Officially Licensed US Navy Carrier Air Wing CVW-1 Leather Patch - Carrier Air Wing One (CVW-1), the Navy's longest-serving carrier air wing, rendered in a premium full-grain leather patch with the AB tail code and the unit's enduring insignia.
First and Foremost — the motto of CVW-1 is not a boast but a record, written across eight decades of carrier aviation, combat deployments, and the flight decks of twenty different ships.
CVW-1 traces its lineage to July 1, 1938, when the squadrons aboard USS Ranger (CV-4), the Navy's first purpose-built aircraft carrier, were officially designated the Ranger Air Group. From those early suitability trials off the California coast, the air wing grew into one of the most decorated and widely deployed aviation commands in naval history. It operated from USS Langley, USS Lexington, and USS Saratoga before the war, served aboard the first supercarrier USS Forrestal during the 1956 Suez Crisis, flew combat missions off Vietnam, and went on to log 42 major deployments across twenty carriers. Redesignated CVW-1 on December 20, 1963, the wing later provided the first carrier-based combat air support to Operation Enduring Freedom and flew more than 7,500 missions during a single 2007 Mediterranean deployment. Based at NAS Oceana, Virginia, CVW-1 continues to integrate strike fighter, electronic attack, airborne early warning, and rotary-wing squadrons under one of the most recognized tail codes in naval aviation. This officially licensed leather patch captures that identity with the weight and texture the insignia deserves.
Perfect For: Navy veterans and CVW-1 alumni, carrier aviation collectors, strike fighter and airborne early warning enthusiasts, NAS Oceana community members, shadow box and display board builders, deployment keepsake seekers, naval history buffs, family members honoring a sailor's service, and anyone assembling a serious East Coast carrier aviation collection that spans the full arc from USS Ranger to modern nuclear-powered strike groups.
Primus et Principes — First and Foremost, in leather built to last as long as the legacy.
