Challenge Coins Have Historically Saved Lives, But Are Collectors Items

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The origin of challenge coins are a matter of debate among military people and there is little if any supporting evidence for any side of the question. The most commonly held view is that they started in World War One in the Army Air Corps, which then became the US Air Force. Air warfare was completely new during World War One, and when the Army created squadrons of pilots, they came from all walks of life from men in rural areas to men who dropped out of college to join in the fight.

The legend is that a wealthy lieutenant who had been a student, ordered small solid bronze medallions, or coins, struck, which he presented to the other pilots in his squadron as a memento of their time together. The coin was gold plated and bore the squadron's insignia, and was very valuable. One of the men, who had never had anything like it in his life, put it in a small leather pouch and hung it around his neck and when his plane was shot down in flames, he was captured by the Germans. The confiscated all the personal belongings from his pockets but they missed the pouch. On his way to a POW facility, he was held overnight in a small German held French village near the front. During the night the town was bombarded by the British, creating enough confusion for the pilot to escape.

He avoided German patrols by donning civilian clothes, but all his identification had been confiscated so he had no way to prove his identity. When he was found by a French patrol, the mistook him for a German, as they had Germans in the area trying to infiltrate wearing civilian clothes. As they prepared to execute him, he pulled the coin from the pouch, and was lucky enough to have one of the Frenchmen recognize the insignia. That delayed his execution long enough for them to confirm the pilots real identity. Once the pilot returned to safely to his squadron, it became tradition for all members to carry the coin at all times. To ensure compliance, the pilots would challenge each other to produce the coin. If the pilot could not produce the coin, it was his responsibility to buy a drink for the challenger.

If he could produce the coin, the challenger would pay for the drink. There are several other stories of the tradition, but this one seems to be the earliest. Now all units have their own coins, and some carry them with them all their lives, even after their military service is over. And now other groups not allied with the Armed Services also have their own challenge coins. The challenge can be made at any time a member of the group meets another.


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