Australian Service Medal 1945-1975

The Australian Service Medal 1945-1975: Awarded for 30 days service in prescribed non-warlike or peacekeeping operations between 3 September 1945 and 14 February 1975. Clasps denoting the area of service are awarded with the medal. The ASM 1945-1975 was established in 1995 to recognise a large number of Australian service personnel who did not receive any award for their non-warlike operational service in the period 1945-1975. The creation of this award was one of the recommendations of the Committee of Inquiry into Defence Awards that reported to government in 1994. The award's aim is to recognise service in prescribed peacekeeping or non-warlike operations during the period 1945-1975 where recognition had not been extended previously through an award. The Medal's design features the Commonwealth Coat of Arms on the obverse and is ensigned with the Crown of Saint Edward. The reverse of the Medal features the Federation Star overlaid with a plinth on which the wearer's name is engraved. The obverse and reverse are decorated with clusters of mimosa blossoms symbolising the presence of Australian service personnel in overseas peacekeeping and other non-warlike operations. The ribbon has bands of dark and light blue, khaki, green and gold. The Australian Service Medal 1945-1975 is placed on the same level as the Australian Service Medal in the Australian Order of Wearing Australian Honours and Awards. The Governor-General has approved a number of clasps for the Medal including the following:

Berlin and Germany - for service in support of the 'Berlin airlift' from 26 June 1948 to 30 September 1949 and other service in Germany from 9 May 1945 to 19 October 1951.

FESR - for naval service with the Far East Strategic Reserve from 2 July 1955 to 30 October 1971.

Indonesia - for service from 1 August 1947 to 1 January 1949 and from 1 January 1949 to 30 April 1951 with the United Nations Good Offices Commission and the United Nations Commission for Indonesia.

Japan - for service with the British Commonwealth Occupation Force in Japan from 3 September 1945 to 28 April 1952.

Kashmir - for service with the United Nations Military Observers Group in India/Pakistan and with the United Nations India/Pakistan Observer Mission from 13 August 1948 to 13 February 1975.

Korea - for service with the United Nations Commission in Korea from 9 June 1950 to 23 June 1950, and 27 August 1957 to 13 February 1975, and service in Korea or adjacent areas, including Japan, from 28 July 1953 to 26 August 1957.

Middle East - for service with various prescribed United Nations peacekeeping missions in the Middle East during the period 1948 to 1975.

PNG - for service in Papua New Guinea from 3 September 1945 to the Independence of Papua New Guinea on 16 September 1975.

SW Pacific - for participation in: Military activities in the Netherlands Indies, Portuguese Timor, Sarawak, Brunei, British Borneo, Philippine Islands, Solomon Islands, Nauru and Ocean Islands, Burma, Malaya and Singapore, and including all islands and waters forming part of those territories during the period that commenced on 3 September 1945 and ended on 24 November 1946. Royal Australian Air Force military activities on Morotai Island during the period that commenced on 3 September 1945 and ended on 10 July 1948.

Thailand - for service at the Royal Thai Air Force base at Ubon and with 2 Field Troop RAEME at Ban Kok Talat in operation CROWN from May 1962 to August 1968.

Thai-Malay - for service in anti-terrorist operations on the Thailand-Malaysia border from 1 August 1960 to 16 August 1964 and to aircrew who completed one operational sortie from 17 August 1964 to 30 March 1966.

W New Guinea - for service with the United Nations temporary executive authority force in West New Guinea from 3 October 1962 to 30 April 1963.

As part of the government's policy on service medals, the qualifying period for all clasps to the Australian Service Medal 1945-1975 has been standardised to 30 days aggregate service in the particular prescribed activity.

Order clasps separately from Medals - Clasps catalogue menu to your left.

We don't 'nickel and dime' you by supplying scant, unusable riband lengths, or worse, making riband a hidden-in-the-fine-print optional extra - every medal comes with 250mm of riband (full size) and 150mm (miniature). Ample for a complete professional court mount.