John Leake (DSM)
|
John Leake DSM |
|
|---|---|
| Birth name | John Steven Leake |
| Born |
26 October 1949 Erdington, Birmingham, England |
| Died | 13 February 2000 (aged 50) Plymouth, England |
| Buried at | Weston Mill, Plymouth, England |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom
|
| Service/branch |
 British ArmyNAAFI  Royal Navy
|
| Rank | Canteen Manager (NAAFI) Petty officer (Royal Navy) |
| Unit |
Devonshire and Dorset Regiment HMS Ardent HMS Sutherland |
| Battles/wars |
Falklands War * Battle of Falkland Sound |
| Awards | Distinguished Service Medal |
John Steven Leake DSM (26 October 1949 – 13 February 2000) was an English recipient of the Distinguished Service Medal whilst working for the Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes (NAAFI), one of only twelve to be issued to the British forces during the Falklands War. Prior to working for the NAAFI, he worked in private security and was a soldier in the Devonshire and Dorset Regiment of the British Army.
Born in Erdington, a suburb of Birmingham, England, Leake attended Albert Road School in Aston. Leake joined the Devonshire and Dorset Regiment, serving with the 1st Battalion of the Regiment in Northern Ireland. As one of his roles, he was an instructor in the use of the General-purpose machine gun.
At the age of 24 he left the British Army to work for private security companies, including for Securicor at Birmingham Airport. He was working for locally based IMI plc, when he decided to join the West Midlands Police, but after arriving early for his interview he read a local paper and saw an advertisement for the Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes (NAAFI), and decided to apply for a job with them instead.
Petty Officer Leake originally joined HMS Ardent as a civilian NAAFI Canteen Manager. On the declaration of Active Service he volunteered to enrol as a Petty Officer on 15th May 1982.
On 21st May 1982 HMS Ardent came under heavy attack by Argentine aircraft. Using his previous Army training, Petty Officer Leake was stationed as a machine gunner. Throughout the air attacks he remained cool and calm even though the ship was being hit by bombs and cannon fire. He fired large quantities of accurate tracer at the attackers and inflicted damage on a Skyhawk. His courage, steadfastness and total disregard for his own safety undoubtedly saved the ship from many further attacks and was an inspiration to all those in the vicinity.
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