Tiger-pie

Reverse of the INTERFET medal showing the engraving. You will note that the Service No. is different. I received this medal before we changed to a new numbering system, which will probably give future collectors a headache when they obtain groups with more than one number. Even harder if they have to track down split groups. The "S" prefix indicates that I am a technical rating, an "R' prefix is what all the other sailors get, or more to the point, got.

Presentation box.

INTERFET medal in box.

Back of AASM.

Close up of Clasp.

AASM (Australian Active Service Medal) with Clasp "East Timor".

Engraving on rear of medal.

The presentation box.

Cardboard cover for the box.

Never one to hide myself away, here are a few of my bits and pieces... Long service medal. Regards; Johnsy

Having walked through HMAS Yarra at a graveyard dock many years ago, I can only agree that it "is men who are the souls of ships". Still sad to see them go...

An undignified end. 210 was previously HMAS Cessnock, I spent three years of my career on her. Whyalla sits beside her.

I think the attraction is the workmanship and potent symbology, both make for very attractive collectors items. The only drawback with TR items is they are hard to trace back to an owner unless you can source them direct from a veteran or an estate. Unless you have a unique grouping/medal bar, it is almost impossible to name them. I no longer collect TR, though I do still have some TR emphera and personal items. I have gone back to my first collecting passion, Australian medal groups and singles and Kiwi groups. The Aussie medals are easy to trace and I can relate to them, that is to say they are my history, the medals belong here, the prior owners come from places I have been to and I have walked the battlefields they fought across. So for me there is a personal connection. Regards; Johnsy

See also: http://gmic.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=14827 Regards; Johnsy

A further bit of info regarding the plates that I posted above. The rank of Petty Officer 2nd Class was discontinued as of October 1907. It is safe to assume that the rank was worn until all members of that rank were promoted to Petty Officer, reverted to Leading Seaman or "paid off". PO 2nd Class was an interim rank held for a year normally until the sailor proved he was worthy of promotion. Regards; Johnsy

Conducting a *Vertrep from the Flight Deck on Success. *Vertical Replenishment

Success returns from an "up-top" trip.

Success underway.

View from the gantry behind the bridge looking down onto Success's *RAS Deck and the RAS control hut, commonly know to the crew as the "Pizza Hut". *Replenishment at Sea

HMAS SUCCESS is an Auxiliary Oiler Replenishment (AOR) vessel of 17933 tonnes fully loaded and 157.2 metres in length. She is affectionately known to the crew as the "Battle Tanker". Based on the French 'DURANCE' Class Success was built in Australia by Cockatoo Dockyard Pty Ltd at Sydney. She was launched from their slipway on 3 March 1984 by her Launching Lady, Her Excellency Lady Stephen, wife of the Governor General and commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy on 23 April 1986. She is the largest ship built in Australia for the RAN and also the largest ever built in the port of Sydney. The ship is capable of day and night replenishment to ships at sea and concurrently by her embarked helicopter to other ships in company. Four main Replenishment at Sea (RAS) stations are fitted, two of which have dual functions and can be used to transfer either fuel or solids. The RAS system is designed to cope with the extreme demands caused by ship motion in rough weather and works extremely well. Her embarked Sea King helicopter provides a Vertrep capability and anti-submarine weapon carrying platform. SUCCESS is a truly dynamic vessel designed to support a Naval Force for extended periods in an operational environment at sea. Success saw active service in the Gulf War as part of the Multi-National Naval Force conducting operations in support of Kuwait . It also provided valuable logistic support to INTERFET operations in East Timor . Success is the second RAN ship to carry the name. The first Success was an "S" class destroyer in service during the 1920s and '30s. HMAS Success celebrated her 21st birthday on April 23 2007 at sea. During her faithful and loyal 21 years service to the RAN, Success has accomplished around 3000 RAS evolutions to RAN units and various types of ships from different nations. She has steamed in excess of 715,000 nautical miles. Statistics Laid Down: Launched: 3 March 1984 by her Her Excellency Lady Stephen, wife of the Governor General Commissioned: 23 April 1986 Displacement: 17 933 tonnes (full load) Length: 157.2 metres Beam: 21.2 metres Armament: Two Phalanx Mk 15 close-in weapon systems, Four 12.7mm heavy machine guns Main Machinery: Two Pielstick 16 PC2-5 V 400 diesel engines; two shafts Speed: 19 Knots Ship's Company: Approximately 220

G'da Bob; Was there anything attached to the lanyard? The buttons are unusual, they are usually brass with an outline in relief of Australia, not leather as in this case. It is almost mint condition, a superb find to say the least. Regards; Johnsy

That photo puts it in context, it appeared larger and more prominent in the previous posts, though as you say the cloth version would be far more practical. It was probably the fashion of the time to wear the metal eagle on the Bordjacke, one chap started it and then they all did it. I certainly wasn't disputing that this was common practice, just that from experiance I know that anything that isn't flush with your rig will snag. A modern day story to illustrate my point, a Stoker in our navy refused to wear his ID tags around his neck in the engine room for fear of them becoming entangled in rotating machinery, so he carried them in his top left zip pocket of his Combat Coveralls. The idea spread throughout the fleet quickly and became an illegal but accepted practice when conducting engineering rounds. Regards; Johnsy

It is weird innit Rick that some people would welcome the slaughter of their own countrymen and allies just to validate their point and/or agenda? We have them here to, their a bunch of fecking losers who have probably never pulled on a uniform in their lives and have no idea how much we would give to protect our country, and even their worthless skins... Regards; Johnsy

Mmm...and in the close confines of a sub, that metal breast eagle in post #36 (and previous posts) would be a nightmare for snagging on everything. Do they show wear consistant with that or are they add ons? Regards; Johnsy PS: Even on a warship, which are comparatively roomy, any loose items of equipment will tend to snag on bulkhead protusions, hatch combings and other personnel. It is as if there is a magnetic attraction!!

It would serverely affect your ability to navigate underwater Jim, though you would know when you were getting to crush depth well before the hull collapsed. The SOP now (and in the past) would be to surface. Obviously a disadvantage as stealth is the subs main trump card, but better than a watery grave due to collision with submerged land features. If you were in enemy waters this would create a bit of a dilemma. Having said that, many critical gauges on subs are like eyeballs and testicles, you have two just in case... Regards; Johnsy