RZM Fine Arts and Antiques Inc Presents: Ask the Appraiser

Greetings Jon. It seems you know a great deal about military memorabilia. Well, here’s something for you to please help my family with. My father was a pilot before, during and after World War II. He was very secretive about his experiences during the war. When we emptied his safe deposit box after his death, we found this item that I have photographed for you. I had never seen it before that day. We can’t find any information at all about it. I’ve even gone to several antique dealers, but they knew nothing about it and weren’t sure, if in fact it was even authentic. Can you tell us anything about this item? The fact that he kept it in a safe deposit box, does it have any monetary value? Thank you for your much appreciated time and attention.

Dan 

 The reason your father kept this item under lock and key is probably due to its value. You are in possession of a pair of rare and important World War II Chinese Flying Tigers pilot’s wings. Your father flew missions in China well before America’s entry into World War II. The bold enamel letters “CNAC” stand for The China National Aviation Corporation. The (CNAC) was created prior to, and integral during and after WWII. Before America’s entry in the Pacific War, CNAC pioneered the famous routes over the Himalayan Mountains between India and China. The CNAC as a whole provided airlift for the Flying Tigers, transporting personnel and supplies to and from various Flying Tiger bases. After July 1942, when the Flying Tigers were merged into the 14th Air Force, some of the Tiger pilots joined the CNAC. This is probably what your father did. Flying as much as 150 hours a month, in unarmed transports, these pilots flew in cloudy weather or at night to avoid deadly Japanese fighters. From April 1942, when the Burma Road was lost, to August 1945, CNAC crews made more than 38,000 trips over the Hump (Himalayan Mountains), transporting approximately 114,500 tons of vital personnel and materials to the Chinese and American forces in China, Burma, and India. This operation was so successful that the Berlin airlift post WWII was patterned after it. CNAC also played an important role in the Burma campaign supplies to Chinese and American ground forces, evacuating beleaguered Chinese and British troops and supplying the Ledo Road project with men and equipment. It was a cruel and demanding operation, from which many CNAC planes and their crews never returned. Your pilot wings are of solid sterling silver construction and as I can easily determine, have remained in very good condition. In addition, you still have the rare original cardboard box. Believe me, collectors love original boxes, and this particular box is rarely encountered. Now for the moment we’ve all been waiting for…. What’s the value? In today’s strong World War II military memorabilia collectables market, the value of these pilot wings with the original box are 2,500 USD. You may want to put them back in the safe deposit box, as these pilot wings are quite rare to encounter and most certainly will increase in value over time.