A WEST Devon man was last week honoured for the role he played in raising the wreck of the world?s largest submarine from the seabed 18 months ago.

Raymond ?Wally? Wallace, a retired Royal Marine from Highampton, was presented with the Order of Friendship of the Russian Federation at the Russian Embassy in London.

The 10,000 tonne Russian submarine Kursk sank in the Barents Sea in August 2000 following two explosions ? all 118 crew members were lost in the horrific accident.

Wally was the offshore diving manager for the Norwegian company involved in the operation, which took place in the summer of 2001.

He said: ?We started out there on July 15 and we finally lifted it on October 8, though I wasn?t out there all the time.

?I think the most difficult bit was cutting the front off. We had some technical problems, it was badly damaged and getting that end off was a bit troublesome.?

Wally said he and the crew tried not dwell on the fact that so many lives had been lost in the submarine when it sank.

?Obviously it?s not the most pleasant thing to think about, but we just tried to take solace from the fact we were taking people home, helping their families,? said Wally, whose company is more usually involved in offshore oilfield construction work rather than salvage projects.

Wally visited Russia in November 2001, following the successful operation to lift the Kursk.

?I actually went to the Kremlin and met President Putin. He told us we were going to get something but we didn?t know what it was at that stage,? said Wally, who added he was ?honoured and chuffed? with his award.

?I can?t really put it into words, the emotions,? he said. ?Obviously it?s for all of us really; I just happened to be in the right place at the right time to get the award.?