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Firmin Command Pilot Wing


camelgreen44
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Cliff, thanks for pointing this one out,it is pretty close in design,although it dos have a couple slight differences. I guess i flew by this one,not taking much note,because he didnt list a hallmark.

Yes, it doesn't have a hallmark on the back; however, most notable is that its pin has a unique swivel device as can be seen in the photos below.

post-4542-1325600550.jpg

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camelgreen44

Ya,i didnt even look on the reverse, I was looking at the extended shoulders that attach to the wreath !

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Wingcommander

That pin's swivel device looks like something one would see on the back of a ww2 german badge.....Cliff any signs it could be a jeweller replacement or was it made that way? Very cool

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That pin's swivel device looks like something one would see on the back of a ww2 german badge.....Cliff any signs it could be a jeweller replacement or was it made that way? Very cool

Wingcommander,

 

If examined closely the swivel device does not appear to be a replacement... and I feel confident about that especially since the badge came directly from its original owner.

 

Kind regards,

 

Cliff

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Wingcommander,

 

If examined closely the swivel device does not appear to be a replacement... and I feel confident about that especially since the badge came directly from its original owner.

 

Kind regards,

 

Cliff

 

I had the pleasure of seeing this beauty in person last Saturday! It's gorgeous........these are great pics of a rare bird. How many Command Pilots were on the books, in the U.K. in 1944/45? Not many I would opine. Thanks for posting! Bob

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Here is a picture of the 8th AAF 2nd Air Division commanders taken in Sept. 1944. If anyone has a similar photo of the 3rd AD with Doolittle or any other 3rd AD commander, I'm looking for one.

 

The front row are the Wing and 2nd AD commander Gen. Kepner, all but 2 are generals, all are wearing a command pilot wing. The 2 rows in back are the fighter and bomber Group commanders, all of them Col & Lt. Col. ranks...only one of them wearing a command pilot wing (As far as I can see).

 

This is one data point that might be useful in defining how scarce those period command pilot wings might be.

post-3515-1325871567.jpg

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Another way to look at that picture is that this is a snapshot in time of about 1/3 of the 8th AAF combat command that oversaw their part in pounding Hitler and his Luftwaffe into submission.

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Terrific Command Staff photograph Paul!

 

While sifting through ebay listings this morning, I ran across this neat little WWI British-made sweetheart airplane pin (#180790090073). Since there's no reference to an American flag within the enamel, I have to assume it is pre-1917. What caught my eye was the pin attachment on the back. It is very similar to the pin applied to Cliff's nice Command Pilot wing. I think this might be one more lead indicating his wing is British made...and may have even been constructed with left-over findings from an earlier era.

 

Russ

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__KGrHqV__jkE8FzF_ZRbBPBgveB_iw__60_12_1__crop.jpg

post_4542_1325600550_1__crop.jpg

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camelgreen44

That is definately a gathering of Top Brass ! Very Cool Picture. I was also wondering, I guess anyone could have bought the Command pilot wing in downtown London durring the war? You wouldnt have to show any proof of entitlement. Also the sterling airplane does seem to use the same type of pin arrangement,Im sure there are more examples out there too. Good Find ,Russ.

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I suppose anyone could buy one of those wings but I wonder how often that really occurred. The price I've seen most frequently still attached to a WWII sterling wing still in its box is about $3 which would seem trivial now. But that $3 in 1944 was equivalent to about $38 now, which to my thinking would likely cause a c.1944 person to think a bit about making such an impulsive purchase of something they couldn't wear without risking some flak for doing so.

 

A collector might consider such a purchase, but in my long life as a collector of a number of things, I've tended to observe that I'm a distinct minority within the larger population who doesn't appreciate such things much. If my father was typical, then the 4 common sterling wings he brought home are probably about the norm. All of them were of his specialty as a navigator and there was no trace of another rating in his accumulation, nor of his having any interest in collecting the other ratings, even though he was a life-long stamp collector. Apparently he saw the wings and other badges more in the light of a regulation uniform accoutrement rather than objects worth collecting.

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  • 1 month later...
camelgreen44

Ahh! Howard, up here in North TX we only find English wings,you,being in the south,'Down Under' should come up with the Aussie Stuff !Ha

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Ahh! Howard, up here in North TX we only find English wings,you,being in the south,'Down Under' should come up with the Aussie Stuff !Ha

 

 

HAHA! Funny Denny!

 

You know all I find moth eaten Mexican Air Force stuff! :rolleyes:

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