Paratrooper Awarded Victoria Cross by The Queen | Forces TV 

Former US paratrooper here, thanking you LCpl Leaky for saving the US officer and for well representing the airborne tradition.

These are the people who deserve awards. Not so called celebrities who are famous for being famous.

That Marine was able to come home to his family because of LCpl Leakey's courage and skill. Much respect to him and his fellow Paras from former USAF.

HM The Queen alsways seems so engaged when interacting with Military personnel

As a Victoria Cross holder he now gets to be saluted by Officers (not the other way round) and even the RSM!

Every VC winner I've ever seen interviewed or read about was exceedingly modest. Some were almost embarrassed by the attention they received. God bless them all. They are wonderful.

From a combat veteran of Vietnam, much admiration for your courage and many thanks for caring for one of my countrymen.

A Hero for sure, I am an U.S. Air Force veteran, realizing the closeness of the relationship between Great Britain and the United States is a long and wonderful relationship. To hear you gave aid to a member of the US Military was awesome, but not a surprise as both countries are so very close. Your award thus matches our Medal of Honor, and so in my mind you have received the Medal of Honor along with all of the privileges that accompany this award. Thank You for your service to your nation and mine. I am not too far in my family from the Nation of Great Britain, my paternal Grandfather was born in England and emigrated to the United States with his family. I am but the second generation American by birth.

A United States Air Force veteran here, thank you sir for all you have given for your fellow man, your duty, and all you have given to your nation and the rest of the world. A most extraordinary award to a man so extraordinary....

There’s no question as to his bravery and gallantry, but his humbleness and his gratitude to his mates says something about him.

LCpl Leakey. Thank you for your service. Richard S Leakey, Garland, Texas

This man is a true hero: courage in spades, yet modest and kind. I was very touched by his account, and by the Queen's obvious gratitude and pride in him. VC - doesn't get any higher than that.

What a bloke!! You're now officially a living legend!

Not too often does one get a handshake from the Queen without a glove......... Decent guy who did a great job............."Go Airborne"............

As an ex servicemen, this gave me goosebumps, and unless you've been in the forces you will not understand just how much camaraderie there is amongst the men. God save the Queen and LCpl Leakey, you are a hero to all in the UK.

The offical citation of his VC: "Between May and December 2013, Lance Corporal Leakey was deployed in Afghanistan as a member of a Task Force conducting operations to disrupt insurgent safe-havens and protect the main operating base in Helmand province. The majority of operations took place in daylight in non-permissive areas, attracting significant risk. On the 22nd August 2013, Lance Corporal Leakey deployed on a combined UK / US assault led by the United States Marine Corps into a Taliban stronghold to disrupt a key insurgent group. After dismounting from their helicopters, the force came under accurate machine gun and rocket propelled grenades fire resulting in the Command Group being pinned down on the exposed forward slope of a hill. The team attempted to extract from the killing zone for an hour, their efforts resulting in a Marine Corps Captain being shot and wounded and their communications being put out of action. Lance Corporal Leakey, positioned on the lee of the hill, realising the seriousness of the situation and with complete disregard for his own safety, dashed across a large area of barren hillside which was now being raked with machine gun fire. As he crested the hill, the full severity of the situation became apparent: approximately twenty enemy had surrounded two friendly machine gun teams and a mortar section rendering their critical fire support ineffective. Undeterred by the very clear and present danger, Lance Corporal Leakey moved down the forward slope of the hill, and gave first aid to the wounded officer. Despite being the most junior commander in the area, Lance Corporal Leakey took control of the situation and initiated the casualty evacuation. Realising that the initiative was still in the hands of the enemy, he set off back up the hill, still under enemy fire, to get one of the suppressed machine guns into action. On reaching it, and with rounds impacting on the frame of the gun itself, he moved it to another position and began engaging the enemy. This courageous action spurred those around him back into the fight; nonetheless, the weight of enemy fire continued. For the third time and with full knowledge of the extant dangers, Lance Corporal Leakey exposed himself to enemy fire once more. Weighed down by over 60 lbs of equipment, he ran to the bottom of the hill, picked up the second machine gun and climbed back up the hill again: a round trip of more than 200 metres on steep terrain. Drawing the majority of the enemy fire, with rounds splashing around him, Lance Corporal Leakey overcame his fatigue to re-site the gun and return fire. This proved to be the turning point. Inspired by Lance Corporal Leakey's actions, and with a heavy weight of fire now at their disposal, the force began to fight back with renewed ferocity. Having regained the initiative, Lance Corporal Leakey handed over the machine gun and led the extraction of the wounded officer to a point from which he could be safely evacuated. During the assault 11 insurgents were killed and 4 wounded, but the weight of enemy fire had effectively pinned down the command team. Displaying gritty leadership well above that expected of his rank, Lance Corporal Leakey's actions single-handedly regained the initiative and prevented considerable loss of life, allowing a wounded US Marine officer to be evacuated." He's not even the first member of his family to be awarded the VC. His second cousin twice removed, Nigel Leakey, was posthumously awarded it during WWII.

