Jump to content

Some of mY Air Corps/Air Force wings


USMCRECON
 Share

Recommended Posts

Two more to go! This is a pair of sewn-on bullion wings attached to a USAF officer's blue Ike-style uniform jacket. These were posted a year or two ago along with the entire uniform.

 

post-1107-1299424732.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This one is a nice set of bullion Senior Pilot's wings that awe mounted to a USAF Colonel's blue uniform blouse. They're clutch-back mounted but one of the clutch posts is a bit loose so I didn't want to try taking them off the uniform to photograph the back. The interesting thing about this one is the other wings that were over the right pocket. I'm not sure of the vintage, but they're Nationalist Chinese (Senior??) Pilot's wings. I've included a picture of them as well since they were on the US uniform.

They look like they have a goldish tint in the picture but they're slightly tarnished silver in color.

 

I have a handful of other wings that I didn't bother to photograph since they are not all that different from examples already posted or would be hard to remove from a uniform to show the back. Beyond that, I just got tired of photographing them. ;)

 

I hope those of you who view this thread enjoy looking at them. A couple forum members have already commented on a couple of the wings and I invite anyone else who wants to to comment on any of my wings.

 

post-1107-1299424796.jpg

 

post-1107-1299424803.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A terrific collection USMCRECON! Here's a pair of British-made wings from my collection to compare with yours.

 

post-8022-1299422172.jpg post-8022-1299422334.jpg

Sabrejet :thumbsup:

This is the one I really wanted to post and messed up twice.....going to go lay down now. :D

 

Thanks for the comments and for posting ther pictures of your wings, Sabre. After seeing yours, I feel better about the stampd pair I have with the cotter pin mount. :thumbsup:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've posted some of these wings previously and many were photographed through the glass of the display case. Yesterday I took the screws out and opened the case to clean the glass and thought it might be a good time to take some photos of them. Since I was in the mood to do some photography, I went ahead and photographed several others that are attached to uniforms. I'll probably be posting them a handful at a time over the next coiuple days until I get throuhj them. Anyway.......here we go:

 

This one is sewn to the blouse so I can only photograph the front. I've had this uniform for probably at least 10 years. It belonged th (then) Captain George Kenney, later Commander if the 5th AAF in WW-II.

 

post-1107-1299359382.jpg

 

This bullion wing is very interesting and I was pleased to see it on your thread. I have the same pattern on a Boston-made WWI jacket to a Lt. Mine is for a military aviator (with the star of the top). I have studied my wing very carefully, and frankly I like it a lot and don't think it is fake. Mine has been on the uniform for a very long time, but it is hard for me to believe that a Lt. actually earned the military aviator ranking. So one wonders what is the story there?

 

On the other hand, I have discussed this wing with a number the more advanced WWI wing collectors, and it kind of falls in the 50:50 range. Some think it is perfect, some think it is a fake. As I said, I lean towards it being a good wing and am happy with it in my collection. To date, I have yet to see any other wings in this pattern other than yours. What type of provenance do you have?

 

Patrick

post-1519-1299440068.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This pair I'm not so sure about. I've had these so long that I don't even remember when I got them....probably 15 years ago or more. I looked at the gold US with a magnifying glass and the letters look to me to have been applied separately. It has some sort of marks on the back but I don't know what thy mean. Any comments would be welcome.

 

post-1107-1299360041.jpg

 

Hello,

 

Sorry, but I believe that this is one of Joe W reproductions of a extant wing. I may very well be wrong, but I had heard that the original (I believe to be shown here http://www.flickr.com/photos/17280737@N02/2352127174/ ) was used to make a series of copies. I periodically see these on ebay being sold.

 

Sadly, I think that wing No 16 and 41 are also maybe "collector copies".

 

Patrick

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hello,

 

Sorry, but I believe that this is one of Joe W reproductions of a extant wing. I may very well be wrong, but I had heard that the original (I believe to be shown here http://www.flickr.com/photos/17280737@N02/2352127174/ ) was used to make a series of copies. I periodically see these on ebay being sold.

 

Sadly, I think that wing No 16 and 41 are also maybe "collector copies".

 

Patrick

Hello Patrick. Thank you for both your comments. The bullion wings on the Kenney uniform are one of my favorites as well. As for the wings you believe to be repros, I had doubts about those as well. I've had them for several years but, mercifully, none of them were particularly expensive. Thank you for taking the time to reply.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This bullion wing is very interesting and I was pleased to see it on your thread. I have the same pattern on a Boston-made WWI jacket to a Lt. Mine is for a military aviator (with the star of the top). I have studied my wing very carefully, and frankly I like it a lot and don't think it is fake. Mine has been on the uniform for a very long time, but it is hard for me to believe that a Lt. actually earned the military aviator ranking. So one wonders what is the story there?

