FORT RUCKER, Ala. -- (Editor’s note: This is the second in a three-part series on the U.S. Army Aviation Museum’s patch collection.)
Army shoulder sleeve insignias tell a story about the Soldiers who wear them and the Soldiers who came before them.
Walking around Fort Rucker, Soldiers wear many different patches, either current unit or combat patches. But according to Bob Mitchell, curator at the U.S. Army Aviation Museum, if people want to see some stranger insignias that tell different stories, they need to look back at the history of Army Aviation.
“One patch success story here is our collection of five patches from the 116th in Vietnam,” Mitchell said.
“This patch is from the Beekeepers,” explained Mitchell, “Each company had their own patch. You had the Wasps, the Yellow Jackets, the Stingers, the Hornets and the Beekeepers. It was four line companies and the maintenance company. It comes from a lady named Linda who lost her brother in Vietnam. The veterans adopted her as an honorary member, and she collected and donated the patches to the museum.
“This is a very nice collection, and very rarely do you get a complete collection of all of the unit company patches,” said Mitchell, “What is unique about the collection is these are all in-country made patches, made on local sewing machines in Vietnam.
“There are lots of great stories in these patches, and there are a lot of people all over the world who collect them. Just go on the internet and there are groups who post photos of patches they find to share information and trade patches,” he added.
The museum maintains a collection of over 160 aircraft, many with unit insignias painted on or accompanied by unit patches in the historical property collection.
“Patches come and go,” said Mitchell, adding that in the past decade-plus, “I’ve seen a plethora of new patches created. Not only individual company patches, but also numbered unit patches. It is a constant ebb and flow when it comes to unit names, designations and patches.”
Mitchell says people interested in collecting patches should just start looking. “There are lots of great stories in these patches and there are a lot of people all over the world who collect them. Just go on the internet, and there are groups who post photos of patches they find to share information and trade patches.”
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