As a guy from the USA, that was cool! A salute to him and the British army!

From USA with respect honor for Great Britain we love you mum.

You represented our country with respect, gallantry and by doing the job. Sincere respects to you and all British Military personnel doing a job which many of us do not appreciate. Thank you.

Look at this man, listen to him speak, then compare it to Hollywood's version of courage on the battlefield.

I love the little personal gesture by the Queen - just after pinning the medal onto the tunic, she gives a little bob of the head and hands as if to say .." Perfect"!

Wow, this is wonderful. Just look a the smile on Her Majesty when she pins the award onto the soldier's chest. You can tell that she is genuinly proud and happy to give him the award. As a queen, and as a grandmother of the nation. Good save Queen Elizabeth II and LCpl Leakey!

Congratulations Sir on a job well done!!! Being a Special Ops soldier who saw active service in Rhodesia, Mozambique and Angola realises the pride and bravery showed under extreme circumstances you the recipient of the Victoria Cross the 15th awarded since the WW2. I am immensely proud to see a humble man as yourself receive such an award from the Queen. "Those who Dare win "!!

Well done young man, you are a credit to your country and your regiment. By the look on our Queens face she is also extremely proud of you.

Congratulations Josh. Cheers from Australia, we are proud of you too.

Thank you Sir. From the USN, 30 years enlisted - and out 🎱. You are a Hero and Warrior. Again, thank you Sir.

From the United States, long live the Queen. Well done lad.

My Great grandfather didn't receive this medal, but did recieve the military medal in 1944 for saving 10 men under Japanese fire darting in and out of cover with injured men on his shoulders. That is what I heard, it was in Burma . He also fought at Dunkirk, receiving then France and Germany star, then the Africa star for fighting in Africa and the Burma star. I think he received the defence medal aswell.

You can tell Her Majesty loves her soldiers.🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧

Only respect for this man and all those who serve or have served in the armed forces of Great Britain

Lots of love From India ,LONG LIVE THE QUEEN 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇮🇳🇮🇳❤❤❤❤ GOD SAVE THE QUEEN

God Bless you Son you make this country very proud

I am an American, and I am proud to say that most of my ancestors come from Britain. Wales

From France: well earned lance corp.! Huurraaaah!

Thanks from the Unites States brother ! ❤ 🇺🇸🇬🇧❤

Josh, hats off mate. A true soldier. Modest, brave, selfless.

What an incredible man, so humble, so proud of our Armed Forces...

America will always love you and we will do it for you to. I Salute you fellow Allie of America.

When you see some of the Vermin that walk our streets. What a pleasure to see a Real Hero hope he has a long and wonderful life.

Canadian paratrooper (retired) here..... well done lad...... Airborne!

The highest respect to this gentleman and to his comrades.

I don't know if this is alright with the great and amazing British people but as a Yankee doodle dandy Iam so proud and amazed and happy when I see the kind of great men our number one partner against this earths many demons and their demon countries! The part I don't know is alright is when I see a great warrior from England making her Royal Majesty the Queen England smile I get choked up like we aren't separated countries. Its because our countries never view the world alone. We always can count on each other when the very serious matters must be dealt with. Long live the United kingdom!!! Long live the United states of America!!!!

My Grandfather and Father were both Paras. Seeing this makes me so proud of LCpl Leaky. What days they must have been for him: firstly looking death in the eye in the course of duty and secondly, meeting Her Majesty and being decorated by her with the highest honour Great Britain offers.

From the USA, also bloody good show mate! God bless you and God save the queen

Ex Serviceman and huge Royalist here....What a parade, just wow, it fills me with immense pride and joy to have been part of something so special. H.M Armed Forces.....

Airborne All the Way! 🇺🇸⚔️🇬🇧

What an honor! Thank you for your service and bravery.

My utmost respect and unreserved salute to this brave soldier....from a Singaporean.

Just cannot honour this man enough. A V.C. Pinned on by The Queen, who showed him great honour, is about as good as it get. She was very obviously delighted to honour him. Well done, Sir, you are a credit to Britain and so is our Queen.

Congrats sir. Stay safe if you can. And thank you from 🇨🇦

2 VC's in one family?... thats one bad ass blood line

Two highly decorated Gurkhas either side of the Queen.

1:20 of all the times I’ve viewed videos of the queen that is the first time I’ve seen her truly really smile. She genuinely seemed happy to present him with the Medal.

Thank God for people like him.

