Original U.S. WWII Goldfish Club 534th Bomb Squadron DFC Recipient’s Uniform & Ephemera Grouping - Lieutenant John A. Martyniak, B-17 Pilot
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Original Items. One-of-a-Kind Grouping. This is the tremendous uniform grouping of 1st Lieutenant B-17 Pilot John Andrew Martyniak, 534th Bombardment Squadron, 381st Bombardment Group, 8th Air Force. Martyniak would not only be awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal with four OLCs, but was also a member of the Goldfish Club, membership of which was only available to aviators who have “ditched out” or “Baled out” over the sea. Martyniak became eligible on June 8th, 1944 during a mission to Kerlin-Bastard, France. He ditched in the English Channel 30 miles west of Jersey due to flak damage, and was rescued by ASR (Air-Sea Rescue).
This tremendous grouping includes:
- Martyniak’s Army officer’s uniform jacket with 1st Lieutenant bars on the shoulders, a gorgeous bullion Army Air Forces patch on the left shoulder, one overseas stripe on the left cuff, US & Aviation collar insignia, a set of Sterling Pilot’s wings over a 3-place ribbon bar with the Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal with three OLCs, and the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign ribbon with one star. Above the right breast pocket is a Presidential Unit Citation, and on the pocket is an extremely scare British-made Goldfish Club patch hand-stitched on. This is certainly the rarest aspect of the group.
- Martyniak’s Pilot’s Crusher Cap by “Hot Pilot”, a very rare maker of these already-scarce caps. It’s marked Size 7⅛ and is in good service-worn condition with some wear to the visor and interior.
- Martyniak’s spare Pilot’s Wings.
- Martyniak’s full 7-place ribbon bar with the Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal with four OLCs, the Purple Heart, the American Defense Medal, the American Campaign Medal with one campaign star, the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign ribbon with two campaign stars, and the WWII Victory Medal.
- Another of his ribbon bars, a 2-place with the DFC and Air Medal with 4 OLCs.
- Great studio portrait of Martyniak as an enlisted soldier.
- Martyniak’s Goldfish Club membership card with his name and date of bailing out.
- Several printed pages of research on Martyniak.
John Andrew Martyniak was born on September 14th, 1917 in Bristol, Massachusetts. He enlisted in the Army on September 24th, 1940, joining the Air Corps. He trained as a B-17 Pilot and was eventually commissioned as a Lieutenant. He traveled overseas and joined the 534th Bombardment Squadron, 381st Bombardment Group, 8th Air Force on April 6th, 1944. He bailed out of B-17 42-97238 30 miles west of Jersey on June 8th, 1944 after suffering flak damage, later joining the Goldfish Club. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross as well as the Air Medal with four Oak Leaf Clusters. He returned home and worked as a refrigeration mechanic. He passed away on July 4th, 2005 at the age of 87.
This is a tremendous grouping to a member of the Goldfish Club, with an exceptionally scarce British-made patch for the club. Comes ready for further research and display.
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