Item Description
Original Item. One-of-a-Kind. This is the tremendous uniform & research of First Lieutenant Robert Abner Latchin, 404th Fighter Squadron, 371st Fighter Group, who was participated in 33 combat missions, and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal with a staggering eight oak leaf clusters, during the Second World War. Interestingly, Latchin was born in Mosul, Iraq.
Latchin’s uniform is a tremendous example, being very well-named in four different places. The jacket has a gorgeous 9th Air Force bullion patch on the left shoulder, and bullion 1st Lieutenant bars on his shoulder boards. There are AAF collar insignia, and a Presidential Unit Citation with a frame over his right breast pocket. Above his left breast pocket is a 3-place ribbon bar with the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal with 8 OLCs, and the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign medal with three campaign stars. Above this is a gorgeous set of bullion pilot’s wings. Interestingly, all of the ribbons on Latchin’s uniform are made by Wolf-Brown, one of the most famous makers of ribbons and medals. The ribbons are a bit loose on their bars.
On the interior, his name and serial number are stamped twice onto the lining, with his monogrammed initials, R.A.L., stitched above the maker’s tag, Davis Tailorcrest. On the interior pocket is a tag for the maker, The P.H. Davis Tailoring Co. of Cincinnati, Ohio, with Robert’s name filled in.
Robert Abner Latchin was born on November 6th, 1920 in Mogul, Iraq, to Abner Nweeya Lactchin and Almas Adams. He moved to the U.S. in 1921, and his parents had two daughters. He first enlisted on January 23rd, 1943, training in army ordnance and later aviation. He was commissioned as an officer on April 15th, 1944, being trained as a P-47 Fighter Pilot. He was assigned to the 404th Fighter Squadron, 371st Fighter Group. He traveled overseas on October 22nd, 1944, seeing heavy combat with his squadron. He was involved in two different accidents which occurred upon takeoff, and he was able to land without any loss of life. He was awarded the Air Medal with 8 OLCs and the Distinguished Flying Cross. He returned to the US on July 21st, 1945, being discharged on November 30th, 1945. He passed away on August 2nd, 1990, at the age of 69.
This is a tremendous jacket with a great deal of printed research. We could not locate Latchin’s DFC Citation, so this is a great opportunity for further research!
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