Wwii Chief Petty Officer Uniform
The earliest use of the uniform by enlisted men came in 1941 when chief petty officers designated as naval aviation pilots were authorized to wear the uniform.
Wwii chief petty officer uniform. Petty officers were distinguished by a rating badge worn on the upper arm. Petty officers of the seaman branch wore the badge on the right sleeve all other branches wore it on the left. Male chief petty officer uniforms search. In the uniform regulations of 1941 it was directed that the eagle s head always face forward so on left arm rating badges the eagle faces the viewer s left and vice versa for right arm rating badges.
It consisted of an eagle a specialty mark and chevrons indicating the grade of rank. For petty officers rate badges are in navy blue on white and are worn on the upper left arm and non substanstive badges are worn on the right. Because the emphasis of this page is on rank and rating distinctions the uniform trousers and shoes are not illustrated. Navy personnel command support services us navy uniforms uniform regulations chapter 3 male chief.
When armed senior ratings wear white gaiters and white webbing belts as with the blue version. The coast guard does not have such a rule. The cpo jacket is distinguished by its eight button double breasted front. The royal navy in world war 2 was a huge and complex organisation spread all across the world.
It is therefore not surprising that the navy s rank profession trade pay and related badges structures were. The officer like uniform of chief petty officers and higher ratings was called class i the traditional sailor s dress worn by most ratings below that level was class ii while ratings of certain branches wore a third variation class iii. A cap dress jacket and trouser combination similar in appearance to the officer s uniform but worn by enlisted personnel who achieved the minimum rank of chief petty officer. While seamen and petty officers wore the typical white fatigue cap and rig the chief petty officer s uniform was nearly identicle to the navy officer s uniform with the exception of a special cap emblem and his rank insiginia.
A coast guard chief petty officer s sleeve insignia is always gold and rates below chief petty officer are always red. On the dress blue uniform and variants such as mess whites the insignia is worn on the left arm of the uniform blouse or suit coat in civilian terminology. Obsolete navy uniform features gray uniforms in the same style as khaki were first introduced on in 1943 as officers uniforms. In the chart shown below each rank insignia denotes a boatswain or bosun by displaying its rating device between the perched eagle and the chevrons.
The gilt buttons were smaller in size than those prescribed for the officer s blue uniform.