Prussian Pilot Badge; TR Era Restrike, or...

[mgidhagen]

I have no idea whether this aerial gunner is a legit type or not (however unofficial...?), but at any rate, the very same type of hardware is used...?

[Tiger 1]

This is a 1960s strike.

Bob Hritz

Bob,

It may be from the '60's.

But...............

I don't think it's a 'restrike'. A restrike would logically involve an original die. The pilot's badge shown has the laurel berry to the left of the building in the field. If I remember right this berry is not present on any period original pilot's badges.

I think it's from a completely new die cut specifically for the 'collector's' market possibly during the 50th anniversary commemoration in the late 1960's honoring German aviators of WWI.

Tony

[mgidhagen]

The pilot's badge shown has the laurel berry to the left of the building in the field. If I remember right this berry is not present on any period original pilot's badges.

Meybauer pilot badges had this berry present... (But, nothing else is Meybauer in this design.)

/Mikael

[Ferg 1]

Just about to say that myself, Maybauer has the supposed berry that marks out a fake. I never agreed with that theory about the spurious berry, I have seen other badges as well as Maybauer examples that were fairly certainly war issue or fairly soon after that had this berry.Ferg1.

[mgidhagen]

Hardware comparison

Ok, whether it establishes the pilot badge as a fake, a '60s copy or anything else; here is the side-by-side comparison with the air gunner badge. It is not a 100% match, but VERY close.

At any rate, as this is an undoubtedly worn example of a pilot badge (holding it, I am certain that this is not a case of faked signs of wear); who were (entitled to?) wearing these badges in the 1960s, aside from the qualified pilots of WWI?

I do understand that this is a relatively uninteresting badge, but I just try to be able to identify it correctly...

Cheers,
Mike