Munro's medal auction to go ahead

The last surviving pilot from the Dambusters raid, Les Munro, pictured at the Bomber Command Memorial, London. Photo/file

The overseas auction of war hero Les Munro's World War II memorabilia is set to carry on after the Ministry of Culture and Heritage found Mr Munro's medals and log books are not protected New Zealand archives.

Mr Munro's war objects are not covered by the Protected Objects Act 1975, David Butts, Manager Heritage Operations Ministry for Culture and Heritage said in a release today.

"We have spoken with Mr Munro and were pleased to share this information with him, and to note no further action by the Ministry is required.

"Mr Munro's medals are at a London auction house for auction on 25 March and we wanted to clarify the situation before then.

"Mr Munro has put his medals and log books into the auction to raise money for the upkeep of the Bomber Command Memorial - the war memorial commemorating the 55,573 airmen of Bomber Command who died during World War II.

"We have assured Mr Munro we respect this decision, and his generosity. Our finding in no way diminishes our respect for the significance of the medals earned by Mr Munro.

These are important taonga in their own right,"

Mr Munro medals include the Distinguished Services Order, Distinguished Flying Cross, Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit and the Queen's Service Order.

The medals are expected to sell for about $100,000.