Original 328th Emblem Approved

As published in the The 914th Airlift Wing Frontiersman June 1998 Vol 40, No. 9

By MSSt. David Tarnowski - 328th Airlift Squadron

On a light turquoise blue disc, border ultramarine blue, a horseshoe, proper, winged gold, in front of a stylized - silhouette, camouflaged aircraft, and over the top of a white sphere marked with ultramarine blue lines of latitude and longitude, as per record drawing. The insignia depicts the successful operation of Combat Cargo Squadrons on all parts of the globe.

(28 July 1994)

In 1994, the Chief of Staff of the Air Force conducted a review of all current Air Force emblems. As a result of this review the 328th was forced to give up the cherished "Mushroom" patch it had worn since 1971 and was assigned a new emblem. After assuming command of the Squadron in September of 1 996, LTC Sandy Way spearheaded an effort to bring the Mushroom back. We soon found out that there was absolutely no way the Mushroom could be an "official" Squadron emblem. Not only did it not contain the correct colors, but the symbolism and motto "did not reflect favorably" on the United States Air Force. He was told that the only possible alternative to the assigned emblem was to attempt to restore the original, WWII, emblem as the official emblem. It should be noted that most of the Squadron members were unaware, at this point, of the existence of a WWII 328^th emblem or that our lineage included the 3rd Combat Cargo Squadron. The third was redesignated the 328th on 29 September 1945.

Before proceeding, LTC Way sought and received overwhelming support from the current Squadron membership to pursue the original emblem. In December of 1996 work began on the proposal which was submitted in early April of 97. It was turned down 3 weeks later by the Air Force Historical Research Agency. Among other reasons, the agency cited that they lacked the authority to change an emblem that was approved by the Chief of Staff of the Air Force in 1994.

Not to be deterred, LTC Way then asked for help from the Operations Group Commander, Col. Michael Smith. After reviewing the proposal, Col. Smith felt so strongly that restoring the WWII emblem was "the right thing to do" that he personally pleaded our case with AFRC Commander, General Mclntosh. General McIntosh agreed that we had a strong package with compelling reasons to restore the original emblem and directed that the proposal be resubmitted with his endorsement.

Because of changes in Command at the Air Staff and within the 914th Airlift Wing the proposal stalled briefly in July of 97 while new letters of endorsement were accomplished. With those done, the long waiting game began. In the words of our AFRC Historian; "Changing an Air Force emblem can be compared to having a baby, except for two things: the emblem change is more painful and it takes longer!"

To make a long story short, it wasn't until February of 1998 that the Air Force Historical Agency forwarded the proposal up the chain of command with a recommendation that it not be approved (for reasons unknown at this time).

While the emblem proposal was making its way through the halls of the Pentagon, new information had surfaced about the original emblem from some of the Squadron's WWII Alumni. These Alumni included the first Squadron Commander, Col. John Moriarty. Col. Moriarty explained that the emblem was the result of a design contest within the squadron and that the horseshoe symbol was derived from the Squadron's nickname "The Lucky Third". He went on to say: "Little did we know that we would soon be hauling mules over the HUMP!" We also learned that the official reference manual for Squadron emblems depicted the incorrect emblem for the Third. We speculated that this may have been the reason we were assigned the 1994 emblem. This new information, along with a letter written on our behalf, by our newly found WWII alumni was then sent to the Pentagon to join the proposal.

Early in April of 1998 the package and the new information finally ended up on the desk of General Ryan, the current Chief of Staff of the Air Force. On 15 April 1998, LTC Kurt Novak, the Squadron Operations Officer, received a phone call from the Pentagon informing him that the Air Staff had approved the emblem change.

An original squadron patch, dating back to 1944, is now on display in the lobby of the operations building. Made in Calcutta, India, during World War II, the patch is all leather, in full color, and nearly 6" in diameter. The son of former 328th pilot Lt. Gene Gooch donated it to the squadron. The luck of the "Third" is still with us.

I am looking for former members of the 3rd Combat Cargo Group, 1st, Combat Cargo Group, 2nd Combat Cargo Group and the 4th Combat Cargo Group. In fact I would like to hear from anyone who flew over the Hump during WW II, or flew any Combat Cargo Missions at any time (Berlin Air-Lift, Korea, etc)

Please e-mail comment, suggestions, corrections,etc to: bill@comcar.org

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