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U.S. Navy CBI Patch Variation


pararaftanr2
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Great jacket Paul!!!! Also photo.... it is first photo where I noticed third pattern of dye markers with riveted tie tapes.... I never see this type on photo before.... For bad luck I dont have more CBI stuff:(((

 

The best regards,

Jerry K.

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pararaftanr2

Hi Jerry,

Thank you! I knew you would appreciate it. Nice spot on the dye marker. I don't know the date this photo was taken, but it must have been very late in the war. Note he is wearing a Navy standard seat parachute with a "Quick Fit" harness that also has the adjustable straps for attaching a PK-1 raft carrier sewn to it. Here is something similar:

post-9787-1271849521.jpg

 

I don't want to go too far off topic, so here is another photo of the embroidered CBI patch in Navy use, this time in a colder climate:

post-9787-1271849929.jpg

Regards, Paul

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Hi Jerry,

Thank you! I knew you would appreciate it. Nice spot on the dye marker. I don't know the date this photo was taken, but it must have been very late in the war. Note he is wearing a Navy standard seat parachute with a "Quick Fit" harness that also has the adjustable straps for attaching a PK-1 raft carrier sewn to it. Here is something similar:

post-9787-1271849521.jpg

 

I don't want to go too far off topic, so here is another photo of the embroidered CBI patch in Navy use, this time in a colder climate:

post-9787-1271849929.jpg

Regards, Paul

 

Also, just for the record, CBI patches were also worn by USMC personnel assigned to the USMC aviation units based in China during the post war (pre-1949) period. I don't have any photos, but at one time we did own a USMC Green tunic with a I Marine Air Wing on one shoulder and a CBI patch on the other.

 

Patch Johnson

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pararaftanr2

Hi Patch,

Thanks for your input and the reminder about the Marines in China. That must have been a great looking set of greens with the CBI on it. I'm guessing it was on the left shoulder? Regards, Paul

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Hi Patch,

Thanks for your input and the reminder about the Marines in China. That must have been a great looking set of greens with the CBI on it. I'm guessing it was on the left shoulder? Regards, Paul

 

Paul,

 

I am sorry to report that I honestly cannot remember which shoulder had which patch. In hindsight, I wish I had saved it for posterity with a photo. I recall that it had Supply Sergeant chevrons (three up and one straight across stripe below), but I'm not a chevron collector and the exact nomenclature escapes me. Both patches were U.S.-made, although I have since seen several Chinese-made silk versions of the I Marine Air Wing patch. There were several USMC fighter squadrons stationed in mainland China during the occupation, including John Glenn's squadron.

 

Patch Johnson

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Hi Jerry,

Thank you! I knew you would appreciate it. Nice spot on the dye marker. I don't know the date this photo was taken, but it must have been very late in the war. Note he is wearing a Navy standard seat parachute with a "Quick Fit" harness that also has the adjustable straps for attaching a PK-1 raft carrier sewn to it. Here is something similar:

post-9787-1271849521.jpg

 

I don't want to go too far off topic, so here is another photo of the embroidered CBI patch in Navy use, this time in a colder climate:

post-9787-1271849929.jpg

Regards, Paul

Hello Paul... Yes I was thinking about this parachute and didnt notice at first that this model is late war "quick fit strap" ... It was exist at PTO theatre ??? Or like BP-1 and SP-1 pad... introduced a few months after war???

You have nice exapmle I can see :))) I had Q.A.C. example in the past in my collection...

 

Sorry for off topic...

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pararaftanr2

Hi Patch,

Thanks for the additional information. The reason I asked was that I've seen the CBI patch worn on the right shoulder by Navy pilots in a few photos, although as a theater patch, it was intended to be worn on the left. The cruise book for Air Group Eighty One, "Prep Charlie", has photos of pilots from VF-81, the Freelancers, some with the CBI on their left shoulder and some with it on their right. Unlike most Navy squadrons, who wore their squadron patch on the chest, they had a smaller left sleeve squadron patch.

post-9787-1271955779.jpg

Regards, Paul

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pararaftanr2
drop this guy an email he's a big CBI historian, [email protected]

Tell him "Siggy" sent ya.

