Name: Original U.S. Vietnam War Era Air Force Uniform & HGU-26/P Flight Helmet Grouping with Medal & Ribbon Bars - Colonel Robert Mead
Brand: Antique Guns
SKU: original-u-s-vietnam-war-era-air-force-uniform-hgu-26-p-flight-helmet-grouping-with-medal-ribbon-bars-colonel-robert-mead
Availability: InStock

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Original U.S. Vietnam War Era Air Force Uniform & HGU-26/P Flight Helmet Grouping with Medal & Ribbon Bars - Colonel Robert Mead

$568.50

Original: $1,895.00

-70%

Original U.S. Vietnam War Era Air Force Uniform & HGU-26/P Flight Helmet Grouping with Medal & Ribbon Bars - Colonel Robert Mead—

$1,895.00

$568.50

Original: $1,895.00

-70%

Original U.S. Vietnam War Era Air Force Uniform & HGU-26/P Flight Helmet Grouping with Medal & Ribbon Bars - Colonel Robert Mead—

$1,895.00

$568.50

The Story

Original Items. One-of-a-Kind Grouping. This is the extensive uniform and flight helmet grouping of Robert Mead, a Master Navigator with more than 3,000 flying hours including over 670 combat hours flown from Da Nang Air Force Base in South Vietnam and 67 more missions flown over North Vietnam. He’s received numerous decorations including the Bronze Star, Meritorious Service Medal, Air Force Combat Action Medal, Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with one OLC, and the Air Medal with 10 OLCs.

The grouping includes:

- Mead’s white dress uniform with Lieutenant Colonel shoulder boards, his MEAD nametag, his pilot’s wings, and a 11-place ribbon bar with the Meritorious Service Medal, the Bronze Star, the Air Medal with 2 OLCs, the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal with bar, the Vietnam War medal, the Outstanding Unit Award with OLC, the WWII American Campaign medal, the Army of Occupation Medal, the Korean Service Medal, the WWII Victory Medal, and the United Nations Korean War Medal. Pants are also included.

- Mead’s dress dinner jacket with Colonel’s shoulder boards, his mini pilot’s wings, and a 13-place mini-medal bar with the Bronze Star, the Air Force Combat Action Medal, the National Defense Medal, the Air Force Reserve medal, the Combat Readiness Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal, the Air Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal, the WWII American Campaign Medal, the Korean War UN Medal, the Army of Occupation Medal, the American Defense Medal, and the WWII Victory Medal.

- Three of Mead’s flight suits from the Vietnam Period. The first of these has the Yankee Air Pirate, Linebacker II, and DCAL 1952-1975 McClellan patches. The shoulder has WOLF FAC and River Rate patches. The second has his Name Tag, cloth Master Navigator wings, and Air Training Command patch. The third flight suit has Captain’s bars, 308th Tactical Fighter Squadron patch, 31st Fighter Wing patch, 4100th Group (Provisional) patch, embroidered name and wings, and the River Rate patch on the sleeve. These are three fantastic flight suits detailing different parts of Mead’s Air Force service.

- Mead’s Camouflage-covered HGU-26/P flight helmet with retained visor. The entire helmet is covered in strips of camouflage. The interior of this helmet is entirely empty, the lining, padding, and whatever else is entirely gone.

- Mead’s white HGU-26/P flight helmet with attached oxygen mask and retained visor. This helmet has red/blue decaling on the front with the name BOB painted in white on one side, with the insignia of the 31st Fighter Wing on the other side. The mask is an MBU-5/P oxygen mask and is in good condition with the hose retained. The interior of this helmet is likewise missing most all of the padding besides one ear. Both helmets are missing most of their internals but still display well.

- Mead’s 1990s era Camouflage jacket with Colonel ranks on the collars, Air Force Recruiting Service patch and Air Education & Training Command patch. This is likely the most recent uniform in the group.

- Blank blue dress uniform and trousers.

- Mead’s Dress cap made in Taipei with a calling card for K.S. Smiley Jr, Lt. Col., USAF. This may have belonged to a friend of Mead’s, it is the only piece of the group that is named to someone else. An overall lovely cap with thunder & lightening bullion work on the visor.

- Mead’s issue “Cardigan” with Colonel shoulder boards, Citadel tag.

- Two of Mead’s overseas caps with Colonel insignia.

- One pair of dress shoes and one pair of black boots, both in good order.

A 1994 newspaper article notes that Mead was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross with one OLC, but his uniform does not show these awards. Considering some of these uniforms are from earlier in his service, it’s possible he was awarded the DFC at a later date.

Mead attended Arms Academy and received his Bachelors from Boston University and Masters from Golden Gate University. He was commissioned a Lieutenant through Air Fore ROTC and entered active duty in 1968. Mead became a Master Navigator with more than 3,000 flying hours including over 670 combat hours flown from Da Nang Air Force Base in South Vietnam and 67 more missions flown over North Vietnam. After serving as an undergraduate instructor at Mather AFB, XO for the Deputy Chief of Staff for plans in the Directorate of of Wartime Augmentation at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, and instructor weapons systems officers at Moody Air Force Base, he assumed command of the Recruiting Squadron, Gunter Air Force Station. He assumed command of the 360 USAF Recruiting Group, Air Training Command, Hanscom AFB in 1991.

This is a fantastic & extensive Vietnam War flight grouping, ready for further research and display.

Approximate Measurements:-

Blue Jacket #1
Collar to shoulder: 10"
Shoulder to sleeve: 24”
Shoulder to shoulder: 14"
Chest width: 18”
Waist: 16"
Hip: 16"
Front length: 24"

White Jacket and pants:
Collar to shoulder: 9.5"
Shoulder to sleeve: 25”
Shoulder to shoulder: 14.5"
Chest width: 19”
Waist: 19"
Hip: 22.5"
Front length: 31.5"

Pants:
Waist: 16"
Inseam: 27"

Blue Jacket #2
Collar to shoulder: 9.5"
Shoulder to sleeve: 25”
Shoulder to shoulder: 15"
Chest width: 20”
Waist: 18.5"
Hip: 21"
Front length: 30.5"

Pants:
Waist: 16"
Inseam: 26"

Flight Suits:
Collar to shoulder: 9.5"
Shoulder to sleeve: 8”
Shoulder to shoulder: 15"
Chest width: 19.5”
Waist: 17"
Front length: 57"