Christian Zulus

Dear Dave, no all 3 rivets are on the order and the order is fixed and doesn't fall apart. You need some force to make the Nevsky collapsible Many thanks for your hint, to have a closer look to Igor's Nevsky T 2, he just offers now . It is very interesting, that Igor's Nevsky has almost the ident s/n. and obviously the same comrade engraved the s/n. As far, as I can make out from Igor's scans, the enamel-repair-work doesn't look sooo perfect. My top ray of the red star had been removed, enamel had been hotbaked and then fixed again. So the quality of the enamel is as good, as original. But a part of the order had been removed ... I assume, that my Nevsky T 2 might have the ident current market value, as Igor's: USD 1700,- to USD 2000,- In any case, a research might enhance the value signifcantly . Best regards Christian

Dear "Usairforce", USD 1100,- is the current price range of a Nevsky T 3, but not of a T 2. Best regards Christian

Great pic You are the airforce officer? The orders, medals and badges at the right side of your chest are NOT mounted in the correct way up to the regulations and the NCO "Distinguished Military Service Medal" makes no sense at all - you are an officer! Best regards Christian

Koca's award - multiple choice Dear Ivan, not bravo to me, but bravo to Voja in Beograd So if it had not been the national hero, then it could have been: - Order of the National Liberation - Order of Bravery - Order of the Partisan Star - Order of Brotherhood and Unity Was Koca among one of the first receipients of one of these four YU-orders? Best regards Christian Koca and Tito:

Gentlemen, after waiting for a couple of days, I asked my friend Voja from Belgrade about that photograph. Here are the results: 1) Koca Popovic (full name: Konstantin Popovic), General, commander of the First Proletarian Brigade in YU, veteran of the Spanish Civil War, etc., etc. 2) "Narodni Heroj" = "National Hero" (so my guessing was right!) 3) Belgrade Surrealism http://www.serbian-corpus.edu.yu/ie/sample.../surr/surr.html That is the Wikipedia-link about Koca Popovic (sorry, only in Serbian): http://sr.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9A%D0%BE%...%B2%D0%B8%D1%9B Maybe my friend Voja should put the next question . Best regards Christian

Today's market value? Gentlemen, do you have any idea, what the current market value of my restored Nevsky T 2 might be? Many thanks in advance . Best regards Christian

Dear Jim, excellent suggestion for a new name of the "Order of the Golden Fleece": "ORDER OF THE BAD NAMED HANGING DOG" . What I wanted to point out whith my remarks is, that the question of legitimation is not so easy to be solved: Miss Umalatova & Mr. Habsburg still confer orders of a long vanished period in history. Umalatova stands for the Soviet Union and Habsburg for the Austro-Hungarian Empire. BTW: An authentic & genuine "Order of the Golden Fleece" at the golden chain might be one of the most expensive orders ever at an auction at Sotheby's or Christies' . Best regards Christian

Nevsky T 2 - s/n.:

Nevsky T 2 - collapsed (rv.):

Nevsky T 2 - collapsed (top part of the order):

Nevsky T 2 - collapsed:

Gentlemen, some years ago I purchased for about USD 280,- that Nevsky T 2 in Vienna, which had been restored (in the CCCP) in a very professional way - new replaced top ray (12-o'clock-position) of the red star - and is collapsible, if you try. Due to the extraordinary low price, I bought the Nevsky T 2, despite the fact, that I had already one T 2 in my collection. The s/n. is 9534 and the Nevsky should have been awarded in 1944. The order is still unresearched . The restauration job has been done in a rather convincing way - perfect enamel! - and you can make out the restauration only at a second sight. I will share the scans of the Nevsky in parts, because there are engravings of the laurel wreath at the surface of the basic part of the order, which can not be seen in fixed status! Sorry for the bad scans, but I don't have a good digital camera - only the scanner of the computer : Best regards Christian Nevsky T 2:

Dear Order of Victory, many thanks for the information . I knew that thread and at least there is one (1) Motherland 1cl - appears unissued - in a private collection, which has a PMD-certificate. Best regards Christian

RB #3 Great photographs from Georgia - many thanks . For my taste - in comparison to the literature and to my own RB #3 - the number "3" of the RB seems a little bit to big and too large. Just my impression . Best regards Christian

Gregory is a busy and highly valueable man . Best regards Christian

Dear Mr. "Kevin in Deva", many thanks for your remarks, but if you regard yourself as a "student of military history", please study the history of the operation "Allied Force" of 1999 - many thanks . BTW: You will find a lot of material and a lot of open sources (also NATO & US!) in the internet. Best regards Christian

Dear Christophe, many thanks for your contribution . Mr. Chairman's censorship was not so "rigid": Nick delated the - smiley at the beginning of the thread (that smiley should document, that I am very proud of my rare military collectible - and nothing more!), a short remark, where I pointed out, that the defense industry in the USA made their money, but delivered inapprobriate weapon systems - F 117 A - to the US-Airforce for the campain against Yugoslavia + - smiley at the end of that sentence and a very short remark, where I said, that Col. Zolt?n Dani (YU-citizen of Hungarian origin!), as the commander of the rocket-battalion, did an excellent job (by military terms!). O.K., GMIC is the private & legal property of Nick and he can do, what he want to do, but I don't think, that my postings had been an "real" offence to anyone, except to the people, who sent the F 117 A to Yugoslavia in 1999 . From the military viewpoint: The F 117 A does an excellent job in the Middle East - Iraq & Afghanistan -, but the VJ in 1999 had been still one of the strongest, best trained and best organized armies in the world. I already sent a PM to Nick, where I showed understanding for his mild censorship, due to the fact, that GMIC has more members from the USA - or other NATO-countries -, than from Serbia, Russia, China, etc. and thanked him for not deleting my thread completly. Best regards Christian Before this thread might be closed, here is an authentic photograph of the rockets of the 250th Missile Brigade:

