Lucky: the war hero dog who survived the harsh Malaysian jungle

From antiquity to the present day, the dog It has proven to be one of the most useful animals for human beings, and it is that beyond being a “faithful friend”, dogs have come to perform various tasks such as tending to the house, going through the supervision of livestock until they become brave soldiers during war conflicts.

It is in this last list that we find the name of Lucky, a German shepherd from the ranks of the British Royal Air Force police who fought in the “Malaysian Campaign”, and whose acts of bravery were worth the Dickin Medal from the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) in 2007.

According to his biography on the portal of the National Military Working Dog Memorial UKLucky had his own ID number (3610 AD) and was one of four dogs sent to Southeast Asia – with Bobbie, Jasper and Lassie― participate in the colonial conflict.

Also known as the “Malaysian Emergency” or the “Anti-British National Liberation War”, it was fought from 1948 to 1960 and pitted British troops against the Malaysian Communist Party and the Malayan National Liberation Army (MNLA), considered one of the first violent events of the Cold War.

Lucky, Jasper, Bobbie and Lassie have undergone rigorous training to form an elite team of sniffer dogs. counter-terrorismable to locate and expose enemies hidden in the jungle.

And it is that being a difficult territory between dense vegetation and immense heat, the military had to be patient and very stealthy, a situation that put them at a great disadvantage.

This is how the hound and the other hounds of the air became associated with various British regiments such as the Coldstream Guards, the Royal Scots Guards and the Gurkhas, with whom They managed to capture dozens of guerrillas, including leader Lan Jang San.

Sadly, Bobbie, Lassie and Jasper died in the line of duty “we don’t know how”, while Lucky was the sole survivor of the task force, who he served in the troops for three years.

When his duties in Malaysia ended, Lucky continued as a police dog in Britain’s Royal Air Force and, according to his handler, veteran Bevel Austin Stapleton, the dog saved his life on several occasions during their time together.

On February 6, 2007, Lucky was posthumously awarded the PDSA Dickin Medalthe equivalent of the Victoria Cross but awarded to reward animal war heroes.

The recognition was bestowed at a ceremony held at Imperial War Museum in London with another dog named Sadie, a black Labrador who was awarded for his work detecting an explosive device outside the United Nations headquarters in Kabul in 2005.

At the ceremony they were also mentioned Bobbie, Jasper and Lassiewhom they recognized for having formed an exceptional team and for having known track and locate the enemy.

“For the exceptional bravery and devotion to duty of the RAF Police Anti-Terrorism Sniffer Dog Team consisting of Bobbie, Jasper, Lassie and Lucky. (…) The dogs and their handlers formed an exceptional team, capable to track and locate the enemy by smell despite the relentless heat and an almost impregnable jungle”, it is mentioned.

On site, Corporal Bevel Austin Stapleton acknowledged that every minute spent in the jungle had been difficult, but they have never hesitated to entrust their lives to these four dogs.

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