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  #1  
Old 21-04-17, 09:33 PM
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Default Royal Fleet Auxiliary

Is it a bullion cap badge for officer of the RFA ? I only find pictures of ordinary cloth badges. Thank you.
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  #2  
Old 21-04-17, 11:37 PM
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Leading Rate beret badge. Officer is totally different.
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  #3  
Old 22-04-17, 08:48 AM
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Thank you. Is there any documentation about RFA badges on the web ?
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  #4  
Old 24-04-17, 02:58 PM
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Default Royal Fleet Auxiliary

That isn't even an RFA beret - it's the wrong colour! And I'm not convinced about the cap badge either.

There isn't a separate cap badge for Leading rates. As in the RN Leading rates are classed as Junior Rating's and wear a standard gold lurex beret badge.

Petty Officer rates and Chief Petty Officer rates wear similar badges to their RN counterparts but with the addition of the letters 'RFA' above the anchor. I believe that the cap badge for PO and CPO RFA rates is also worn on the beret.

I'll post some images of Royal Fleet Auxiliary ratings and officers cap badges a bit later. I'm afraid that there is very little information available re RFA insignia. It should be remembered that members of the RFA are classed as merchant seamen rather than members of the Royal Navy. As such officers wear merchant navy rank insignia.

Pete
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  #5  
Old 24-04-17, 05:25 PM
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Default Royal Fleet Auxiliary

Here are the images I promised.

The first image is one of the RFA beret. I'm afraid the colour hasn't come out very well - it is officially described as 'Pantone Blue' and in reality is a bit lighter than it appears in the image.

I have taken the other images from E.C. Coleman's 'Rank and Rate: Volume II: Insignia of Royal Naval Ratings, WRNS, Royal Marines, QARNNNS and Auxiliaries', published by The Crowood Press Ltd., 2011.

I have all the badges shown in my own collection but as I simply scan them they do not reproduce very well so I have used the illustrations from the book.

I have checked the MoD Badge Stock List and the only cap/beret badges worn by RFA ratings are those shown here - the one shown in your original post is not listed. And, as I said, it is attached to the wrong beret. It actually looks very like a badge for the Petty Officer rating with the crown cut off.

Although I have not shown it, RFA officers have their own beret badge. This is simply a smaller version of the normal cap badge.

I hope this is of some use to you!

Pete
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File Type: jpg RFA beret.jpg (43.5 KB, 12 views)
File Type: jpg Scan 5.jpg (34.4 KB, 20 views)
File Type: jpg Scan 7.jpg (42.2 KB, 13 views)
File Type: jpg Scan 8.jpg (28.2 KB, 13 views)
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  #6  
Old 24-04-17, 06:09 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Guzzman View Post
That isn't even an RFA beret - it's the wrong colour! And I'm not convinced about the cap badge either.

There isn't a separate cap badge for Leading rates. As in the RN Leading rates are classed as Junior Rating's and wear a standard gold lurex beret badge.

Petty Officer rates and Chief Petty Officer rates wear similar badges to their RN counterparts but with the addition of the letters 'RFA' above the anchor. I believe that the cap badge for PO and CPO RFA rates is also worn on the beret.

I'll post some images of Royal Fleet Auxiliary ratings and officers cap badges a bit later. I'm afraid that there is very little information available re RFA insignia. It should be remembered that members of the RFA are classed as merchant seamen rather than members of the Royal Navy. As such officers wear merchant navy rank insignia.

Pete
I believe the RFA has now issued the standard RN midnight/navy blue beret to all ranks. When I was serving in the RFA the junior ratings wore the distinctive RFA beret, but senior rates and officer wore the standard RN beret, officers had their own bullion RFA officers beret badge but senior rates mostly wore the normal RN PO/CPO beret badge when a beret was required (which was only when in a billet attached to the RN such as FOST) at sea nobody wore headdress except officers.

regards

Tony
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  #7  
Old 24-04-17, 06:14 PM
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Default Royal Fleet Auxiliary

