vincent p. norris wrote:
Mike Kanze wrote:
During the Vietnam era a number of USMC flight students went through the USAF pilot training pipeline as an expediency. Thus it would not be surprising to hear of a serving General officer still sporting Wings of Lead, especially if his later flying career (C-130s, for example) never took him in the vicinity of El Boat or required him to carqual.

BUT if they went on to fly in the USMC, they would have had gold wings,
not USAF wings, even if they didn't go to the boat....

The got gold wings wihout CQing?

I'm guessing it was Naval Parachutist wings...

This gets more bewildering by the minute. What do Parachutist wings
have to do with being a Naval Aviator?

vince norris

I knew guys that flew the C-130 in the USMC, that never went thru USN
training of any sort and a few that started USN training, T-34, T-28,
NO CQ, then off to helos or trash haulers. Not all USMC students when I
was in the TRACOM(1973-1974) went to the boat.

But the OP said he saw some gold wings on some general USMC officer on
TV with what looked like not a shield/anchor on his gold wings..some
'postulated' that they might be USN master jump wings is all.