Gunner Wings

Hi, I have a question about the gunner wings. My grandfather graduated gunnery school from Las Vegas  in Sept of 1942. Would he have been given the gunner wings? I read that they first were issued in April 29 1943. He saved a lot of his stuff and his service ribbons but I never found any wings. He was with the 8th  and was an armament specialist and a ball turret gunner in the summer of 1943- 44. I found an old picture of him in his uniform but can`t make out if the wings were gunner wings or the air crewman . I am putting a shadow box together with some of his stuff but don`t know if I should get a set of gunner wings to make it complete if he was never issued them? Any help?

A graduate of an authorized gunnery school...(including an officer).... was authorized the gunner wings...but officers who were also navigators or bombardiers would wear thier respective wings in preference to the gunner wings.
 
In addition, any enlisted crewmember who  had not attended a formal gunnery school, and who had a minimum of 100 combat hours as a gunner,...  also was entitled to  wear the gunner wings.
 
The back of my Discharge says only"Flight Maint Gunner 748"...., and also has a notation,in the next block "AAF AirCrewMember Badge (Wings)".
 
(The words gunner authorizes the gunner wings ,and along with the added aircrew member wings authorizes either wings...but, most gunners felt that inasmuch as ANY aircrew member was authorized the aircrew wings,(Including gunners),...that the gunner wings were  more indictative of thier duties, as did the officers with their more selective indication of their duties.
 
Jim :-)

In 2006 I met and became good friends with a B-24 waist gunner (now, sadly, deceased) who had served in the same squadron with, and had known my father while stationed in N. Australia during the war.  He wore his Gunner Wings at every Reunion he attended and was immensely proud of them.  He told me that he had worn only those wings and never wore any other crew wings.

Mike,
Yes, the last bomb group he was with was the 384th. His name is Robert W. Bechtel. He was first with the 92nd BG and then the 482nd then the 384th He had 2 OLC`s on his Air Medal because he was shot down on his 16th mission I believe that was on 4/13/44 to Schweinfurt . They got shot up by FW 109`s  and had to belly land the B-17 that was running on 1 engine and plane on fire in a farmer`s field in Rambucourt France. He suffered some burns hence the Purple Heart. He and 3 other crew members escaped and evaded and the others that were badlly wounded were POW`s. He escaped to Spain and departed from Gibralter back to the U.K. 7/31/44. He then was sent back to the states and was discharged in October of 1945. Hope this helps. The ship he was shot down on was Big Stupe V from the 384th BG 545th BS

Rob - Rolland
Thanks for the Info.  
# 42 - 37816  JD D " Big Stupe V "
FYI - Photos :
The 8th Air Force Yearbook by John Woolnough Page 163
B-17 Flying Fortress Nose Art Gallery by John Campbell Page 69
Cheers,
Mike

Rob....You might email them and tell your story.
 
See http://www.gunners.net
There is a BX and the replica wings (Item No 18)are a modest $8.50,plus S&H.
 
Jim :-)

Hi, You guys are great! Thanks for the pic Lucky Partners, and thank you Jim for the link to the site! Maybe I will try to contact them to tell the story.
 
Rob