Dutch Medals & Decorations

I know there were some Dutch pilots active during WW1. But I don't know anything about if they received any [glow=red,2,300]medal or decoration.[/glow]
So here comes the first question:
[glow=blue,2,300]Were there any awards given to a Dutch pilot during WW1??[/glow]

Second question:
Although The Netherlands remained neutral during WW1, [glow=blue,2,300]is there any proof of a Dutch award given to any allied pilot?[/glow]

I really hope someone can provide me with an answer to any of these two questions!

Thanks already,

[glow=gold,2,300]King[/glow]

Given the rules of neutrality, etc it is highly unlikely that a Dutch pilot would be decorated by his own government at that time unless he had done something remarkable in defence of Dutch neutrality.

Similarly, it is unlikely that a Dutch pilot would have received any Allied or German decoration unless he had rendered services to the Allies or Central Powers in some way. Again, given the rules of neutrality, this could have occured only in very exceptional circumstances which did not involve combat. An example would be if a Dutch pilot was instrumental in the rescue of British, French or German aircrew downed in the North Sea. On the other hand, if such aircrew had ditched in Dutch (neutral) waters, they would be subject to internment, which would lessen the willingness of French, British or German authorities to offer even a humanitarian award.

Sometimes the needle in the haystack that is hardest to find is the one that is not there.

[Rick]

Willem, I thought that Ltn. Johann Hesselink was of Dutch descent who flew for the Germans. He scored two air victories, so he must have earned at least the Iron Cross (either I or II Class) and the Ehrenbrecher. However, as I don't make notes about where guys were born, I'm not so sure now. I just checked, and he is not given in the von Eberhardt necology nor in the Ehrentafel, even though he died on 20Dec18 at Hannover. So, this might attest to the fact that he wasn't a native German. Frank Olynyk, any ideas?? Rick

[Graeme]

Regarding British awards, I'm with Hugh - basically they were for gallantry in action so there would have had to have been a common enemy; since the Dutch were neutral, they had no enemies.

As for Dutch awards - I've had a thumb through the rather sparse notes I've got and haven't identified anything that would have been suitable. The closest would have been the Mobilisation Cross, but that was restricted to those who had worn Dutch uniform and wasn't instituted until 1924.

Graeme