During the course of World War II, a number of clubs and associations were established to recognize aviators who had successfully bailed out of their doomed aircraft and lived to tell the tale. Some of these organizations were started and maintained by the manufacturers of the survival equipment as a PR move, while others were less formal. Tolerance for wearing the insignia of these clubs varied; some members were known to attach them to the underside of their lapels to be concealed but at the ready, and others stuck them right on a pocket flap. Among the organizations represented in this lot is the Order of the Winged Boot (for aviators who went down behind enemy lines and successfully returned to their units), the Caterpillar Club (for aviators who successfully parachuted out of an emergency), the Goldfish Club (for use of a life vest or emergency dingy after coming down in the water) and the Sea Squatters Club (similar to the Goldfish Club but exclusively for life raft use). The grouping includes two Caterpillar Club ID cards, and Goldfish and Sea Squatter cards made out to the same man for 3 days afloat in the Adriatic Sea in January of 1945. Also included are a set of embroidered logos; four bullion "Winged Boot" logos (2 on black, one on blue and one on green), two "Flying Goldfish" logos (one green, one blue), and two Caterpillar Club logos (one blue, one black). A number of pins are present, with one "winged boot", one Sea Squatter "Duck" pin, two Irving parachute pins (the Irving company was one of the sponsors of the Caterpillar Club), and four Caterpillar club pins, one in gold with amethyst eyes and inscribed to a Sergeant J. Smart. Also included is a small "button" survival compass, two parachutist commemorative pins, and a commemorative pin for a former prisoner at Stalag Luft 1. Provenance: The Putnam Green/Sycamore Collection

Good overall, with wear and tear appropriate to age. The Stalag Luft 1 pin is missing the hinge pin.