Respect to you and thank you for your courage 👍

This is what the British military is all about and why we are simply the greatest soldiers in the world- what a man

it's absolutely uncanny how VC's end up being awarded multiple times to one family. Amazing!

Well done mate respect

When they ask you what it means to be British show them this, if it doesn't bring a tear to their eye then they shouldn't be here and are certainly not British.

Thank you soldier well done from the United States of America thank you for being so brave and humble God bless you!!

Outstanding. Well done, Para.

a good man a fantastic soldier who knows he loves those besides him

in 2-3 hundred years time and beyond, people will still be taking about your bravery that day . Congratulations you have now got this honour for the rest of your life English Mik

What I like about the VC is that it is modest and no frills, the same as the recipient. It is granted privately quite some time after the incident, sometimes as long as 2 years. Thats deliberate because if he returned to the field straight away he could be targetted. Its award is so rare to be given to someone who survived an incident. There are a number of Special Forces recipients bur there is an embargo on publicity. This because the identities of all British, Australian, Canadian and New Zealand special forces soldiers is secret. In these cases the award is given in private with the Queen but kept in safe custody until a later date.

Total Respect!

Risks his own life for his comrades then downplays his heroic efforts. A giant of a man, a hero. Bravest of the brave

Congratulations sir. Your country is proud of you.

Young man is a credit to his country. And his family. Bravo.

Well done sir. You are a true hero, words can’t describe my respect for you.

That moment they shared, Leaky and Her majesty, the Queen; that itself will live in his memory, a story he will pass to his child.

I've always loved the British. As a American and Texan God Bless England 🇬🇧 🙏 🙌

Respect and many thanks for what you do.

Wonderful tale. Handsome, humble, everything any military unit and its nation could hope for. This is the meaning of "ally" and the brotherhood of free military the world over. America too honors his bravery and unselfishness. Bless him. Well done, brave Sir. God Save The Queen 🇺🇸

Well done Josh your a star mate. It was a pleasure to meet you and thanks for coming to our gigs. It was a real privilege to play for you guys!

you give a Brit command. and he is more likely to die than the soldiers under him its matter of pride. and thirst. Back at the pub he will never have to buy drinks

Well done sir! Brought a lump to my throat.

Utrinque Paratus says it all, well done you have done yourself, battalion, regiment and country proud.

He grew up next door to me in MacDill AFB (FL) when his father was an Exchange Pilot. He was just a toddler, I was much older. We had the Leakey's on our left, on the right we had the exchange RAF Engineering Officer, and behind us we had the Belgian AF Exchange pilot.

Thank You LCpl Leakey for giving aid to an American and your bravery in the face of enemy and your service to your Queen and the United Kingdom from a proud American.

Thank you for your courage.

Duty, Honour, Service, Sacrifice 🛡⚔🎖✌What a tremendously modest soldier he is.. A true BRAVE HEART! This is a Man's Man! SOLDIER, I SALUTE YOU!👏👏👏👏👏🎗

Thank you 🇬🇧

alot of respect for this paratrooper and all respect to all military forces 🇬🇧

She seems so engaged when around her military

Thankyou sir for your courage and service to this country. You are everything that our great armed forces stand for , God bless you

Good man. A fine example to his countrymen and women.

The Queen sincere to this young lad. You can see he is someone she respected.

Amazing bravery clearly demonstrated by an incredible soldier Men like this are the reason Britain is Great

I LOVE THE QUEEN🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹GOD BLESS YOU FOR ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF YOUR BRAVE WARRIORS THAT SERVE SO VALIANTLY 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻LANCE CORPORAL LEAKY AMAZING STORY.THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🙏🏻

Top man, very humble and brings in all his colleagues, live long mate

You don't get one of those bad boys for being a brave solider, finding yourself in a dire situation, you only get those baby's when you x that by a million. Not many are lucky enough to be alive when the medal is awarded. People who know he has one and know how rare they are and what you have done to earn one will look at him and treat him differently. Typically the type of people that get this level of commendation are normally very humble, reserved, mater of fact and extremely cool and level headed.

LCpl Leaky, your actions make all members of HM’s Forces Proud, you can fight by my side any day!

The highest military honour we can give. A wonderful video to watch.

Brave young Man !!...thank you for your service !!

A true hero not some over priced sportsman/sportswoman or social climber

This is another wonderful example of extraordinary and selfless courage from a great soldier in the iconic Paras whose combat history and reputation is second to none.

God bless you from the USA.

So utterly inspiring, humble man, the epitome of a true man.

I have so much much respect for VC recipients.

He made me feel very proud to be British. To think that there are so many young people wasting their lives with knife crime and all sorts without a thought for anyone, yet this man thought only of others. He is still only 27 - what an example to others. Thoroughly deserved medal, and the ceremony looked fitting for such bravery.