ANTIAIRCRAFT COMMAND - Preserving the History of U.S. Army Anti-aircraft Artillery of World War II

    

     This short article is intended to outline the basic Army Antiaircraft Artillery insignia in use during World War II.  It is not intended to be a comprehensive treatment of the subject.  Uniforms for the Antiaircraft Artillery were standard G.I. Army clothing, and many reference works are available that deal with uniforms of the period.

 

INSIGNIA OF BRANCH

 

     Like all servicemen, AA artillerymen wore insignia of branch on their Class A service coat (the four-pocket tunic or later M-1944 Ike Jacket).  The collar insignia of the Coast Artillery Corps (CAC) was worn by all Army antiaircraft organizations throughout the war.  The Field Artillery and Coast Artillery were merged into the Artillery branch in 1950.  At that time, the CAC insignia became obsolete while the plain crossed cannons branch insignia of the Field Artillery continued in use.  The more recent Air Defense Artillery (ADA) design, crossed cannons with a missile in the center, was not adopted until 1968.  A few unscrupulous or uninformed antiques and militaria dealers attempt to misrepresent the ADA discs as WW II Army Antiaircraft Artillery insignia.

Enlisted Man's Coast Artillery Corps collar discs as worn by Antiaircraft Artillery in World War II.  Since the CAC has been long defunct, these collar devices are no longer

commercially produced.

 

Illustration of the proper positions of insignia

on an enlisted man's Class A uniform.

     Some soldiers opted to wear branch discs on the collar of their shirt when wearing the uniform in a Class B configuration (shirt with a tie, but no tunic), but this practice was not consistent between organizations.

 

     Another important insignia of branch used on the uniform of an enlisted man was the color of the hat cord on the traditional Service (Campaign) Hat or the piping on a Garrison Cap.  Scarlet, being the historic color of artillery, was employed by the Antiaircraft Artillery, Coast Artillery and Field Artillery during World War II. 

 

Enlisted man's wool Overseas or Garrison Cap with scarlet piping as worn by Antiaircraft Artillery, Coast Artillery and Field Artillery troops.

 

     Like the enlisted man, Antiaircraft Artillery officers also wore the Coast Artillery Corps branch insignia.  The officer's version of the insignia was affixed to both lapels of the service coat.  When the tunic was not worn, the branch insignia was placed on one side of the shirt collar opposite the  insignia of rank. 

   

Coast Artillery Corps officer's

branch insignia.

Lt. Col. McFarlin of the 203d AAA wearing CAC insignia on his Class A service coat.

 

Proper position of insignia on an officer's Class A and Class B uniform.  Branch Insignia was not placed on the shirt collar when the service coat was worn.

 

SHOULDER SLEEVE INSIGNIA ASSOCIATED WITH AAA UNITS

 

     Any discussion of shoulder sleeve insignia must begin with the understanding of the fluid nature of battalion attachments and assignments in Antiaircraft Artillery.  There was no central field command encompassing all Army antiaircraft and AA units were not part of the permanent structure of Armies, Corps or Divisions.  This was intentional.  Many high-ranking officers in the Army felt that antiaircraft was an occasional need and not a ongoing necessity.  Although several well-known commanders disagreed, the opinion advocating an ad hoc approach to Antiaircraft Artillery won the argument.  The policy of sending AAA units where they were most needed, and only when they were required, was considered both flexible and efficient. 

 

     The few antiaircraft battalions that were attached to Armored or Infantry Divisions for long periods of time quickly assimilated the culture of their higher command and were able to cultivate an esprit de corps within the larger organization.  These battalions were willing (or ordered) to wear the division insignia as their own.  Thus, it is not unusual to see photographs of self-propelled AA artillerymen proudly displaying the triangular patch of their host Armored Division on the left sleeve of their uniforms.  Likewise, Army and Corp level antiaircraft units might have worn the shoulder sleeve insignia of those organizations. 

 

     Other AAA battalions changed higher headquarters with such regularity that a sense of belonging to a larger unit was lost.  This, understandably, sometimes had a negative impact on morale.  Anecdotes of enlisted men being upbraided during an inspection because they could not recite their battalion's chain of command are not uncommon.  Different battalions dealt with the situation in various ways. 

 

     Some units created their own unofficial, theater-made insignia.  These patches were often crudely made and definitely not authorized by the Army, but did go a long way to boost unit pride among the soldiers who wore them.  Such patches, however, were the exception and not the rule.  They do speak well of the attitude of the commands that created them. 

 

     Other battalions opted for the simpler "slick-sleeve" approach - wearing no insignia at all.  Although officers were often held to a stricter standard, the average enlisted man chose a bare left sleeve.  The general rule of thumb was the farther away you worked from headquarters, the less likely you were to sew an insignia on your uniform.

 

     A shoulder sleeve insignia was worn in the center of the left sleeve of the Class A service coat, roughly one-half inch down from the shoulder seam.  Insignia could also be worn in a similar location on shirts and field jackets, but this practice varied between commands.  Shoulder sleeve insignia were not sewn on work or utility uniforms. 

 

     The wearing of EM rank chevrons, overseas bars, and service stripes followed standard Army practices.

 

Antiaircraft Command shoulder sleeve insignia

 

First Army Artillery shoulder sleeve insignia

 

    This shoulder sleeve insignia of the Antiaircraft Command was usually the first patch worn by antiaircraft units during training in the United States. The Antiaircraft Command was responsible for the operation of the various stateside training centers.  This patch was not authorized for wear once a unit was deployed overseas.

 

    Toward the later stages of the war, First Army resumed the practice of adding a splash of color to their standard insignia to differentiate different services within the command.  Since scarlet is the color of both Field Artillery and Coast Artillery, many First Army antiaircraft artillerymen opted for this patch.  The plain FUSA patch (without the red) was worn on field uniforms, while this insignia was commonly sported on the Class A service coats.

 

     A Ninth Army Air Force insignia for an Antiaircraft Artillery organization?

     The IX Air Defense Command, a part of the Ninth Air Force, was responsible for a large number of antiaircraft units operating in the European Theater.  It was common practice for organizations under the IX ADC to wear the Ninth Air Force patch.

 

49th AAA Brigade shoulder sleeve insignia

 

 

     One of the more famous insignia is the colorful patch of First Army's 49th Antiaircraft Artillery Brigade, which is often listed as a pocket patch in reference books.  Photo evidence shows that it was worn as a shoulder sleeve insignia on Class A service coats by members of the Brigade HQ and HQ Battery. The Forty-Niners wore the standard First Army insignia on their field uniforms because this patch was not authorized for use by the Theater commander.

 

    This custom patch of the 209th AAA AW Bn was created by simply adding a tab to the proposed insignia of the unit's parent organization, the 14th Antiaircraft Command.   A variant of this patch with white lettering on a blue tab is also known to exist.  

 

(Patch courtesy of Dave Kaufman)

 

 

     This simple derivative of the Antiaircraft Command patch was created by the 2d AAA Battalion and attempted to maintain some continuity between stateside and in-theater insignia. 

 

(Patch courtesy of Dave Kaufman)

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