The crown is in olive-green wool gabardine; sky-blue band and piping. The "scrambled eggs" motif on the visor is the early version in brass rather than anodized aluminum (the latter, introduced in 1955-56, is far more common.) The visor is a rounded model which replaced the "square" type in 1954 by a special decree of the Defense Ministry.

The hat badge is the 1948 officer model appropriate for a hat made in the early months of 1955 (in late February of that year, the new Soviet uniform code introduced both the completely new style of AF officer hat with a dark blue crown

The crown is in olive-green wool gabardine; sky-blue band and piping. The "scrambled eggs" motif on the visor is the early version in brass rather than anodized aluminum (the latter, introduced in 1955-56, is far more common.) The visor is a rounded model which replaced the "square" type in 1954 by a special decree of the Defense Ministry.

The hat badge is the 1948 officer model appropriate for a hat made in the early months of 1955 (in late February of that year, the new Soviet uniform code introduced both the completely new style of AF officer hat with a dark blue crown and a new model hat badge with an oval centerpiece.) The cockade is of two-piece construction, made in gilded brass with a separate enameled center part superimposed on the wreath. The wings insignia in gilded brass at the top of the crown indicate an AF officer qualified for flying an airplane. The chin cord is in rubberized fabric with a glossy black finish; the sweat band is in dark grey ersatz leather.

The liner has an early-style stamped logo of the Ministry of Defense TsEP Factory in Moscow. Immediately below the factory logo is the Size 60 mark (approx. US size 7 ½ / Extra Large). There is a clearly legible quality control stamp on the underside of the sweatband.

In very good condition, far above the average for a Soviet visor hat of the 1950s era. The crown has only a few very tiny moth nips and tracks at the top and some minor bites to the underside (the latter will be mostly unnoticeable when the hat is displayed.) The sky-blue band and piping are completely free of moth damage. Both the gilded wreath and enameled centerpiece of the cockade are in perfect shape; the wings insignia at the top is likewise perfect. The lacquered visor is nicely preserved showing a nice sheen and having only a couple of very minor scuffs, no significant wear. The "scrambled eggs" motif is perfect and tightly attached to the visor, with all of its prongs intact. The hat is very clean overall, having just a couple of very faint, barely noticeable discoloration spots at the top, while the interior is almost immaculately clean and fresh. The sweat band shows almost no wear and remains pliable and sound.

This hat is an extremely rare piece. Although the full-dress hat for AF officers with green crown and "scrambled eggs" on the visor had existed since 1949, it was only in June 1954 that its earlier "square" visor got replaced with a "rounded visor" model. Very soon, on 25 February 1955 Zhukov's reform of the uniform code abolished the green full-dress hats in favor of the new model with dark-blue crown. The same reform also mandated the new type of hat badge, having an oval centerpiece with a red star on white background. Thus, a hat in configuration offered here could be made for just half a year, from June 1954 through February 1955. Very few such hats have survived to our days, and it is very unlikely that we will see another example anytime soon - especially in XL size and in very good condition.
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