I'll try to find the 111th again to get a better picture if needed.

Greetings! That's quite a stretch to assume this helmet was a "Little Bird" helmet used by the TF160 or later the 160th SOAR. I wore this helmet along with thousands, literally 10's of thousands of Army Aviators and Crewman from the early 80's till the mid 90's. Black CARC or any other black paint is not a validating factor. I kept my helmet as others did, it was painted by ALSE personnel various times, during Desert Storm there was wide latitude in painting helmets. No name or inspection data leads me to think it was a surplus or salvaged helmet.  Additionally the helmets used by the AH-6 or MH-6 crews were beat to hell. The cockpit is tight and there's very little room to stow it when taking it off or preparing to fly..every one I've seen are scratched m scarred and have indications of multiple modifications present.  Also if it belonged to the individual referenced in the obituary, it's surprising that his service in an elite aviation unit wasn't mentioned. It could have been something a crew chief or armament tech might have worn.

Thats amazing! I got it for 15$ so im quite shocked it is actually as rare as it is. Thank you guys!

Trying to determine value- brought back by me - member of 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team ( Artic Wolves- 2006- awarded valorous unit award) we were the unit in Mosul for a year that got extended for four more months for the surge and sent to Baghdad.  This is a 7 ft x 4 ft sign for the first election held in modern Iraq- i brought it back because of the historical significance.  AI says value $350-700-  just trying to see if that is accurate. Military show coming to town soon , and daughter starting college soon….. any input would be appreciated . 

and wanted to say hello. I’m in Somerset County, ‘bout 120 miles west of Gettysburg on Rt 30. Been a Civil War buff since I learned to read. So was my Dad. Also became infatuated with The Alamo and The Indian Wars on the Plains, particularly Custer and The LBH. I was a 63W in the Army (3rd shop wheeled vehicle mechanic) from 1985 to 1989 at Ft Lewis. My Old Man was a WW2 vet of the Second Armored Division (41srt Armored Infantry Regiment). Lately read “Dawn Like Thunder”  by Glenn Tucker, and I’m about 1/3 way into Ian Toll’s “Six Frigates”. I haven’t figured out quite how to work this forum yet.  But I’m looking forward to sharing some thoughts and discussions. PTRN

South Korea bringback:     The translation is “Crazy Joe”.

PT boats, were issued foul weather gear, just like every other unit. When it was required, the boat would draw however many sets they needed for the crew. When no longer needed, it would be turned into a central issue facility. The only markings would be the standard USN stamp and maybe a number from the Central Supply center issuing the gear.   Sailors did tend to “Procure “,  jackets that they particularly liked. It fit right, not all torn, greased or broken zippers, such as that.   The Navy, had no specific markings requirement, often, units would “Encourage” the guys to “Spiff Up” their jackets as a unit thing. They’d paint the squadron insignia on the back, get patches made and wear them on the front.   I don’t think individual Boat Patches were all that common. Guys bounced around the squadron, routinely filling holes in short handed crews, while their boats were being worked on. Additionally, boat crews mostly, lived ashore in barracks/tents, or on PT Boat Tenders, where they stowed most of their gear. 

These look fine to me. 

I was looking at patches worn by PT crews in the Pacific and ETO during WW2 on Motor Torpedo boats worn on jackets like the N1 deck jacket. Some patches as shoulder insignia and some squadron patches based on aircrews designs plus the stencilling also found on such jackets and clothing. Any one know if the posted patch is a standard patch worn by most PT crews or belongs to a certain squadron, would be interested to know this patches history. It also stated that it glows? so not sure if originals can be dangerous to collectors if they contain glowing radium on them for the glow effect.