Dear Soviet, many thanks for your contribution . I did NOT want to cause offence to anyone, but to show an extremly rare military collectible. As far, as I know, the F 117 A - and parts of the plane - are still absolutly TOP SECRET. So, I thought, that the presentation of a part of the skin of a genuine & authentic "Nighthawk" might be of interest to the members of GMIC. The black outside skin of the F 117 A touches very cold - like metal. The inside consits - as you can see - from rather strange carbon fabrics. But I am not an expert in that topic . Best regards Christian

Dear Doc, many thanks for your posting . For almost 8 years the war is over, where we participated at different sides of the front. Now Serbia will join NATO's "PfP" - as Austria already did - and you and I should reach our hands over the old trenches . Where had you been located during the operation "Allied Force" in 1999? Which decoration did you get - the NATO-YU-Medal? I got a large document from the Yugoslav Government for my achievements at the "Propaganda & Humanitarian Front" + that fragment of the F 117 A, which is something very special. As the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia doesen't exist anymore and the war of 1999 is history. I appreciate very much your phaleristic achievements in researching the Order of the Red Star and your contributions to GMIC . Best regards Christian

Please delete all threads & postings Mr. Chairman, Doc Riley, excellent idea, Doc: Please delete ALL my threads & postings at GMIC ! Your behaviour is unjust, ridiculous and offensive. I am not motivated anymore to participate at GMIC, because it seems to me, to be more in a department of the US-Forces, than in an international and political NEUTRAL collectors club for militaria & decorations. Members of Non-NATO-nations do not have the same rights, as the others . Best regards & good luck Christian

Right, the 3 RB-entries look a bit strange, but the OK was issued in 1947 and ALL 3 RBs should be post-war according to their s/n. So, the writing is different. Maybe the comrade was a great test-pilot, who got his 2 RBs + 1 long-service-RB in the 1950s? Maybe he got his 3 RBs within one year: Tested two new aircrafts + 20 years in service? Best regards Christian

Dear Doc, please cool down . GMIC is not a platform of the US-Airforce or US-Army, but an international forum for medal collectors, phalerists and militaria collectors from all over the world. The fact is, that some of the GMIC-members served in recent conflicts. Another fact is, that some of the GMIC-members served in the same conflict, but at different sides of the front. So that rare coincidence happended right now with the NATO-YU conflict in 1999: You served as a medic for the US-Forces and you have got your decorations. I served at the so-called "Propaganda & Humanitarian Front" for Serbian Interests in Austria. My duty was to organize big humanitarian concerts (with a great number of artists from NATO-countries) against the bombing of Yugoslavia. I also got my decorations - the fragment of the F 117 was part of it. Doc, you and me had been military opponents in spring 1999. The US-Airforce destroyed a lot of our country and killed thousends of civilian people. The NATO had no legitimation from the UNO or from their own NATO-statutes to bomb Yugoslavia - that is a fact! The Serbs shot down some airplanes. That has been their right, due to their duty of defending their country. Such things use to happen in the course of wars . The war is over for almost 8 years. Serbia will be member of the NATO-"Partnership for Peace", as you could read some weeks ago in the papers. Here at GMIC we have a lot of US-members and also some members from Serbia, who all behave in a civilized way, as you can see. So, where is the problem? The war is over! Best regards Christian

Dear Nick, many thanks for keeping this thread alive . O.K., at GMIC are more members from the USA, than from Serbia, Russia or China - no doubt about this . You are right, my "cheeky-smily" was politically not correct . But the fact is, that the US-Adminstration will take the F 117 A out of service, after the shortcomings at the "Allied Force"-campain 1999. The problem with the F 117 A is, that as soon, as the "Nighthawk" opens the fuselage for bombing - you can see that at the attached painting "BEFORE:" -, the aircraft is somehow dedectable, if you have installed a system of three different radar stations, as the Serbs did. A rather simple method, but it worked, as the proof of it lies in the drawers of my orders & medals collection. I do not want to offend GMIC-members of the US-Forces, but the F 117 A "Nighthawk" seems to me in active duty as problematic, as the F 104 "Starfighter" had been in the 1960s. The NATO-pilots of the german "Luftwaffe" called the F 104 "Widowmaker" and "Earth Nail". The F 104 was phased out by the US-Airforce after only 9 years in service. Here is a link with further informations about the F 104: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F-104_Starfighter . So, if you compare the F 104 with the Soviet MiG 21, the Soviet aircraft outrated the US-plane in crucial points. There are some more examples of deficits & shortcomings in US-weapon systems in history, i.e. tanks in WW II. Best regards Christian

Dear Paul, according to sources from Russia, Greece (NATO-country!), Serbia, etc. the wreck of a third F 117 A was found close to the village of Bijeljina in Bosnia (RS). The second F 117 A at the Zagreb airport was not "seriously" damaged, but completly damaged, so it had to be wrecked. Best regards Christian

My fragment is from that part (foreground, left) of the downed F 117 A: