WINGS anyone?

[mott5ranch]

Any wing collectors out there? I have a few that I aquired over the years.

[Douglas J Schrack]

Wings

Outstanding! Would love to see a shot of the reverse pin and catch. I am the son of an 8th Airforce B-17 pilot, 306th,423rd "Grimreapers" Thurleigh (Bedford), England 1944,45.

Doug

[mott5ranch]

Thanks for the compliment Doug. Here is the back/flip side. One is a double clip type on a fixed needle. The rest are standard needle pin back. I hope you can read the hallmarks.

[Greg S]

Nice wings, But what about the rest of the US wings, the para wings? The pilots get all the glory..there was a reason we jumped out of a perfectly good airplane. Nap of the earth flying was no joy. If you didn't lose your lunch then you didn't fly nap of the earth.

[VerKuilen Ager]

Just a note on the winged prop. While it had feathers, it wasn't what is commonly meant when collectors talk about "wings" (generally an insignia indicating qualification in a specialty: pilot, aerial gunner, navigator, bombardier, etc.). It was a cap badge for aviation cadets, and as such was basically a branch insignia.

[Adam H]

Question

Oi,

What's the wing second from the top? I'm sure I saw one the other day and while I recognized it as a US wing I had no idea what type as I know virtually nil about these things. Also, what era could it be from (was it used over a long period of time, etc?) and what value would it be estimated at?

Cheers,

Adam

[VerKuilen Ager]

The shield with wings is the U.S. Army Air Force qualification badge for Pilot. This design dates to March 1940 and continued to be worn after W.W.II by pilots of the new U.S. Air Force (the badge, in a somewhat different design dated back to W.W.I).

Variations of these are extensive and value varies wildly depending on the maker, style, fastener, whether it is sterling, etc. An unmarked, non-sterling, one piece clutchback might start in the $15-$25 range. Scarce, desirable types bring many hundreds of dollars. As in all fields, there are many reproductions around, so it helps to do some homework before getting involved with these.

[Mike Kenny]

Hi Gary,

Excellent topic and one I had also thought about starting. Now that you've got the ball rolling here's my contribution. It's only small but I've only been going for a year or two. The only wings that came cased were the Italian ones, which arrived today. I realise one of the Japanese "wings" is actually for landings/assaults but it looks good in the group anyway. The RAAF wings were actually frustratingly hard to get hold of. The only wings I have a question over (in my own mind) are the flat RCAF ones. The French and one set of RAF wings actually came from Germany! Has anybody seen a set of genuine WW2 Russian Pilot's "wings" recently - if so how much?

Regards
Mike K

[mott5ranch]

OUTSTANDING

Thanks for posting your grouping, Mike. I really enjoyed these. What are the last four wings? Is the checkerd red and white a Croation? Which one is the Japanesse wing, is that the round one? I have already printed this page and placed it in my little info book. I am putting together a three ring binder notebook of pictures for quick reference at a later time.

[Mike Kenny]

Hi Gary,

The red/white checkered is Croatian Air Legion (not a Pilot's badge as such). The round wreathed badge is a French Piilot's Badge - inter-war period based on the number and almost all the gilt finish has worn off leaving just tombak/bronze. Right of the Croatian badge is the Italian Pilot's Badge, still with crown and fascist symbol indicating pre-armistice ('43). Bottom left are the Japanese Army Air Force wings (I'd love a set of the solid silver graduation wings). Bottom right is the Japanese Army/Navy Landing Assault badge.

Regards
Mike K

[mott5ranch]

Mike, would you mind posting pictures of the reverse of those outstanding wings?

[Mike Kenny]

No Problems. Sorry some of the reverses are a bit dark - difficult to find a happy medium between highly reflective silver and matt black! X250 scans are available, but not for posting (too big)!

Regards
Mike K

[Garynh2]

OK, here are mine. Not a very good pic but you'll get the idea.

Gary
Semper Fi

[mott5ranch]

Nice group, Gary

I take it you are a leather neck, or should I say jar head. One of my good buddies was a Marine DI. He has a short fuse and suffers from high blood pressure, I wonder why. Anyway back to your wings, again nice set, what are the top two wings? I can't really make them out. I like the helicopter wings at the bottom but I don't know what the cloth wings next to them are. Can you inform me? Thanks!

I picked these up today at an Antique/Estate warehouse selling house. I have no idea what these first two are.

back side


Here is a bomber wing...maybe US?




Anyone know the value of these? I have $20 in each set.

[mott5ranch]

Don't tell Ranger, but...........

I found these also. They are WWII issue. Both are clutch backs and sterling marked.