WWII US Army 5th Air Force

A USAAF 5th Air Force Locally made Australian patch. Removed from uniform and in good condition with service wear.

It was from Australian bases that members of the 5th AF participated, on May 4 to 8, 1942, in the battle of Coral Sea, the first sea battle in which the major action was entirely in the air. Australian-based planes of the 5th added their firepower to U. S. naval planes and helped carry out the vital reconnaissance of the vast stretches of the Coral Sea—the water route by which the Japs were attempting to sweep further south to Australia and New Caledonia. Since the Battle of the Coral Sea marked the first major defeat of the Japanese, it may be said to have been the turning point of the Pacific War.

Code: 57938