THE commanding officer of a Royal Navy minehunter has been awarded a special honour from the Queen for his courage and leadership.
Barton-born Commander Jim Byron, 40, received the Distinguished Service Cross for his courage and leadership in patrols of the coastline of Libya during the final months of Colonel Gadaffi's regime.
He was part of the Royal Navy's contribution to NATO's Operation Ellemy in April 2011 and was tasked to hunt out mines that were stopping aid ships from reaching the country.
While sweeping the seas, HMS Brocklesby – the ship he captained – sighted a huge mine that had been laid by pro-regime special forces in a bid to disrupt outside help.
Using an underwater robot that can search out and destroy mines, the ship's company detonated the device, which was packed with explosives to the equivalent of 190kg of TNT.
It was the first time a live operation on a mine has been carried out by the Royal Navy since 2003.
Commander Byron said: "It was quite astonishing.
"It is not just for me, it is for all the members of my ship's company during the Libyan conflict.
"There was a job that needed doing and we just got on and did it."
Commander Byron said he was very nervous when he met the Queen at Buckingham Palace.
He said: "It was terrifying and I was very nervous.
"It was marvellous and it is probably going to be the highlight of my life."
While in Libya, the ship was part of a NATO-led operation in which its role was to keep shipping lanes into the strategically vital city of Misrata clear so that humanitarian aid could reach civilians.
The ship was under constant threat from shore-based artillery and missiles, coming within a few hundred yards of the shore at Misrata, as well as the sea mines used by pro-Gaddafi forces.
He will be taking up a new position in April as the squadron commander for the First Mine Counter Measures, based in Clyde Faslane, in Scotland, and in January 2014, he will be deployed with his staff to the Gulf.
