+ Reply to Thread
Results 1 to 2 of 2

Thread: Zeljava Air Force Base, The former Yugoslavia

Click here to increase the font size Click here to reduce the font size
  1. #1
    Contributing Member Flying10uk's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2015
    Last On
    Yesterday @ 10:53 PM
    Location
    UK
    Posts
    5,075
    Local Date
    03-28-2024
    Local Time
    06:02 PM

    Zeljava Air Force Base, The former Yugoslavia

    I have been aware of the existence of this underground former airbase in what was Yugoslaviaicon for some time but the documentaries etc in which I have seen it featured have only really shown what is left of it above ground. The reason that documentaries etc haven't shown what is underground is because, as I understand it, it is considered too dangerous for anyone to enter the underground complex because of the general state/condition of the place and the underground passages may have been mined and or booby-trapped.

    Zeljava airbase was featured on a documentary again yesterday but only above ground. I thought that surely an "Urban Explorer" must have been into the complex, filmed it and put it on Youtube. I have always wondered why the underground complex hasn't been put to some form of use after the end of the Yugoslav wars. Sure enough it is on Youtube.

    One has to give whoever was given the task of wrecking this underground complex ten out of ten for their efforts. One wouldn't have thought it possible to make such a thorough job of destroying an underground complex that was once one of the most expensive civil engineering projects in Europe.

    I am not suggesting that anyone should travel to Zeljava and I am certainly not suggesting or encouraging anyone to go underground into the complex because, as stated, my understanding is that it may have been mined/booby-trapped and even if not it is still very dangerous due to it's general state and condition.


    Information
    Warning: This is a relatively older thread
    This discussion is older than 360 days. Some information contained in it may no longer be current.

  2. Thank You to Flying10uk For This Useful Post:


  3. # ADS
    Friends and Sponsors
    Join Date
    October 2006
    Location
    Milsurps.Com
    Posts
    All Threads
    A Collector's View - The SMLE Short Magazine Lee Enfield 1903-1989. It is 300 8.5x11 inch pages with 1,000+ photo’s, most in color, and each book is serial-numbered.  Covering the SMLE from 1903 to the end of production in India in 1989 it looks at how each model differs and manufacturer differences from a collecting point of view along with the major accessories that could be attached to the rifle. For the record this is not a moneymaker, I hope just to break even, eventually, at $80/book plus shipping.  In the USA shipping is $5.00 for media mail.  I will accept PayPal, Zelle, MO and good old checks (and cash if you want to stop by for a tour!).  CLICK BANNER to send me a PM for International pricing and shipping. Manufacturer of various vintage rifle scopes for the 1903 such as our M73G4 (reproduction of the Weaver 330C) and Malcolm 8X Gen II (Unertl reproduction). Several of our scopes are used in the CMP Vintage Sniper competition on top of 1903 rifles. Brian Dick ... BDL Ltd. - Specializing in British and Commonwealth weapons Specializing in premium ammunition and reloading components. Your source for the finest in High Power Competition Gear. Here at T-bones Shipwrighting we specialise in vintage service rifle: re-barrelling, bedding, repairs, modifications and accurizing. We also provide importation services for firearms, parts and weapons, for both private or commercial businesses.
     

  4. #2
    Advisory Panel browningautorifle's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2008
    Last On
    Today @ 01:16 PM
    Location
    Victoria BC
    Posts
    29,838
    Real Name
    Jim
    Local Date
    03-28-2024
    Local Time
    11:02 AM
    Quote Originally Posted by Flying10uk View Post
    it is considered too dangerous for anyone to enter the underground complex because of the general state/condition of the place and the underground passages may have been mined and or booby-trapped.
    All of that, mines are so numerous in Yugoicon it's likely they'll never be cleared. If you read the story about this place, part states... "The airbase was used intensively in 1991, during the Yugoslav Wars. During its withdrawal, the Yugoslav People's Army destroyed the runway by filling pre-built spaces (explicitly designed for the purpose) with explosives and detonating them. To prevent any possible further use of the complex by Croatian and Bosnia-Herzegovinan forces, the Military of Serbian Krajina completed the destruction in 1992 by setting off an additional 56 tons of explosives there. The ensuing explosion was so powerful that it shook the nearby city of Bihać. Residents of nearby villages claimed that smoke continued to rise from the tunnels for six months after the explosion."

    Our guys were stationed right there, Bihac and Krajina...winter of '92. The war was still on. It did have uses after too. Željava Air Base - Wikipedia
    Regards, Jim

  5. The Following 2 Members Say Thank You to browningautorifle For This Useful Post:


  6. Avoid Ads - Become a Contributing Member - Click HERE
+ Reply to Thread

Similar Threads

  1. Help ID this Air Force crate
    By BDaniel05 in forum Milsurps General Discussion Forum
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 05-17-2015, 04:11 PM
  2. WWII 03a4 scope base needs rear scope/base windage screws
    By sonnyboy in forum M1903/1903A3/A4 Springfield Rifle
    Replies: 9
    Last Post: 11-06-2014, 05:16 PM
  3. Update to Yugoslavia - Milsurp Knowledge Library
    By Badger in forum Milsurps General Discussion Forum
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 04-30-2008, 07:18 AM
  4. Update to Yugoslavia - Milsurp Knowledge Library
    By Badger in forum Milsurps General Discussion Forum
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 09-22-2007, 03:44 PM
  5. Update to Yugoslavia - Milsurp Knowledge Library
    By Badger in forum Milsurps General Discussion Forum
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 08-12-2007, 06:36 PM

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
Raven Rocks