RWAFF Slouch Hat flash
 

I have recently purchased a lovely 1942 dated Slouch hat, complete of what I guess should be the insignia of the RWAFF, Gold Coast Regiment: a yellow equilateral triangle. What could be the meaning of the white strip at the base of the triangle? a battalion device? a brigade insignia? Thank you in advance for your advise and all the very best!

Could it be possible that this is a Kings African Rifles slouch hat?

They also had a myriad of cloth signs on theirs. I was able to look at some East Africa Command Orders from the period and drew the following as worn on KAR slouch hats. This appears to be a small selection of many more!

Superb illustrations above. I have a note that within the RWAFF the equilateral triangle was in the following colours for national/state units:

Red Div HQ
Green Nigeria
Yellow Gold Coast
Blue Sierra Leone
Brown The Gambia

I also have a note from Formation Sign (FS) 88 that Gold Coast Infantry units wore a red AoS strip at the base of the yellow triangle. And a query from FS 120 about a combination patch of yellow triangle and three red AoS strips below. But I regret, no clue as to what the white AoS strip might signify although there is a query in FS 223 - a slip-on with one white and one red AoS strip above an Ordnance issue R.W.A.F.F. title.

Over to the experts!
l

Thank you Madziro.. sure, it could be a KAR slouch hat, but still I was infering it could be RWAFF Gold coast basing on the list of National badges produce by Mike Jackson... according to your list I have got in my collection a slouch hat that I have always thought to be South African because of its black rectangle flash (I can't remember which unit had a vertical black rectangle as a Pith Helmet patch) but now I find it could be Nyasaland? Could the back lining of the pughree have any specific meaning?

The slouch hat with black square is definately 1st Bn KAR. Rhodesians have also traditionally worn slouch hats from the 1890s. I have attached drawings of the signs they wore on theirs over the years to 1980. have also included a few images of the Rhodesian slouch hats I have in the collection for interest. Also attached original slouch hat signs for 1KAR (black) and 2KAR (green)that I have.

From the excellent info Mike has supplied, your slouch hat is definately RWAFF! Quite a few Rhodesians served with them too.

Thank you gentlemen! on ebay you can actually find a Slouch Hat offered as 82nd West African Division with a flash reminding one of those suggested by Micke Jackson, but not as long as the colour is concerned... here it is: http://www.ebay.com/itm/ORIGINAL-WWI...item1c2f81b96c

Hello Madziro, very interesting tables of formation signs... which years are they related to? I have got a MK II helmet with a red/white split triangle that resembles very much the device of the 58 Recce (Company? Battalion?) in your table.... thank you in advance!

This flash looks very much like the one worn by the Southern Rhodesia Recce Regt. Will check my info as to which theatres they served in. The drawings cover the period from WW2 to 1980.

Regards

Dudley

Hello Dudley, did you manage to find any supplementary info on the Southern Rhodesia Recce Regt. in WWII, in the event? Please give a look to the attached photos: I guess this is a slouch or pith helmet flash for the 1sr RAR?

The SR Recce Regt was very short lived and was literally a name change from SR Recce Unit to Regt in 1942. Conflicting info indicates that later in that year they were given a new name - SR Armd Car Regt. However it is possible that the SRRR title was also used (interchanged) up to 1947. The SRRR served in the Desert under command of a bloke from the 11th Hussars

Have attached two images of the badges I have. The one image depicts the SRACR (Selous Scouts) which was equipped with Staghounds and was based in Ndola, Northern Rhodesia.

The black and white flashes do not appear to be RAR. They appear to be lying on their side so in effect would be vertical and not horizontal.

Dudley

KAR/ Rhodesian/ Nyasaland Pith helmet?
 

The flash is yellow over black,
Does it indicate
28 (Kenya) Bn KAR,
Southern Rhodesian Transport Corps
or Nyasaland Defense Force?

Hi,

The colours for the Nyasaland Defence Force unit flash were: Orange over Black.

Regards,

Zob.

Hello everyone,

I am looking to buy a slouchy with formation sign of brown/orange triangle. Is it a RWAFF Gambia regiment or something else?

I will be very thankful for your help on this.

Great info in this thread, thanks to all who supplied it.

Fabulous collection is it possible to repost the signals hat to some Greek signals friends on another forum, they won't have seen anything like it?
Cheers
Sean