Thanks for your thoughts Arrestingu. You are correct about the photo, it was taken on 3rd March 1944 only a few months before Lewendon was killed, aged just 30. The chap 1st left wears early pattern C-Type externally wired flying helmet with E* mask (by then replaced by the G-Type mask), while the chap 3rd left does wear the B-Type helmet, but more unusually with the cloth D-Type mask and American goggles - very 1940. Lewendon is wearing the German LKpW101 helmet with British Mk III goggles.
His original service number (565098) was part of a block allocated to RAF Apprentices from 1926 (although he was only 12 then). So it seems he probably joined as an Apprentice around 1929, but this would have been for a ground trade. He was a Temporary Flight Sergeant in October 1941 when Commissioned, then promoted to Flying Officer on 1st October 1942 then Flight Lieutenant on 7th October 1943, so it would seem he was probably only a wartime flyer in the RAF.
The presentation idea is interesting except for the fact that it seems unique, and is otherwise an unknown Luftwaffe badge. It also seems pretty clean and new, especially being on a working uniform. I could understand it being worn a bit tongue-in-cheek on the battledress, but another question would be why not for all the Flight?
I would have thought somewhere out there would be the story behind it.
The other photo mentioned above, showing an elderly re-enactor wearing a bullion one on a service dress intrigues me too (I wish I could find it). It would suggest the man knows something about it, but again even as a reproduction Ive never seen another.
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