The medal, which may be awarded posthumously, is granted in recognition of "acts of great bravery in situations of extreme danger".

This medal replaced the award of the George Cross in respect of acts of bravery in, or meriting recognition by, New Zealand.

Ms Amey waited until the shark moved away from Mr Fraser and then went to his aid and towed him to shore.

Having got him to shore, Ms Amey then joined the rest of the team in doing what they could for Mr Fraser until he could be flown to New Zealand.

Ms Amey displayed great courage and bravery with complete disregard for her own safety in going to Mr Fraser's assistance.

As a result of this selfless action, he was critically burned when a flash fire broke out on the left wing of the aircraft near a hole in the fuselage from which he was helping passengers escape.

Mr Dixon remained in a coma, and although he made some initial improvement, his condition worsened and he died two weeks later, the fourth victim of the crash.

The situation in which Mr Dixon found himself was extremely dangerous and he displayed great bravery in returning to the aircraft, although injured, to help other passengers which subsequently resulted in the loss of his own life.

Shortly before 1.40pm, a lone gunman armed with semi-automatic shotguns and assault rifles, with several hundred rounds of ammunition, commenced an attack on the Al Noor Mosque.

The gunman regained his feet and shot the wounded Dr Rashid, killing him, before continuing to shoot others in the main prayer room.

Because of Dr Rashid’s actions, the gunman’s attention was temporarily diverted from the people trying to escape on the other side of the room.

In a situation of extreme danger, Dr Rashid displayed great courage and bravery in challenging the gunman, with complete disregard for his own safety.

Shortly before 1.50pm, a lone gunman dressed in full camouflage gear and armed with semi-automatic shotguns and assault rifles, with several hundred rounds of ammunition, commenced an attack on the Linwood Mosque.

On his way to the rear of the Mosque, Mr Aziz noticed bodies of worshippers on the ground and the discarded lever action rifle, which made him realise the gunman had a new firearm.

The gunman saw Mr Aziz carrying the discarded rifle, dropped his gun and ran to his car.