Original World War Two US Army Air Forces Aviation Cadet shoulder sleeve insignia patch.
Mid-Late war black variation.
During World War II, approximately 250,000 aviation cadets successfully completed training programs for pilots, navigators, and specialized roles. In the most challenging times of the war, even high school graduates as young as 18 were eligible for the program, as long as they met necessary standards on aptitude and medical assessments.
From 1942 to 1947, aviation cadets wore a uniform identical to that of Army officers, but without the mohair cuff band. The service cap had a blue hatband (with olive drab uniform) or a brown hatband (with Khaki uniform), and the regular eagle insignia was replaced with the winged propeller insignia of the Army Air Forces. The garrison cap was worn on the left side with the Army Air Forces insignia.Rank stripes were light olive drab (brown) on a dark blue background. This posed a dilemma as the new stripes were still being produced and the old stripes were becoming scarce. To meet demand, the Army authorized training center commanders to purchase commercially-made versions in January 1943, resulting in non-standard designs such as dark blue or black chevrons on olive drab backings,