Pictured, My headdress from my time in the RFA,

Tony
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File Type: jpg RFA Ratings Beret.jpg (46.6 KB, 33 views)
File Type: jpg RFA Petty Officer Plastic top current issue.jpg (53.5 KB, 24 views)
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  #8  
Old 24-04-17, 07:02 PM
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Default Royal Fleet Auxiliary

Hi Sailorbear

Nice to see your headgear from your time in the RFA! A great organisation! You are quite right - I should have added a comment about RFA officers and senior rates wearing normal RN berets. Sorry! And thanks for the info re what Senior Rates wore on their berets. To be honest, from my contact with the RFA they always seemed lax about wearing any sort of headgear at all! RFA personnel always like to stress their independence! I was in Dartmouth a couple of years ago and having a few beers with some RFA officers in 'The Floating Bridge'. RFA officers now have to undertake some training at BRNC and one of them told me that college personnel were always trying to get them to do drill. He said "We just tell them we're not going to do it. Our union says we don't have too!".

I didn't know that RFA Junior Rates had changed their berets. When did that happen? MoD stock lists still show the Pantone Blue beret but they always seem to include stuff that hasn't been issued for years.

Pete
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  #9  
Old 24-04-17, 07:03 PM
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Thank you for your informations. On this website (http://ceremonial.wyedeanstores.com/...roidered-badge), I have found the following identification :

Royal Fleet Auxiliary Officer organisation insignia badge for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary.
This Royal Fleet Auxiliary Officer organisation insignia for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary features a hand embroidered black circular badge with two concentric gold circles containing blue thread with the letters RFA denoted in gold with a gold anchor in the centre.
This badge is typically worn on the sleeve of a Royal Fleet Auxiliary uniform. Specialist badges are worn on the sleeve with insignia representing each branch or specialisation.
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  #10  
Old 24-04-17, 07:44 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Guzzman View Post
Hi Sailorbear

Nice to see your headgear from your time in the RFA! A great organisation! You are quite right - I should have added a comment about RFA officers and senior rates wearing normal RN berets. Sorry! And thanks for the info re what Senior Rates wore on their berets. To be honest, from my contact with the RFA they always seemed lax about wearing any sort of headgear at all! RFA personnel always like to stress their independence! I was in Dartmouth a couple of years ago and having a few beers with some RFA officers in 'The Floating Bridge'. RFA officers now have to undertake some training at BRNC and one of them told me that college personnel were always trying to get them to do drill. He said "We just tell them we're not going to do it. Our union says we don't have too!".

I didn't know that RFA Junior Rates had changed their berets. When did that happen? MoD stock lists still show the Pantone Blue beret but they always seem to include stuff that hasn't been issued for years.

Pete
Hi Guzzman.

Yes Officers do now go to Dartmouth and direct entry ratings go to HMS Raleigh. and yes we always avoided wearing headdress and issue uniform if we could, mostly only ever wore RN issue coveralls and steaming bats on deck and No 4 AWD (unfortunately with departmental epaulette slides) if we could, we would just wear No 4 trousers and a white tee shirt! Off duty most people just wore cut off jean shorts, a tee shirt and flip flops!

I only know they have changed the beret colour as I noticed that the junior ratings at the Royal Albert Hall/Cenotaph were all wearing the standard midnight blue beret. The Festival of Remembrance and cenotaph is the only time the ratings blue ceremonial uniform is ever worn. Got to admit the badge in question is one I have never seen before, to my knowledge leading hands wear the same beret badge as other lower junior rates. I have never seen it worn as an arm badge either by officers or ratings and wouldn't trust the item description from wyedeans, they wrongly describe a lot of their stock.

To me, with a long association with the RFA the badge still remains a mystery?

Regards Tony
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  #11  
Old 24-04-17, 07:50 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Anjoucollector View Post
Thank you. Is there any documentation about RFA badges on the web ?
If you Google the MOD/Royal Navy Careers website there is a section about the RFA with descriptions of all the departments and images of the various badges.

Regards

Tony
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  #12  
Old 24-04-17, 09:00 PM
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I do apologise, I have this badge in a sealed, manufacturers, bag. I remembered incorrectly, it is actually described as "junior rates RFA beret badge".

The RFA officer beret I have, as issued to the original owner, is of the RN colouring.

Phil
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