Doc

I highly doubt that it is Czech-- as far as I am aware, she never even visited there, and certainly never served with their armed forces. She served with French, Spanish, and Italian forces at various times, but I believe this is some kind of French uniform. Doc

Possibly, but what service or function? I can't see the hat badge well enough to identify it, and whatever's on the right collar is also indistinct. As far as I know, this lady never served in the tropics, though she did spend time in North Africa..... Doc

Does anyone have any idea what this uniform could represent? It is either WW2 French or conceivably inter-war. Thanks for any suggestions. Doc

Several years ago, I did a study on all the Balloons which left Paris during the siege, including all the balloon names and the names of their pilots/passengers. His name does not appear on the list of those who flew out of Paris, and just as an off-chance I checked the names of the balloons, and none of them were named similarly to his name. Many of the pilots were Matelots (sailors), but other Matelots served on ground crews-- he must be one of them. Sorry not to have more information. Doc

During the Viet-nam War, Air Medals were given for heroism, but also for a certain number of combat flight hours. I don't remember the number, as it changed in different periods, but helicopter pilots of that era who flew lots of hours commonly had 20+ air medals. 34 is not at all unbelievable. Doc

Sounds like a good source, so I can't argue with you. However, it sounds like a local unit policy, and I really wonder how they could actually carry it off, since there is no published policy on the subject. Glad your brother in law managed to finish his tour, and apparently wasn't hit too badly. Doc

Keeping out of the politics, that rotation was neither by Navy policy nor by regulation. I know of several Naval personnel with three or more PH in Viet-nam who were not rotated out. Doc

Hunyadi--- I haven't ever seen any Army regulation or policy to that effect. Do you have a reference you can provide? Doc

At least for the Army, the most bronze oak leaf clusters which can be worn is 4 (representing PH awarded 5 times). If you are unlucky enough to get hit again after that, the 4 bronze clusters plus the new award are represented by a silver oak leaf cluster, so the basic award plus a silver cluster equals 6 awards. Then you can have silver plus 1-4 bronze for more awards, and then it would go to two silver. If you have that many, I don't want to be in a foxhole with you, because you are a real bullet magnet. Doc

Actually, the US government doesn't normally ask if the medals were previously issued. If you have the DD214 saying that you are entitled to them, and tell the government that the medals were lost, are missing, etc., they will reissue them to you-- At least for anything lower than MOH. I got my father's medals replaced that way after they were lost in a move. PX or other purchase sources are still available, but why use them if the government will replace them? Doc

"cyq" is the maker's mark. Sorry I don't have my references directly at hand, but that is all the marking you will find on these. It does appear to be Waffenamt marked, so it was an issued piece. Bring-back versus imported later?-- No way to tell. Unless it was marked with importers marks (not required post-war in the US) or a re-proofing (like in the UK), there is absolutely no way to tell. Several of my P-38s have those grips-- don't know what to say except that they are pretty common, perhaps were a standard replacement? I agree that the "O" after the serial number is simply part of the serial block. A good shooter piece, if it hasn't been deactivated. Doc

Since you have contact with the previous owner, it would be useful to get more information from him about when and where it was worn. As noted previously, the shoulder patch is 4th Army, which I don't think was ever in Viet-Nam. More importantly, in 30 years in the US Army, starting 1971, I have never seen shoulder patches worn on this type of coat. Perhaps it was worn in a garrison environment in the US prior to that, but I have never seen it. Doesn't mean it is not real, but I would certainly ask questions. Doc

Does anyone know if 965 Squadron Balloon Barrage (UK) was stationed in Belgium in 1945? If so, where? Thanks for any assistance. Doc

Sorry for the double image in the last post-- I was trying to do this one as the second image. Doc[attachmentid=34082]

Can anyone help me identify any of the ribbons on this ribbon bar? It is French, and probably ranges from WWI through the Colonial Wars to post-ww2. The photo is came off of is dated post WW2, but I know this individual earned medals for WW1 and Colonial Wars. Sorry for the quality-- had to reduce them to fit on the site. Thanks for any assistance. Doc[attachmentid=34080] [attachmentid=34080]

