Originally Posted by Taylor

I was driving down the highway today and observed two troopers in different locations of the highway with vehilcles pulled over and they each had on different hats, one had the "smokey" marine corps DI type hat and the other had on the small typical town cop hat. I was wondering why they wear two different hats and why, thanks for any clerification.

Originally Posted by 94c

One may have been doing Chapter 90 and the other drug interdiction. They have been known for wearing different hats.

Originally Posted by Sniper

LAC, don't let 94C fool ya, HE is a man of MANY HATS..........

Originally Posted by LA Copper

Don't you need the first so you can get to the second?

Originally Posted by RodneyFarva

aka the 40 mission chushed look?

Originally Posted by rg1283

Or it could have been one of those town PDs also with one of those look a like MSP hats.

Originally Posted by Delta784

It's actually "50 mission crush" from the Army Air Corps in WWII;

"A 'fifty mission crush' is an Army Air Corps, or Air Force, service cap that has the stiffening ring removed, and is worn crushed and battered. This cap is obviously out of uniform, however steeped in tradition. This tradition was started by the 8th Air force flying personnel as a mark that separates the fledgling from the battle hardened survivor of 25+ combat missions. This mangled cap was frowned upon, but tolerated for those who earned the right to wear it.

Normally, this cap had stiffeners – a support piece behind the cap device and a wire around the inside top perimeter to maintain the cap's round shape. These kept the cap in its proper, regulation military shape and angle. However, since bomber pilots wore headsets over their caps during flights, they would remove the wire stiffener to make headset wear more comfortable, causing the sides of the caps to become crushed. Eventually, the caps retained their floppy "crushed" look, giving the pilot who wore it the look of a seasoned veteran. The crush cap identified its wearer as an experienced pro, and was as much a part of his identity as his leather flight jacket. Army regulations authorized wear of the service cap in this manner in the Army Air Forces, although ground Army officers hated that manner of wearing the cap. Since most AAF general officers likewise wore the crushed caps, the ground Army could do nothing about it. The wear of the "50 Mission" cap is prohibited in the current USAF".

Originally Posted by WaterPistola

nice history lesson, thanks delta i learned something today