Which wings to wear on transfer to another Service?
 

Q on another UK forum. Army NCO pilot has transferred to the RN, and will be commissioned after BRNC.

Which wings should he wear? Army or RN?

It's a uniform thing, not a 'what you earned' thing - so it should be RN wings if employed as aircrew. I was presented with USAF wings but uniform is RAF wings. The place to get away with alternatives is on mess kit - although it still isn't correct.

Utter rubbish. He should wear the wings that he has been presented with. The wings he earned. You cannot wear a set of wings when you have not been presented with them. If he wears RN Wings at BRNC then he will be booted down the hill.

Not quite the same ballpark, but I joined BRNC with a guy who had been a TA Para. He wore RN para wings on his (as they were then) No.5s.

All the RN observers that I knew and who transferred across to be (then) navigators all wore the RAF brevet on transfer. If they had kept their Navy version where would they have worn it? Arm or chest? And could they have sewn it on to their woolly pully (the RN don't but the RAF do). In this case, if he maintains his Army wings, does that mean that the AAC to RN transferee can wear his Army wings on his white shirt (the AAC wear wings in shirt order). And again, where does he wear them on his Service Dress/Mess kit?

Not sure what those who have transferred from another nations service do (i.e the Kiwi FJ pilots) but, officially, I'm sure they wear RAF Wings once they have formally transferred into the RAF. And what of those who have transferred from a UK Service to another nation - must be plenty of those lurking these boards. Do you wear the wings you were presented with or the wings of the Service/Arm you are know in?

Old traditions...
 

I remember some pilots wore the wings of "another service" on the opposite side (above the pocket) of their "A-1" uniforms for special or formal occasions. Same applies to medals and ribbons you received from "another service".
xxx
In the Belgian Air Force (which had RAF uniform traditions), the Belgian wings would be worn above the L pocket, and the RAF or USAF wings on the R side, if you were trained or served with them. The French do wear their wings on the R side of their uniform.
xxx
Ask your Wing Commander...!
:ok:
Happy contrails

Speroid - look at it this way - once you've left for good any of the Services, you don't wear that uniform, end of story. Why, having left the Army, would he carry on wearing any item/badge from his prior service?

OK, I know that retired RAF wear wings on their jim-jams, but apart from that...:}

I agree with Spheroid, you wear the wings you have been presented with. If presented with more than one type you can then decide. There are some uniforms which look awful with other service wings on them, I know a few who displayed the correct service wings on said uniform but had original wings inside the jacket lapel.


Someone transferred to the RN......... really!

I was crewman (33 Sqn) for the 'loony one', on his trip from Odi to Cranwell, where he went in Capt Loony, and came out Flt Lt Loony.

He subsequently wore AAC wings, on the left- not sure if they ever changed.

CG

The Prince of Wales,

RAF wings with the RAF
RN wings with the RN
AAC wings with the Army

AFAIR he was presented with RAF wings at Cranwell and didn't do the appropriate RN or AAC Flying Courses.

I have come across some 'transferees' wearing wings which have been specially made with one half of their original 'wing' and the other half the wing of their new cap badge......

AA - Quite an interesting thread and, looking at your input at 1239, I am prompted to ask what the ruling was regarding the wearing of your very special wings in different naval uniforms?

Jack

PS I'm also reminded that I have yet to see a response to my PM of 24 April on a very similar subject .....:)

Dress regs are pretty specific, and not based on personal feelings.

0701. Only authorised RAF badges (including aircrew badges) are to be worn on RAF and PMRAFNS uniforms

and

c. A foreign flying badge is not to be worn with RAF uniform. This regulation does not preclude RAF personnel from accepting the presentation of a foreign flying badge

are both to be found here: RAF - Uniforms

I presume QRs will have the gen.

My green career was after my time in dark blue - I was barely out of nappies when I went to BRNC. My guess is that like my TA Para mate, I'd have had to wear RN wings. A "special" mate went to Cranners after his time in green - I'll have to ask him what he wore before he got his P brevet.

QSM

RAF -> RNZAF Wear RNZAF AWO Brevet

In days of yore when gaining your wings in Canada under the NATO scheme we were presented with small size NATO wings but never allowed to wear them. Pity really because they were rather neat.

AA

QTC 1

Jack

Notwithstanding any rules etc, I'd imagine that wearing another Service's Wings would soon get tedious, explaining to all and sundry why etc.

Bit like having your arm in a cast, you soon get fed up of explaining what you did.:)

IMHO it should be what you earned, not where you have gone. There are a number of RAF pilots with AAC wings and AAC pilots with RN wings. May be some AAC or RN with RAF but not seen

Regulations are only for the insanely board or upwardly mobile (unless it is going to stop you getting your ass shot off!!!)

At a secret airbase in Shropshire, we have a pilot who is ex Army and now RAF, he wears army wings and a hybrid brevet (army/RAF) on his flying suits, but on his No1's he wears RAF brevet. Starting to see a lot more crossovers coming through now, couple on the courses at the moment. They're obviously seeing the light (blue).