In the US Army at least, they really started to be common following their introduction during the Viet-Nam war (I think originally in some of the SF units). The concept of a "challenge coin" was originally as noted by other members (see the link provided by Coastie, though I am not sure that story is actually true)-- a way to build unit esprit and get some free drinks. About 20 years ago, though, the concept moved way beyond unit pride ("See, I have the coin of my unit, and I'm proud of it) to almost an unofficial awards system. There are now coins not only for units, but for individuals-- I have seen Commanding General's Coins, Command Sergeant Major's Coins, etc. Although orginally I think they were used at Group (i.e. regimental for you Brits) level, they have metastacised, and I have seen sub-company level coins. They are given out as an unofficial "Attaboy!" to someone who has done well, or to a high-ranking visitor to your unit. Sort of like the old certificate of Achievement/Appreciation, but without any paperwork or need to have it approved at a higher level. In my humble opinion (30 years in the US Army), they have become nearly meaningless-- sort of like wall plaques for units you have been in or visited. Souvenirs. Many people collect them, and try to get all the ones from a specific base or in a specific larger unit (e.g. Division)-- They sit on coffee tables, and some people have gone so far as to make/buy racks to show them off in. So now they are sort of souvenirs and sort of unofficial awards (which can never be documented, as there is no paperwork and no records). Personally, I always preferred to get my deserving troops real awards, which would help them in their apprearances before promotion boards. Doc

Thanks to all for the responses. I have no problem with combining the two threads. I was just trying to hit people who might be looking only at one list or another. Doc

Thanks Hendrik! A Spanish Medal.... No wonder I couldn't track it down in France. Do you have any idea as to who might have the official list of recipients? Thanks a lot. Doc

Thanks very much for the contact information. I will give it a try. As regards the Medaille de la Paix du Maroc, I am not sure if it is considered Moroccan or French, but my French contacts can't find out any information about it. So, I will try Rabat. Thanks again. Doc.

I am also looking for illustrations/photos of these two awards, if anyone has them. Thanks. Doc

Additionally, I am looking for illustrations of them, if anyone has them. Thanks. Doc

Good afternoon. I am researching an individual who reportedly received two medals in the 1930s-- La M?daille de la Paix du Maroc, and the Nichan Iftikhar de Tunis. Does anyone have any suggestions as to whether any lists of recipients exist, and where I might find them? Both were issued under French Colonial Rule, but I so far have not been able to find any such lists, or criteria for award. Thanks. Doc

Good afternoon. I am researching an individual who reportedly received two medals in the 1930s-- La M?daille de la Paix du Maroc, and the Nichan Iftikhar de Tunis. Does anyone have any suggestions as to whether any lists of recipients exist, and where I might find them? Both were issued under French Colonial Rule, but I so far have not been able to find any such lists, or criteria for award. Thanks. Doc

Dave, thanks for the clarification, but I am not sure we are really arguing more than semantics here. The original question was whether the MOH can, under todays rules, be awarded in peacetime. You seem to define peace as anything when war has not been declared (categories 2 and 3). Category 1 does, as you state, only apply in case of declared war. However, Peace is not defined by the absence of a declaration of war. I interpret category 2 as being war, even though not declared. This issue was discussed specifically during my time at the Army War College, and it was pointed out that legally war can take place even in the absence of a formal declaration-- In fact, I don't think the US has had a formally declared war since WW2, and I have real problems trying to define Viet-Nam, Korea, Somalia, etc., not to mention current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as peace. To the soldier on the ground, when an enemy soldier is trying to kill you, that's war, not peace. In my mind, stating that the award can today be awarded for actions during "peacetime" simply justifies the types of awards given to Greely, Lindburgh, and Gerber. Today, they can be given only for actions involving conflict, whether or not a formal state of war exists (i.e. if it has been declared). My original comments basically were trying to address the issue of could a strictly peactime act (no conflict, no shooting, no enemy-- e.g. Lindburg, Greely) be considered worthy of the MOH, and I think that both of us agree that is no longer possible. Doc