Wetnose Bravery Awards for RAF dogs

Cpl Heartford and Kubo have been teamed for three years

Last week, at a ceremony in the House of Lords, Royal Air Force Police dogs received a special 'Dogs In Action' bravery award for their Service in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Presented by the charity Wetnose Animal Aid, the team of five personnel and three dogs were the only military or police unit to be recognised.

A Royal Air Force Lyneham-based team collected an award.

Air Dog, Kubo, and Corporal Damian Heartford have carried out a multitude of duties.

These have included patrolling the Service Married Quarter patches and the single living accommodation areas on the Unit, as well as working at the Royal International Air Tattoo.

Kubo and Cpl Heartford have been teamed for three years, and during that period they have won the Drissels trophy presented at the end of a competition for the best RAF Police Dog Team, for the past two years and were placed second on their first year together.

Air Dog Kubo is a five-year-old, long-haired German Shepherd, and was bred in the Czech Republic.

On arrival at the Defence Animal Centre (DAC) in Melton Mowbray, he was assessed and found to be of the high standard required to become a Police Dog in the Royal Air Force.

Variety of specialisations

During his time at the DAC he was trained in a wide variety of specialisations including tracking criminals who had ran away from the scene of a crime or people who were lost, searching areas for anything that has been dropped or discarded, searching buildings for people.

They also deal with public disorder crowd control, differing scenarios involving the detainment of a fleeing criminal, carrying out a stand off and when instructed, ceasing any attack.

An RAF spokesperson said, "The Royal Air Force are the only Service Police force to operate military working dogs. The work undertaken by RAF Police dogs in theatre is invaluable, and they are considered a key asset for the Commander.

"They provide specialist arms explosive search capability and Force Protection; they act as a Force Multiplier, allowing the Commander greater flexibility with their personnel, whilst delivering maximum effect on the ground.

"In some situations the dog team can do the same amount of work as ten personnel."