 

On the other hand, I have discussed this wing with a number the more advanced WWI wing collectors, and it kind of falls in the 50:50 range. Some think it is perfect, some think it is a fake. As I said, I lean towards it being a good wing and am happy with it in my collection. To date, I have yet to see any other wings in this pattern other than yours. What type of provenance do you have?

 

Patrick

:huh:

 

Those two bullion wings are definitely a match, and the Military Aviator wing on a Lieutenants uniform should raise a question or two.

 

According to War Department Bulletin No. 35 dated 4 May 1914, only Regular Army "career" officers with the rank of Captain or above, and with a minimum of three years flying experience as a Junior Military Aviator (JMA), could qualify for a Military Aviator (MA) rating. That regulation ruled out any Reserve Military Aviator (RMA) from ever being able to qualify as a MA; however, one (1) exemption to that regulation was made right after the Armistice was signed via an Act of Congress when a small group of RMA Captains who had seen combat during the war were given a Military Aviator rating.

 

Like Patrick, it would be interesting to know what provenance the bullion RMA wing attributed to General George C. Kenney might be.

 

See pictures below:

post-4542-1299550328.jpg

post-4542-1299550351.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

John Cooper
Could these be Smilo?

 

Very nice wings Bill, all of them!!

 

Although I do not collect the earlier wings I love to see them :thumbsup:

 

 

Cheers!!

 

 

I think they are and the other two are LeVelle.

 

John

Link to comment
Share on other sites

John Cooper
Here's a shirt-sized pilot's wing. It's nicely made and rather broad in design. It has no markings other than sterling.

 

post-1107-1299368257.jpg

 

 

I consider this to be a Bell pattern.

 

John

Link to comment
Share on other sites

John Cooper
This is a pair or almost identical Balfour wings except that they are Command Pilot wings. I believe they are from the same era as the Senior Pilot wings above.....comments welcome, as always.

 

post-1107-1299424464.jpg

 

 

I LOVE these the two Balfour wings very nice!

 

John

Link to comment
Share on other sites

:huh:

 

Those two bullion wings are definitely a match, and the Military Aviator wing on a Lieutenants uniform should raise a question or two.

 

According to War Department Bulletin No. 35 dated 4 May 1914, only Regular Army "career" officers with the rank of Captain or above, and with a minimum of three years flying experience as a Junior Military Aviator (JMA), could qualify for a Military Aviator (MA) rating. That regulation ruled out any Reserve Military Aviator (RMA) from ever being able to qualify as a MA; however, one (1) exemption to that regulation was made right after the Armistice was signed via an Act of Congress when a small group of RMA Captains who had seen combat during the war were given a Military Aviator rating.

 

Like Patrick, it would be interesting to know what provenance the bullion RMA wing attributed to General George C. Kenney might be.

 

See pictures below:

I've had both the WW-I and the 20s uniforms for a long time. If I remember correctly, I got them in the late 90s. The only provenance I have is that they're named and the seller had several items from the Kenney "estate" for sale. I had no reason to doubt him at the time. :ermm:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I LOVE these the two Balfour wings very nice!

 

John

I like them as well. Both are in almost unworn condition. Both came with sterling clutches and the detail is very nice and sharp. I also like the very fine detail of the horizontal lines in the fill area between the two lower legs of the star on the Senior Pilot's wings.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

:huh:

 

Those two bullion wings are definitely a match, and the Military Aviator wing on a Lieutenants uniform should raise a question or two.

 

According to War Department Bulletin No. 35 dated 4 May 1914, only Regular Army "career" officers with the rank of Captain or above, and with a minimum of three years flying experience as a Junior Military Aviator (JMA), could qualify for a Military Aviator (MA) rating. That regulation ruled out any Reserve Military Aviator (RMA) from ever being able to qualify as a MA; however, one (1) exemption to that regulation was made right after the Armistice was signed via an Act of Congress when a small group of RMA Captains who had seen combat during the war were given a Military Aviator rating.

 

Like Patrick, it would be interesting to know what provenance the bullion RMA wing attributed to General George C. Kenney might be.

 

See pictures below:

Something I just noticed when looking at the comparison picture cliff posted of my WW-I bullion wings next to the ones Patrick posted with the star in his comment got me thinking about something....the black wool backing above the shield on my wings is cut very close to the shield, where there is considerably more border around other areas. I went back and looked at mine uniform again this morning and I believe mine originally had a star above the shield which was carefully trimmed off before they were sewn on the blouse. Perhaps the wings with the star were all that were available. Maybe the maker cut the star off....I don't know. Could also be that its just the way they were made cropped close like that above the shield.

 

I'm certainly no wing expert but, as with Patrick, these have been on the blouse for a long, long time and I believe them to be original and authentic. That said, there's nothing at all wrong with healthy skepticism and I welcome everyone's opinions. I thank all those who have commented on my wing collection and also welcome any further comments.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...