Wear your pride on your sleeve: Changes coming to RCAF badges and insignia
RCAF PA– The Guard
The rules governing Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) personnel wearing badges or insignia on their operational uniforms are about to change.
An upcoming amendment to the Canadian Air Division Orders (CADO) on operational dress will allow aviators who wear flight suits and Enhanced Combat Uniforms (ECUs)/CADPAT to add certain optional Velcro-backed badges and insignia to their sleeves.
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This change in the CADO is intended to enhance squadron and tactical unit morale and esprit de corps. The spirit of the RCAF unit is centred on the members and how well they work together. Part of this spirit comes from the symbols they wear: the badges and crests of the unit.
The CADO amendment will allow badges, especially a unit’s heraldic badge, to be embroidered in full colour as well as low visibility green.
All other badges can be embroidered in full colour, which will be up to the unit as part of their design process. Yes, a unit can design their own patch!
What other kinds of patches can there be?
Units can now create and wear badges to mark a special anniversary or participation in an exercise or operation. Courses may have their own patch as well.
In addition, personnel at wings, squadrons and tactical units will soon be able to wear blue t-shirts with an embroidered logo at the neck—or, on Fridays, their own squadron coloured T-shirt!
Lieutenant-General Al Meinzinger, Commander RCAF, and Chief Warrant Officer Denis Gaudreault, RCAF Command CWO noted that this forthcoming direction will serve to enhance esprit de corps and identity, adding that RCAF aviators are encouraged to “take the opportunity to embrace and contribute to this next chapter of our traditions”.
Each new patch design must be endorsed by the chain of command and approved by 1 or 2 Canadian Air Division or the RCAF Aerospace Warfare Centre as applicable. Some items will be available through the Canadian Forces Supply System, while others will be available through unit kit shops or through CANEX.
This change could mean that some badges currently in use may become obsolete. For example, the multi-colour (low-visibility green and colour mix) heraldic badge will be phased out over the coming year, to be replaced with the full-colour heraldic badge and/or the low-visibility green heraldic badge.
