‘Wings and Badges’ expert, Russel J. Huff has passed away
Collector, author and expert in wings and badges collecting, Russel J. Huff has died.
Just after Labor Day 2023, the militaria world lost a pioneer in the branch of collecting wings and badges of pilots and aviators when Russel J. Huff passed away in his Georgetown, Texas home.
He was 87 years old and is survived by his wife Diane, their daughter and two grandchildren.
After graduating Catholic seminary and serving the Lord in Chile, South America for several years, he returned to the U.S. and took a position with Sears Roebuck at company headquarters in Chicago. It was during this time he took up an interest in matters aviation and began collecting wings and badges of pilots and aircrew.
Seeing very little published about that segment of the hobby he began research on, and eventually published, his seminal work Wings and Badges of World War II. This book led the way for aviation collectors and historians to educate themselves about the articles we were acquiring. His book, though out-of-print, can still occasionally be found on-line or elsewhere.
His friendship, knowledge, expertise, and wisdom – and willingness to share all of that – will be missed.
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