SA1794 Posted July 2, 2016 Share #1 Posted July 2, 2016 I came across these wings and patch today. The wings are marked "sterling" no other markings. Any information about them will be greatly appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sully Posted July 2, 2016 Share #2 Posted July 2, 2016 The patch is a British made 9th AAF. I can't help you with the wing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firefighter Posted July 2, 2016 Share #3 Posted July 2, 2016 I think the wings, maybe, a home front type pin.The center seal looks like the old AAC insignia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SA1794 Posted July 4, 2016 Author Share #4 Posted July 4, 2016 Thanks Sully and Firefighter for the help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pfrost Posted July 6, 2016 Share #5 Posted July 6, 2016 Those wings are sometimes attributed to civilian flight instructors although they could also be sweetheart items. here are a set, with the top being directly identified as a civilian instructor. I'm surprised that Russ didn't chime in. P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SA1794 Posted July 6, 2016 Author Share #6 Posted July 6, 2016 Hey pfrost - thanks for the info. The wings are just a bit over 3" long. Do you have any idea when these wings were used? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pfrost Posted July 6, 2016 Share #7 Posted July 6, 2016 Hi, Your wings are almost 100% from WWII time period. But this particular pattern of wing (usually seen with an LGB hallmark) was very popular and you see numerous airlines using this pattern into the modern day. I suspect that the pattern was something you could order from LGB and have just about any center device put into it that you wanted. These are very nice wings. Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustywings Posted July 6, 2016 Share #8 Posted July 6, 2016 Like Patrick, I'm somewhat on the fence as well with these types of wings. A number of experienced collectors believe they are high quality sweetheart pieces... and other well-informed collectors believe they're generic Civilian Flight Instructor wings for those employed at Contract Flight Schools during WWII. Finding an old Flight School photograph of them being worn would certainly solidify their identity, but unfortunately I've never run across such a picture. On the other hand, I did find a set of near identical USN wings many years ago with a matching cap badge, which adds credence to them being viable insignia for a Flight Instructor. Both the wings and matching cap piece are marked "LGB - Sterling." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firefighter Posted July 6, 2016 Share #9 Posted July 6, 2016 Rusty that is very cool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SA1794 Posted July 7, 2016 Author Share #10 Posted July 7, 2016 Thanks everyone for the info and education. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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