Jump to content

Unknown patch - US Coast Guard Cape May NJ ?? YES


35th USAAD

Recommended Posts

I recently acquired this patch. It is 5" Dia, poly thread fully embroidered. I think it is a US Coast Guard SAR patch from the Cape May, NJ base, most likely from the mid to late 60's. The Mosquito (?) is holding what looks like a SAR rescue basket (?) Thanks in advance for any ID help you and give me, Louis

 

post-6443-1324674941.jpg post-6443-1324674947.jpg

Link to comment
Johnny Signor

I think it's most likely a USCG Cape May station patch , the "dot" where it says "Cape May" seems to indicate that and the little mosuito fellow is definatly a "search and rescue" type , probably a 1950'-60's era patch.

Johnny

Link to comment
VirtualMariner

I agree, it looks like a Station Cape May patch. I haven't seen one before, so I can't say for sure, but it's probably from the now defunct Air Station Cape May. Nowadays, I believe the Air Station is at Atlantic City. Also, rather than a mosquito, that could be a dragonfly. There was an HO3S-1 Dragonfly helicopter used by the Coast Guard at one time. If that is what it represents, that may also help date the patch if you can discover if/when that type helicopter was used at Cape May. Incidentally, the Coast Guard's first air station was at Cape May.

Link to comment
Johnny Signor

I think he's a "skeeter" note the long thin "snoot" on him, but it could have been meant to represent the "Dragonfly" helo as well , it's worth a little "Net" time to find out .....................................

Johnny

Link to comment
Garth Thompson

History of USCG AirSta Cape May, notice the only helos mentioned are the HH-52 & HH65

 

"Ever since 1917 the site now occupied by Coast Guard Air Station Cape May has been intimately involved with military aviation. Over half a century ago pilots of the First Marine Aeronautic Company were trained at Cape May. And during the remainder of World War I Navy seaplanes--and a lone dirigible-conducted antisubmarine patrols along the New Jersey coast from this site. When peace arrived, the Navy converted the station to a construction site for lighter-than-air craft. Nor is the Cape May Air Station new to the Coast Guard. Of all the Service’s air stations, only Gloucester, Massachusetts, has an earlier place in Coast Guard aviation.

 

The first Coast Guard Air Station Cape May was commissioned in 1926 under the command of Carl C. Von Paulsen. It was equipped with one seaplane and one amphibian aircraft -- both of which were used for rescue and anti-smuggling operations. Chief Warrant Officer Charles Thrun flew the first of three amphibian biplanes into Cape May, New Jersey, on the 29 October 1926. Originally assigned to Coast Guard Section Base 9, Cape May, these three aircraft and the men who flew them became Air Station Cape May. Their original mission was to patrol the shores of New Jersey to locate rum smugglers during Prohibition. The various types of aircraft which flew out of Air Station Cape May were hangared in a former Navy blimp hanger and launched into the harbor on a wooden ramp.

 

In the 1930s, an aviation school for enlisted men was set up at Cape May. The Coast Guard maintained its operations until 1938 when the Navy returned. During World War II Navy pilots trained at Cape May for operations on aircraft carriers. Navy operations continued throughout the Second World War until 1946 when the station was returned to Coast Guard control. In 1948 the site became the Coast Guard Recruit Training Center.

 

A new Air Station was commissioned on 17 July 1969. In the mid-1960s, the United States witnessed a rapid growth in recreational boating. In response, Congress reestablished Coast Guard Air Station Cape May. On July 17, 1969, Captain Thomas Carter assumed command of Air Station Cape May and simultaneously assumed the position of Commander, Group Cape May. It was the first air station to utilize the "Group" concept wherein all operational units in a give area including the air station would be under a single command. This reestablishment of Air Station Cape May included two HH-52 Sea Guards, 13 officers and 33 enlisted crew. A third HH-52 was added to the Air Station’s complement in the early 1970s.

 

In 1987, the Coast Guard replaced the aging HH-52 with the HH-65 Dolphin. Group-Air Station Cape May was instrumental in the test and design phase of several HH-65 upgrades. Air Station Cape May was the first to have all its aircraft’s cockpit lighting made compatible with Night Vision Goggles making the H-65 infinitely more effective in night search and rescue. A special camera was installed in the hoist boom to document hoisting. A Traffic Collision Avoidance System was first fully implemented in Cape May aircraft.

 

The Air Station closed on April 28, 1998. Group-Air Station Atlantic City in its present form is the result of a Coast Guard aviation streamlining initiative to realign unit location with the capabilities of today’s modern aircraft. Air Station Brooklyn, New York and Group-Air Station Cape May, New Jersey resources were combined at the newly constructed $13 million facility at Atlantic City International Airport, which opened June 8, 1998."

 

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Link to comment
VirtualMariner
I think he's a "skeeter" note the long thin "snoot" on him, but it could have been meant to represent the "Dragonfly" helo as well , it's worth a little "Net" time to find out .....................................

Johnny

 

Yeah, looking at it again, I'd say you're right about it being a mosquito. Otherwise, it's a pretty sickly looking dragonfly. I didn't really pay attention to his "snoot" before, but that's the give away. Either way, I'd say this is still most likely a patch from the Air Station Cape May days. Which means it at least pre-dates April, 1998.

Link to comment
Johnny Signor

No question "Cape May" the words are right there on the patch and the little black "Dot" signifies the base , a lot of military patches did this with the base "local" with a "spot" to let you know that was where they were on the map/state shape .

Johnny

Link to comment
Garth Thompson
I'm pretty sure the insect represents a mayfly - you know, they FLY from Cape MAY so they are May-flys. Google mayfly and you'll see the patch illustration resembles mayflies.

Excellent deduction, makes perfect sense. The basket below the mayfly is the standard USCG lift basket and the fly is wearing the white helocrew hard helmet.

Garth

Link to comment

OK, after looking at pictures of May Flys and Mosquitos, IMO it looks like a Mosquito. Body and wing shape do not look like a May Fly and none had a snout like that!

 

Having spent most of my life living on the coast, mosquitos were always around in great numbers. In the Tidewater area of Virginia, they were rumored to be the size of small birds in some areas around Langley AFB. While the Cape May/May Fly observation fits, my vote is for the mosquito :)

 

Steve

Link to comment
  • 10 years later...

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
×
×
  • Create New...