well start ordering all the bling gongs as well

 

[jockparamedic]

They will offer you one on every tour if your units admin staff put you on the nominal role for it. Its up to you whether you take it or not. The clerks usually have a drawer full of them.

 

[Daxx]

NATO use to have a thing where you got number to add to the ribbon for subsequent tours. I knew someone who had an 8 on the Kosovo medal but he cheated as I pointed out that a 2 year or so tour with regular breaks back to the UK is one tour not 8!

 

[colonel_kurtz]

anyone know if you are supposed to get one for every tour, or just get one regardless of how often you went there?

Irregardless of how many tours you do, you get as many gongs as you're willing to pay for. They're £16.50 a pop apparently.

 

[spaz]

I didn't bother going to collect mine, the clerk was a right dog so it wasn't worth the walk.

 

[Draft Dodger]

Ah so that's why I didn't receive it. The unit should have applied for the gongs whilst we were deployed. That's odd, they're normally so efficient.

Cheers for the replies, but if I have to pay then I won't bother. I won't ever buy myself a medal on principle. If I'm going to do that then I might as well start ordering all the bling gongs as well

I got given an address to email (which upon searching was available online), I pinged them with details of unit, when I was there etc. and got an ISAF medal in the post about 2 months later.

It's lived in a drawer ever since.


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[colonel_kurtz]

Mine will also probably get lost in a drawer, which is why I was trying to find out how much admin is involved in tracking down this gong, and whether or not it's worth bothering.

Got a bit if time on my hands for a few weeks, I'm bored shitless, hence why I'm chasing up things like this. I'll try to find this email address you mentioned.

 

[theoriginalphantom]

Irregardless of how many tours you do, you get as many gongs as you're willing to pay for. They're £16.50 a pop apparently.

cheaper on ebay, as most things are, I was wondering if there was official guidance on this, I know of people who got one every tour, some none despite multiple tours, others one. it'll save me a couple of quid when I have everything court mounted for the next walting parade. maybe I should have one either side of my VC's?
seriously though, bollocks to buying any bling, even if it is kind of official. ish

 

[jockparamedic]

cheaper on ebay, as most things are, I was wondering if there was official guidance on this, I know of people who got one every tour, some none despite multiple tours, others one. it'll save me a couple of quid when I have everything court mounted for the next walting parade. maybe I should have one either side of my VC's?
seriously though, bollocks to buying any bling, even if it is kind of official. ish

Surely one of your mates who has more than one would donate one of theirs to assist you in your planned walting.

 

[theoriginalphantom]

Surely one of your mates who has more than one would donate one of theirs to assist you in your planned walting.

I said I know people, I didn't say they were mates!

 

[Draft Dodger]

Mine will also probably get lost in a drawer, which is why I was trying to find out how much admin is involved in tracking down this gong, and whether or not it's worth bothering.

Got a bit if time on my hands for a few weeks, I'm bored shitless, hence why I'm chasing up things like this. I'll try to find this email address you mentioned.

I just had a look through my old
Emails, this was in 2010 mind but give it a go.

Public.Services@shape.nato.int

Tell all your friends, free medals for everyone.


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[rebel_with_a_cause]

Took one each time it was offered, gave one to me Mum and one to Domestic CoS, one is in the sock drawer. Can't wear them so that seemed best option.

 

[jockparamedic]

Mines sits in the display cabinet with the tat from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait from Gulf 1.

 

[DeltaDog]

They don't have your name and you can't wear it, so I wouldn't bother.

The box it comes in is pretty, though.

 

[PapaGolf]

When you deploy and reach the eligibility date, your unit would email J1 who would then email SHAPE. They have a database with everyones' name on. We requested multiple tour indicators (in the unlikely event the medal rules change/people lateral transfer/for our foreign attachments etc) and heard back nothing