Fall 2026 Militaria and Aviation Auction
Lot 334:
Description
Named U.S. Navy Type G-1 Flight Jacket, Size 46, to Lt. R. E. "Duke" Driscoll, USN – Irvin B. Foster Sportswear Co., Spec. MIL-J-7823B (WEP), with USS Hornet CVS-12 "HUK, " USS Valley Forge LPH-8 Far East Cruise, Viet Nam Patrol 1964-65, and a Large Embroidered Dragon on the Back Offered is a personalized U.S. Navy Type G-1 flying jacket manufactured by the Irvin B. Foster Sportswear Co. under Bureau of Naval Weapons contract DSA-1-2071-63-C, dated 1963, in size 46. The jacket is identified to Lt. R. E. "Duke" Driscoll, USN, by a leather name tag stamped with gilt naval aviator wings and his name, rank, and service branch, and is further dressed with an original grouping of Vietnam-era cruise and deployment patches that place Driscoll’s service squarely within the opening years of American naval commitment in Southeast Asia. No separate published biography of Lt. Driscoll has been located; the narrative here rests entirely on the markings and insignia carried by the jacket itself. The patch grouping documents Pacific Fleet service aboard two significant platforms during 1964-65. The chest patch, surmounted by embroidered aviator wings, identifies duty with USS Hornet (CVS-12) and its Hunter-Killer (HUK) anti-submarine squadrons operating in the Western Pacific at a time when carrier ASW groups were increasingly drawn into the broader Southeast Asian buildup. The left sleeve carries a Far East Cruise patch for USS Valley Forge (LPH-8), its embroidery combining the ship’s silhouette with the flags of the United States, Japan, the Republic of China, the Philippines, and the United Kingdom, and dated 1965, reflecting the amphibious assault ship’s regional port calls. The right sleeve bears a "Viet Nam Patrol 1964-65" patch mapping the Gulf of Tonkin, Haiphong, the South China Sea, Tourane, Nha Trang, Cam Ranh, and Saigon – the operational waters patrolled during the escalation following the Tonkin Gulf incident. The large multicolor dragon hand-sewn to the center back, almost certainly acquired during a Far East liberty port such as Yokosuka, Subic Bay, or Hong Kong, exemplifies the personalized theater embroidery prized by naval aircrew of the period. The jacket itself is constructed of dark brown goatskin leather with a mouton fur collar, bi-swing back, ribbed knit cuffs and waistband, and a CONMAR brass zipper retaining its leather pull tab and USN windflap perforation pattern at the front closure. The interior woven label reads "JACKET, FLYING, MAN’S TYPE G-1," "SPEC. MIL-J-7823B (WEP), " "BUREAU OF NAVAL WEAPONS USN, " "IRVIN B. FOSTER SPTSWEAR CO., " contract "DSA-1-2071-63-C, " and size 46. The leather name tag with wings sits at the left breast beneath the Hornet chest patch; the Valley Forge and Viet Nam Patrol patches occupy the left and right sleeves respectively; the dragon insignia dominates the upper back panel. Condition is very good to excellent. The leather remains supple with light, honest creasing at the elbows and closure points and minor surface abrasion consistent with period wear; the mouton collar retains good pile without bald patches; the knit cuffs and waistband hold their elasticity with only faint pilling. The CONMAR zipper appears complete with its leather pull. All four patches and the back dragon show bright, tightly stitched embroidery with only faint, age-appropriate fading, and the lining is clean with the woven specification tag fully legible. A vivid, named Vietnam-era naval aviator’s G-1, its Hornet, Valley Forge, and patrol-map patches tracing a documented 1964-65 Pacific deployment, crowned by a striking dragon back patch that captures the visual culture of theater-customized flight gear at the dawn of America’s air war over Vietnam.
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