Very First, Unofficial Unit Insignia Worn by the "Dirty 30" Combat Airmen in Vietnam

This is a patch with the very first, unofficial insignia worn by the first group of United States Air Force combat airmen in Vietnam. These men were not just advisors, but assigned as co-pilots in a C-47 transport unit (in the 1st Transportation Group) of the South Vietnamese Air Force to free up experienced Vietnamese pilots to form other units and restore the 1st Group to its former numbers. This first group of US airmen flew from April 1962 until the next spring when they were replaced with 30 new pilots, and the program lasted until December 196These original airmen frequently had to wear their flying gear around the clock and soon became known as the "Dirty 30". The patch reads DIRTY 30 and shows a set of wings and an aircraft taking off against a sunset.

Circa Vietnam War.

5-1/4" diameter.

Multi-piece felt patch embroidered in red cotton/silk/polyester threads.

This is from a United States Air Force collection which we will be listing more of over the next few months. TRAJJX05 LEGEX SCEJX12/13

7- (Very Fine-): Patch shows some small areas of discoloration and light wear.

As with all my artifacts, this piece is guaranteed to be original, as described.