Service career badge (NVA)

The service career badge of the National People's Army was an award of the National People's Army of the German Democratic Republic (GDR), which was gradually introduced for the first time for members of the NVA on June 22, 1957 by the Minister for National Defense Willi Stoph with Order No. 49/57 . Their foundation took place with the same order for the introduction of the rifle cords . The service career badges for the officers of the air force were considered to be the forerunners of the NVA classification clasps , which gradually took their place. The service career badge was given to all soldiers , aviators , sailors , NCOs , mates and officers who had completed special training by the NVA.

Types of career badges

Service career badge for helmsmen

Service career badge for helmsmen from 1960 to 1967

The service career badge for helmsmen was intended for officers of the air force of the NVA who were assigned to the flight attendants and who did not yet have a classification badge. The service career badge has the shape of a clasp with wings, the width of which is approx. 34 mm. In the middle of the clasp a transverse, oval wreath of oak leaves can be seen, the circumference of which is approx. 29 mm. The badge of the air force is placed in the upper center. In the middle of the wreath lies a bronze MiG-17 on a light blue background . The wings and the oak leaf wreath are silver-plated. The awards took place from 1960 to 1967. In that year, the awards of the clasp were finally stopped. The reason was the changed training guideline, which was associated with the purchase of a classification clasp.

Service career badge for head of parachute service

Service career badge Head of the parachute service from 1957 to 1960

This service badge was awarded from 1957 to 1960 to all leaders of the parachute service who, after having achieved a certain qualification level, received the necessary authorization. The silvery embroidered badge is embroidered on a dark green fabric base, 57 mm high and 45 mm wide and shows an open parachute within a wreath of oak leaves. Test embossings for a metal badge were also produced from this fabric sample, but they were not issued. In 1960 the awards of the clasp were finally stopped. The reason was the changed training guideline, which was associated with the purchase of a classification clasp.

Service career badge for officers of the parachute service

The career badge for officers in the parachute service from 1960 to 1967

The service career badge for officers of the parachute service was awarded from 1960 to 1967. It was given to all officers of the NVA air force who had not yet received a classification clasp. It was 91 mm wide and 26 mm high. It has the shape of a clasp with wings. In the middle of the clasp is a transverse, oval wreath of oak leaves, the width of which is approx. 34 mm. In the upper middle of the wreath the badge of the air force is placed. In the middle of the wreath lies an open bronze parachute on a light blue background, the tip of which cannot be seen. The wings and the oak leaf wreath are silver-plated. In 1967 the awards of the clasp were finally stopped. The reason was the changed training guideline, which was associated with the purchase of a classification clasp.

Service career badge for aircraft technicians

Service career badges for aircraft technicians in time variants

The service career badge mentioned was awarded to all officers of the aeronautical personnel who had successfully completed training as aircraft technicians. The silver embroidered badge, embroidered on a dark green fabric base, 57 mm high and 45 mm wide and shows in the middle two crossed symbols a wrench and a wrench within a wreath of oak leaves. Test embossings for a metal badge were also produced from this fabric sample, but they were not issued. The fabric badge was awarded from 1957 to 1960. With order no. 13/60 of March 13, 1960, the form of the embroidered form was given up in favor of a clip made of non-ferrous metal. This was worn 5 mm above the right breast pocket of the uniform and shows a stylized silver clasp with wings, the ends of which merge into a semicircular bronze gear. This semicircular gear is traversed by a mesh on which the emblem of the air force of the GDR can be seen. This clasp was awarded from 1960 to 1967. There was also a sample that is identical to the silver clasp. It was also 91 mm and 20 mm high and gold in color. It was to be awarded to all officers of the engineering and aeronautical personnel, including the officers of the aeronautical supply and the technical schools of the air force, who did not yet have a classification badge. However, an award never took place.

Service career badges for aircraft mechanics for soldiers and NCOs

Service career badges for aircraft mechanics for soldiers and NCOs

This service career badge consisted of an embroidered variant on a stone gray cloth pad, which was also worn on the sleeve. It could be awarded to soldiers and non-commissioned officers with training as aircraft mechanics. It shows a wrench or a screw clamp in the middle, which lies within a stylized pair of upstroke wings. The prototype made of metal for this purpose was made, but not spent. There were also no reprints. In 1967 the awards of the clasp were finally stopped. The reason was the changed training guideline, which was associated with the purchase of a classification clasp.

Service career badges for pilots

Service career badge pilot in time variants

The service career badge for pilots was awarded in the first variant from 1957 to 1960, the second from 1960 to 1967 and the third from 1967 to 1983. This year, the awards of the clasp were finally stopped. The reason was the changed training guideline, which was associated with the purchase of a classification clasp. The issue of this clasp was therefore made to all officers of the air force who had successfully completed pilot training but did not yet have a corresponding classification clasp. The award therefore usually took place at the end of the officer's degree. Before the first form of the service career badge for pilots was created, there was already a forerunner. It was already worn by the pilots of the Aero Club in 1953 and then became known as the first official form of the badge.

The first form of the badge, like its predecessor, consisted of silver-embroidered aluminum threads, was 57 mm high, 45 mm wide and showed in its center a stylized four-leaf propeller framed by a wreath of oak leaves. A sample embossing in metal design was embossed, but was never issued.

The second shape was a clasp. It was 91 mm wide and 26 mm high. It was shaped like a clasp with bronze wings. In the middle of the clasp a silver oval wreath of oak leaves can be seen, the width of which is approx. 34 mm. The badge of the air force is placed in the upper center of the wreath. In the middle of the wreath lies a bronze MiG-17 on a light blue background . There were also intermediate variants with golden wings and golden wreaths.

The third and final form of the badge, from 1967 to ?? also has the shape of a clasp with golden more modern wings, the width of which is approx. 91 mm and its height at 24 mm. In the middle of the clasp is a golden bordered square of 20 × 20 mm, which is enamelled sky blue. On top of it lies a MiG-17 flying to the left.

Service career badge, for officers of the engineering service (ITD)

Service career badge for officers in the engineering service from 1967 to 1989

This service career badge was also awarded to all officers in the engineering service who did not yet have a classification clasp. The first awards took place in 1967. The service career badge has the shape of a winged clasp, the width of which is approx. 91 mm and the height of 24 mm. In the middle of the clasp is a golden bordered square of 20 × 20 mm, which is enamelled sky blue. It shows a four-bladed propeller in front of a toothed ring, which makes up about three quarters of the entire circumference. The emblem of the air force of the GDR rests on the top center of the square. However, there are also variants of the badge that show a light green background in their central square.

Post leader badge (1960)

Trial sample of the service career badge for post leader of the German border police

The planned post leader badge for the border troops of the GDR was based on instructions from the rear service of the German border police command . In this directive it was proposed to introduce a post leader badge as a service badge, which should only be awarded in one stage. The planning even went so far that individual pattern embossings were produced. However, these samples were not issued. The reason for the planning being dropped is not known.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Klaus Feder, Jürgen Wagner, Ralf Swoboda: Military badges of the German Democratic Republic. Military publishing house of the German Democratic Republic, Berlin 1988, ISBN 3-327-00523-0 , pp. 12-17.