Patches / Badges

[beerdrinker]

My dad flew Valettas from Changi in 1954 and Beverleys from Abingdon in 1960.

I remember he flew in Light Blue flight suits (growbags) on both types, but I am pretty sure that he did not have any patches/badges on those flight suits - perhaps with the exception of wings.

Nowadays all Air Arms (from US to Russian, from Australian to British etc etc) have aircrew in Flight Suits with badges on them - either fixed or velcroed. Squadron badges, name badges, hours badges etc etc.

My question is - when did flight suits first have these badges/ patches and which Air Arm started the practice?

BD

[Herod]

It was a long time ago, but when I was flying in the military we had flying suits with badges for "morale and bravado", but another one without anything except rank for "going to war".

[CoffmanStarter]

IIRC ... in the 70's ... Royal Navy aircrew had the habit of backing their Squadron/Unit badges with the garish day glow orange vinyl material used for Flight Safety Equipment. Talk about looking like Christmas Trees :cool:

[Ken Scott]

A bit of googling & I found a picture of a Vampire pilot from 1951 with a great big sqn badge on his left breast.

Lack the technical skills to post it though....

[CoffmanStarter]

Ken ...

This one ?

http://72squadronassociation.webs.com/DENYS%20MOBBERLEY%20WITH%20VAMPIRE757.jpg

Coff.

[Tiger_mate]

On 230 Sqn the Sqn crest on the right shoulder meant you were 'Combat Ready' which changed over the years to a pentagon on the left shoulder. Either way, a CR crewmember would have both badges.

These days it is more likely to be five years holding or 1000 hours MTV.

The jet mates tended to have badges reflecting hours on type.

[John Eacott]

IIRC ... in the 70's ... Royal Navy aircrew had the habit of backing their Squadron/Unit badges with the garish day glow orange vinyl material used for Flight Safety Equipment. Talk about looking like Christmas Trees :cool:

Outlining in dayglo by the SE was around in the 60's. The ship's SE was a hive of industrial sewing machines as they were responsible for all manner of safety equipment, so name badges and squadron crests were all part of the daily workload. Goon suits had the badges stuck on, of course :ok:

The current squadron badges would be on the right shoulder, all others would be added as thought appropriate. The best I saw was one of our USN exchange drivers who had his oversize "Gulf of Tonkin Yacht Club' badge across the back of his leather jacket :cool:

(GoTYC was for those who ditched after action in VN and used their rubber boats before being rescued)

[Spanish Waltzer]

What's with the extendable sleeves in that picture? His arms appear usual length for an average human so how come he has a mr tickle growbag?

[Danny42C]

beerdrinker,

I remember those blue things your Dad had. Top zip just wouldn't come down far enough, bottom one wouldn't come up far enough. Difficult ! (looked smart, though).

D.

[Geehovah]

In the 70s it was op badge on the right arm, informal sqn badge on the left and fill the remaining gaps as required. The velcro was so we could be anonymous if captured. Funny that those anonymous badges were RAF crest shaped!

[Wrathmonk]

fill the remaining gaps as required

with QWI patch, TLP patch, 1000+ hour patch, name badge, wings/brevet, flag of nationality patch etc.

Some individuals had more badges than a cub scout!;)

[exMudmover]

Many of my era thought that the proliferation of badges was undesirable. Like medals for crossing the Atlantic and rifle shooting - yet another American influence on the good old RAF tradition of minimum bull****.

One particular abhorrence was the “hours flown on type badge”, showing off that the aircrew in question had so many thousand hrs on a particular type.

My suggestion at the time - sadly not followed up - was that each aircrew member would wear a smart badge in which the number of hours shown could be increased after each flight. Hence, for example, Fg Off Farnes-Barnes (469 hrs on type) could lord it over Plt Off Prune with only 397 hrs.

I still think it’s a good idea.

[teeteringhead]

ISTR 72 took the p*** out of N-number of hours badges with their (IIRC) 16 000 000 rotor revs in NI badge.

It equated to about 1100 hours, depending how often you'd over-revved!:E

[Fox3WheresMyBanana]

Re Rotor Revs:

Area Flight Safety conference

Host "Anyone had an airmiss?"

Chinook FSO: "I've had 2 million of 'em!"

[Ken Scott]

Coff: indeed, that's the one. I must take some IT lessons sometime....

[WIDN62]

With regard to the "1000 Hrs on xxxx" badges, in the days of RAF Stanley, a video player was modern technology and videos hard to come by. One particular Herc crew had a "1000 hrs Life of Brian" badge made.

[ksimboy]

Think you may find it was actually the " World Famous Wimp Det" that had the 1000 hrs Life of Brian patches. 1312 crews brought their own favourite videos to supplement the SSVC brown boxes.

[L J R]

Always carrying a 'competitor' squadron's patch on away trips was a tactic utilised to divert less favourable (sub-par, uncrisp, 'less than ideal' sub-optimal) reporting of said trip by PMC/Staish/SWO of visited establishment to another squadron.

[Wetstart Dryrun]

...salt rings around the armpit used to be the badge of measured effort.

...and whether you were married or single

regards

wets

[Lightning Mate]

...salt rings around the armpit used to be the badge of measured effort.

Speak fer yerself!

[Lightning Mate]

In the 'Nam era the "100 missions" badge was common with US crews.

So we, the Frightening Force, invented one too:

"100 Missions North Sea - Turning Circle Expert". :)

[Dan Winterland]

Back to the OP's request for info - in those days, embroidered badges were chuffing expensive. Automatic embroidery machines which could produce something like a Sqn crest didn't exist and the badges were hand sewn in places like India at great expense. They could cost a large chunk of one's monthly pay and were usually paid off in installments. My Dad wore no badges on his flying suits until the mid 60s and then it was just one Sqn crest. I have his 249 Sqn crest which is quite clearly hand made, but a real work of art.

[woptb]

There was a Harrier Sqdn Eng WO in RAFG with a 'Harrier VSTOL Fighter Pilot, hours flown patch.
He would take any T bird 'jollies/trips' to increase his 'hours' at the expense of a 'reward' trip for the troops.
A new OC arrived,put a stop to it & told the gimp to stop displaying his 'fighter pilot' patch.As an ex Ginger,I feel qualified to discribe him as a complete O2 thief.

[500N]

The old style embroidery with the gold wire was superb.

I also had a very close look at my units Colours one day,
the detail in those was unbelievable.