Medal of Bravery

• Awarded on: August 13, 1984
• Invested on: March 15, 1985

Corporal Joseph Sylvain Bruno Ross, M.B.
Corporal Robin Taylor, M.B.
Medal of Bravery

On 4-5 December 1983, Cpl. Sylvain Ross and Cpl. Robin Taylor, aircraft technicians on H.M.C.S. Iroquois displayed considerable daring and professionalism in readying the flight deck for the rescue of eleven seamen from the disabled No. 5 Ho Ming, floundering off the coast of Newfoundland. The critical listing of the Ho Ming made it imperative to reach the men as soon as possible. Preparing the first helicopter launch, in ten-metre swells and winds of 110 km/hour, Cpls. Ross and Taylor directed the move of the aircraft from the hangar to the flight deck. The deck motion was so they laboured at the edge of the heaving deck while controlling the unfolding of the rotor blades. During this dangerous operation, Cpl. Ross was almost swept away to sea when a gust of wind lifted him and he found himself hanging precariously from a rotor blade. The launch was successful but the helicopter returned two and a half hours later after a postponed rescue attempt. At great risk to their own safety, Cpls. Ross and Taylor secured the aircraft on the deck in the dark. Just before daybreak the Iroquois answered a second SOS from the Ho Ming. Drenched with freezing spray in the cold morning air, Cpls. Ross and Taylor worked just as diligently and effectively at the two subsequent launches and recoveries of the helicopter, which brought eleven survivors to Iroquois.