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Vlim · 09-28-2003, 07:56 AM

For completeness sake,

The M.L.K dj. inscription kinda puzzled me since it's not documented in the official list as published in Martens and De Vries 'Dutch Luger'.

But then again, many local arsenals didn't follow the rules as well as they should have when it came to inscribing the plates (low priority in a difficult time). The standards were revised just before WWII and organisation was gone from 1939 - 1945. In the period from 1945 - 1950, the Dutch were active in the east-indies in a time that became known as the 'police actions', a last attempt to win back territory and stop indonesian independance.

dj most likely represents the location (Djambi), a harbour town at the sumatran east coast (present day indonesia). Djambi was a garrison town that also had an airfield and had oil fields nearby, making it a place of strategic importance.

My current conclusion is that the MLK dj text stands for 'Militaire Luchtvaart KNIL Djambi'.
(military airforce Dutch east indies army).

The airport 'Paal Merah' in Jambi still exists today.

09-28-2003, 07:56 AM	#4
Vlim Moderator Lifetime LugerForum Patron Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Europe Posts: 5,053 Thanks: 1,036 Thanked 3,990 Times in 1,205 Posts	For completeness sake, The M.L.K dj. inscription kinda puzzled me since it's not documented in the official list as published in Martens and De Vries 'Dutch Luger'. But then again, many local arsenals didn't follow the rules as well as they should have when it came to inscribing the plates (low priority in a difficult time). The standards were revised just before WWII and organisation was gone from 1939 - 1945. In the period from 1945 - 1950, the Dutch were active in the east-indies in a time that became known as the 'police actions', a last attempt to win back territory and stop indonesian independance. dj most likely represents the location (Djambi), a harbour town at the sumatran east coast (present day indonesia). Djambi was a garrison town that also had an airfield and had oil fields nearby, making it a place of strategic importance. My current conclusion is that the MLK dj text stands for 'Militaire Luchtvaart KNIL Djambi'. (military airforce Dutch east indies army). The airport 'Paal Merah' in Jambi still exists today.