 

Hi Siggy,

I took your advice and made contact with Gary via email. Unfortunately, it doesn't appear that he is familiar with this CBI patch variation, although he was kind enough to provide some background information on CBI patches in general. Thank you for the suggestion though. The search continues! Regards, Paul

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi Paul...

Im not sure if you are or not familiar with this suit... It went on ebay years or more ago...

CBI patch and even blood chit similar to type 3??? on the back... rare variation!!!

Best regards,

Jerry K.

post-369-1272984202.jpg

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pararaftanr2

Hi Jerry,

Thanks for sharing this. I have not seen it before. The chit appears to be what R.E. Baldwin, in his excellent book "Last Hope", describes as the first U.S. printed blood chit produced by MIS-X in March of 1944 and printed on cotton.

Some of those QF parachute harnesses you asked about earlier do appear to have made it out to the PTO prior to VJ Day, based on several vintage photos I've found. Regards, Paul

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  • 4 months later...

I recently found a group of photos on the NMNA web site from night torpedo squadron ninety (VT(N)-90) from their 1945 cruise aboard U.S.S. Enterprise. Among them was the following shot that shows one of the paint on khaki cloth CBI patches in use:

 

post-9787-1284558681.jpg

 

Note the non-standard location of the patch. I would speculate this was worn above the chest pocket by this pilot so as not to interfere with the left sleeve pencil pocket of his flight suit. Per the squadron history (also available on the web), this photo was taken on March 11th, 1945 when they were sailing north to support the Iwo Jima landings. "Last night we had a big air group blow-out, given mostly for the crewmen and using all three ready rooms.....Most outstanding feature of the evening, however, was the fact that they actually served beer for all hands and in quantity."

A previous entry, from 10 January 1945, states "We got some preliminary briefing today on the targets in China which we may be hitting soon. They issued us Chinese money and flags, same as the "Flying Tigers". Our strategy is to penetrate the China Sea as far as possible without being detected, always on the lookout for a contact with the main Japanese fleet."

The "Chinese money and flags", presumably, would have been issued, along with the painted CBI patch, in the vinylite pouch shown earlier in this thread.

 

Best regards, Paul

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Thanks for this great info and pics Paul...

The patch location is different for sure, Im curiosity how is sewn the patch from my flight suit photo above? For sure it is not printed version on khaki cloth... I think this one is smaller and could be sewn on sleeve without interfere with pencil pocket...

 

The best regards,

Jerry K.

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Hi Jerry,

The prescribed hight for the standard CBI patch was 3 inches. The painted on khaki cloth example I have, in it's untrimmed state, is 4 3/8th inches tall. I think this explains why the patch in your previous photo doesn't interfere with the pencil pocket, but the untrimmed version would. Another unanswered question that comes to mind is why didn't they trim the patch? Several of the vintage photos provided in this thread show the patch being used without trimming and retaining the square border. It would also appear that some of the patches are only loosely attached at best. Is it possible they were designed intentionally to retain the khaki border, be only loosely attached and, therefore, easily removable if warranted in a survival situation?

Best regards, Paul

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  • 1 year later...

Guys,

 

Wise aviators kept their id chits and patches INSIDE their jackets or pockets, not sewn on the outside. If you were shot down over northern China and found/located by Red Chinese forces, you would want to show them an American flag patch or chit, NOT one with the Nationalist Chinese flag or star on it. A small printed CBI insignia would be easy to keep in a pocket and show if need. In addition, it would not be good to have big bright chits and patches on the outside of your jacket, if you are trying to evade the Japanese.

 

 

Regards to all,

 

The Wharfmaster

 

 

In Peace and War. US Merchant Marine

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  • 6 years later...

This CBI patch looks just like the first example posted. The silver paint layer looks like it smeared some when being made. It looks kinda gray, but it is silver paint and hard to photograph.

 

I would appreciate any comments on it.

 

 

post-159669-0-69168600-1518320100_thumb.jpg

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doinworkinvans

Great thread.

 

So can anyone explain why this silver version is only seen for Navy purposes? Unless someone can show photographs of use in USAAF....

 

Any story on origin? I've seen these but don't really know why the Navy seemed to use these.

 

Thanks!

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  • 1 year later...

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