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#1
29-08-08, 01:51 PM
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Your Opinion Please
The following badge was obtained with a group of 5 medals for WW2, a R.C.A.F. Cap Badge, a R.C.A.F. Association Cap Badge and Wedgie......
This was pinned on the cap, just the GQ and not a caterpillar badge..... I am not sure as it is really outside my collecting field but I have been lead to believe that this is for saving a life by parachute but not under wartime conditions...... Please advise if I am wrong...... I have been told that it was only available in Brass as this one is enamel and silvered metal...... Mike 
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#2
29-08-08, 02:02 PM
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Quote:
for the WWII RAF guys (and others possibly) who ended up "ditching" at sea - I believe it was along the lines of belonging to the Goldfish club(?). I am sure their are ex-RAF guys on the forum who know more about this than I do. Looks like a nice badge anyway - whether it is considered "official" or not, I do not know. david Added: the one I saw did not have wings, this might be significant. Last edited by wright241; 29-08-08 at 02:03 PM. Reason: Additional comment
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#3
29-08-08, 02:11 PM
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I forgot to add that this is the second one in a period of one month....... Also could this have been a:
1) For a jump after the war? 2) A replacement for one that was awarded during the war and lost? Mike
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#4
29-08-08, 02:53 PM
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Quote:
As a young lad I was in the ATC (the RAF version of the Army Cadet Corps) - much more interesting than the Scouts - now, this was in 1958 in Brecon and I spent many a weekend at St Asaph and other RAF Stations. The point being, that I met a lot of wartime pilots etc, some of whom told fascinating stories. Some of these included having to bail out. I cannot recall any of them pointing to anything on their uniforms - other than their medal ribbons, which fascinated me - because they never seemed to have as many as the soldiers - that represented an award for doing this. Some even made jokes that they tried real hard not to just leave the aircraft, under any circumstances due to paperwork involved and wrath of their senior officers. If there ever was a badge for this, I never saw it. I might add that we used to also spend weekends down in deepest Kent, where quite a few ex-WWII pilots were still very active. I may have missed it, but as I used to ask why various regiments wore different coloured lanyards - instead of white like my stepfather (RA). In short, I was a nosey bloody so-and-so and would like to think that I would remember these. I am sure the RAF (or as my Mum still still refers to them, the Brylcream boys) will come to the rescue for you here. david
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#5
29-08-08, 05:32 PM
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Hello David and Mike,
This badge was worn by all personnel who have made a parachute drop with a GQ parachute. Early war time badges do exist. Before the Parachute Regiment adopted its well known cap badge, some parachute trained personnel from converted infantry Bn wore this badge on their red beret along with the former cap badge of their infantry Bn. (Are you still with me!!!!). At the same time this badge was adopted by Free French parachutistes. I have a couple of pictures (somwhere?) showing this badge worn by a British paratrooper, and one by a SAS French paratrooper in June 1944 in Brittany. GQ war time badge are not very scarce, but this badge has been produced also after the war and is probably faked today... Cheers. J-F
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