WWII Jump Wings and Ovals

[Tonomachi]

I've only come across two of them. One I purchased on eBay that was not on an oval and this one which also sold on eBay. So I've only come across two of them and both have the Italian style tubular catch that you see on WW2 era Italian paratrooper and aviator wings.

[Kadet]

Another 505th oval/wing combo on a named Ike to a veteran of both the Normandy and Holland combat jumps

[Tonomachi]

Is this a 511th PIR unfinished or error oval missing the inner white border or maybe an unidentified quartermaster unit oval?

 

 

 

 

[Allan H.]

My vote is 511th missing the inner border. That is cool!

 

Allan

[chief4af]

Looking for help with ID and date of Manuf. of jump wings attached. Asian made came with a Meyers 1950 Army Pilot wings pin back.

 

Thanks

Marty

[Tonomachi]

I have the same image (rear only) of this same wing (see below) in my photo reference which I've had for years and never knew what the front looked like until now.  I can't remember where I found the image and why there was not an image of the front.   The fact that it came with a 1950s to 1960s era US Army pilot wing is interesting as I had always assumed it was either a theater made WW2 or post war occupation era piece.  It would be nice if someone could make out the Chinese characters on reverse which would tell us if it is of Chinese or Japanese manufacture.

 

The following is just speculation on my part.  What is obvious is the Chinese characters on the back indicating Chinese (Taiwanese) or Japanese manufacture.  The pin back assembly looks original to the wing which is a little baffling.  The pivot point pin back assembly attachment resembles the way in which the Japanese made copies of US paratrooper wings after WW2.  However this egg shaped ball catch was not used by any of the Japanese manufactures of US paratrooper wings during the occupation.  The Germans used a similar ball catch on one of their occupation era US paratrooper wings but this is obviously not of German manufacture.  The few WW2 era Chinese made US paratrooper wings that have surfaced in OSS related groupings use a very crude pin back assembly and doesn't match the pin back assembly on this wing.   None of the WW2 era Chinese (OSS Det 202 trained) airborne/commando wing variants utilize this pin back assembly.  

 

The US occupation of Japan lasted until September 8, 1951 and the US Army did not come out with their pilot wings until February 12, 1957.   We still had US forces that remained in Japan as well as Okinawa so this could still be a later period Japanese made copy of a US paratrooper wing.  From the front it has that pronounced zig zag chute skirt line that you see on a few pin back sterling paratrooper wings like the examples below.  

 

So I don't think we are going to be able to tell who, what, where and when unless someone can decipher the Chinese characters on the back.  I would consider this a rare piece as this is the only one that has surfaced to my knowledge and I have been looking for variants for my collection for many years now.   These is the off chance that this was made in India during WW2 and is OSS related.  The OSS Det 101 "Burma bars" were made in Calcutta during WW2 because the OSS weren't authorized to wear the CIB even though they were fighting like infantry in a war zone.  To rectify this injustice they came out with their own CIB they called the Burma bar.  Some of the Burma bars have this same egg shaped ball catch.  

 

 

[Giuseppe]

 

Good evening everyone. I could get hold of a jump wings. I would like to know, given your knowledge, if this is original and if it is from the period of the Second World War. I also put you a photo of another brooch that I already have if you can give me some information. I am writing to you from Italy

[Allan H.]

It appears that your wing could date to the WWII period. I do not however have much confidence that the stars have been affixed to the wing for all that long.

 

I would also mention that it is interesting that you have an officer's crossed rifle insignia for the 101st Infantry Regiment, which was a regiment in the 26th "Yankee" division. It has no connection to any airborne unit, and no, 101st A/B officers didn't wear collar brass with division numbers.

 

Allan

[Giuseppe]

They told me that finding WWII jump wings is difficult and expensive. This is on sale at a price below 100 euros. The stars also seem strange to me that there are. For the other brooch I know it has nothing to do with jump wings I wanted to understand who was wearing it Thank you

 

[WarRelics]

I saw this small set of jump wings for sale. They are described as possibly theater made. My question is are they theater made and if so, when and where. I know there were theater made wings but they are a mystery for me. I would appreciate some input on these. I have attached photos from the listing.

[Allan H.]

On 10/10/2022 at 4:00 PM, Giuseppe said:

They told me that finding WWII jump wings is difficult and expensive. This is on sale at a price below 100 euros. The stars also seem strange to me that there are. For the other brooch I know it has nothing to do with jump wings I wanted to understand who was wearing it Thank you

 

Believe it or not, WWII vintage parachute badges aren't all that difficult to find and can be purchased for under 100 Euro with ease. If the wing with the two stars were more convincing, it would command a much higher price.

 

Allan

[Allan H.]

I saw this small set of jump wings for sale. They are described as possibly theater made. My question is are they theater made and if so, when and where. I know there were theater made wings but they are a mystery for me. I would appreciate some input on these. I have attached photos from the listing.

 

Your wing is lapel sized, so I would expect it to be worn on a civilian coat. Most of these wings are pin back, so finding this one with a screw post is unusual. As I look at the post and the mounting base, I would say that the wing itself was not originally affixed in this manner. While it does look that there has been some grinding to the back side of your wing, I can't say that there was ever a pin and catch assembly affixed. I will say that the front of your wing looks much like other US made wings of this size, at least they do to me.

