EXTREMELY RARE BLIMP PILOT'S GROUPING part 2

So, Chapter 2 goes like this:

I contacted Bruce again and he provided me with details of the leather Navy flight jacket and his Dad's steel helmet, but said he didn't have immediate access to them as they were in storage. 

As a collector, you are always looking for immediate gratification but I needed to be patient. A few weeks went by and Bruce got back in touch and sent along some nice photos of the jacket. Turns out that his Dad started his career as an Ensign having dropped out of college to serve his country.

That was 1943. He stayed in the Navy until 1968 and retired as a Commander. That was also the year that Bruce came along so he didn't know a great deal about his Dad's service. He distinctly remembers the following:

1) Seeing that big swastika tail piece hanging on the wall in their rec room.

2) Seeing his Dad wearing the leather jacket to parades and reunions The jacket is a USN issue G-1 jacket but not the original he wore during WWII. Along the way, those got worn out but Bruce told me the squadron patch was his original from WWII but it has his highest rank on the name patch. I checked and that is correct as they changed the patch over the years.

3) Playing war with his Dad's steel helmet as a kid. This is a beautiful M-1 steel helmet that has a very early Type-1 Holley liner. W.W. Kaiser wrote his name and OPERATIONS on the liner.

We came to terms and I am thrilled to possess this grouping from such a specialized and distinctive unit from the "Greatest Generation!