 

I would say that someone wanted a wing that they could attach with a screw post, and thus had a jeweler modify a wing for their use. It looks like it was done decades ago.

Allan

[triplecanopy]

I agree with Allan. It would be very hard to put a date of manufacture or place of origin on the wings in question. Any number of jewelry shops (both US and foreign) that cater to the military could have made or modified those small wings. I believe that they were made for civilian attire since they are unofficial both in size and color.

 

As a point of comparison, here are regulation size jump wings as shown in the left vertical column. In the next column are regulation miniature mess dress jump wings that are authorized for formal wear on mess dress uniforms. In the third column are  a mix of regulation and non regulation miniature wings that I have collected over the years.  In the far right column are wings like yours that were made for civilian wear. Small pins like these are often seen at military shows along with other novelty pins.

 

[WarRelics]

I had thought that they might have been made to wear on a helmet since they have a screw back but it makes sense that they were for another purpose since they aren’t full size. Thanks for your input guys. 

[Kropotkin]

Hello All,

 

Just picked up an oval online for not much at all and was wondering whether it’s a period piece or not. I’ve not included the photo of the front as it was so blurred you can’t tell anything from it. With the cotton webbing on the back I thought it was a punt with no real knowledge of these patches. Any thoughts welcome!

 

 

 

 

[Allan H.]

1 hour ago, Kropotkin said:

Hello All,

 

Just picked up an oval online for not much at all and was wondering whether it’s a period piece or not. I’ve not included the photo of the front as it was so blurred you can’t tell anything from it. With the cotton webbing on the back I thought it was a punt with no real knowledge of these patches. Any thoughts welcome!

 

 

 

 

WWII 505th PIR oval- US made.

 

Allan

[Kropotkin]

8 minutes ago, Allan H. said:

WWII 505th PIR oval- US made.

 

Allan

Great! Thanks, Allan. I’ve been looking for a genuine 505th oval to go with a Firmin jump wing I picked up in Leicester a couple of years back, which I like to think belonged to a 505th trooper given the location and that other attributed 505th Firmin wings are seen in this thread.

 

Thanks again!

[WarRelics]

I saw these wings while I was scrolling through some listings. They are described as being authentic WWII sterling jump wings. They weren’t described as clutch backs but on inspection of the photos they are. I couldn’t locate a hallmark or sterling on the back of them from the picture quality. Knowing that WWII clutch backs are difficult to find I’m curious as to what more experienced collectors think about them. I think they could be but the quality of the the pictures makes it difficult for me to come to a conclusion. Thanks for any assessments. 
 

[triplecanopy]

I believe that your wings are like the one shown below. This is an unknown maker in my opinion and most likely Post WWII. Some call these Assmann unmarked wings. I don't believe that Assmann made them, but they are similar in design to Assmann wings on the front. The back side tells the story. All real Assmann badges that I have seen and handled are marked with their distinctive letter A with an extended crossbar plus a number and the back side is completely different. In the case of basic Assmann jump wings it should be numbered 265. These wings below are Assmann look alikes and most likely made in Germany after WWII. The sterling clutches are removable and could be from any badge to include CIB's & EIB's. Your example shows a lot of polishing and wear, but you should probably see the similarity. It is a nice set of wings but most likely Post WWII.

[WarRelics]

Thanks for the feedback. I noticed the unique feathering on the wings which reminded me of being foreign made but I wasn’t sure about how much stock I could put in that feature alone. The back has that Meyer, GEMSCO look to it. I’m sure there are other makers who used this hollow back style. The two I mentioned are what came to mind offhand but that’s not to say that they were the only ones or that the wings I originally posted are made by them. Reviewing the photos again I’m not sure now that the posts aren’t nail head which would seal them as being post war without any doubt. The pictures from the listing are not very clear. Over all I’d have to agree with you that they are probably post WWII. I have a set of Assmann hallmarked wings in my collection that I am sharing pictures of. Mine don’t match either of those previously pictured. Thanks for your input and help 3C. 

[triplecanopy]

Your wings were made by Assmann, but were originally senior parachutist jump wings. Someone removed the star probably because Basic wings were not available and the owner was not Jumpmaster qualified. I have seen this done on both senior and master jump wings. The numbers tell the story. See photo below. Still a scarce badge to have.

[WarRelics]

Thanks for your input. I got them as part of a small grouping of wings from the estate of a former paratrooper or so the story went. I was more focused on a set that I knew with out a doubt was from WWII. I also knew that these weren’t but that they were valued by collectors. I hadn’t considered that they might have been converted to a basic wing from one of a higher grade. Thanks again.

[triplecanopy]

You are welcome. I have also seen Assmann master parachutist wings converted to basic after someone removed the star and wreath. Basic wings were more in demand evidently than the higher grades since it only takes five jumps to earn the basic and years of experience and jumpmaster qualification to earn the higher levels. Still the Assmann marked badges are getting harder to find as they only made them a short while after WWII up until sometime in the 1950's.

[WarRelics]

They are beautifully crafted wings. It’s a shame that they were altered from their original form. Thanks again for pointing it out to me. As someone on the forum previously said there’s always something new to learn!