Memphis Belle embroidered badge - 5 inchs in diameter (12.5 cm)

The Memphis Belle, a B-17F Flying Fortress, is one of the most famous aircraft in history. In May 1943 it became the first U.S. Army Air Forces heavy bomber to complete 25 missions over Europe and return to the United States. The pilot, then-Lt. Robert Morgan, named the aircraft after his wartime girlfriend, Margaret Polk, of Memphis, Tenn. Lt. Morgan chose the artwork from a 1941 George Petty illustration in Esquire magazine. For many, the story of the Memphis Belle has become a timeless symbol of all the heroic USAAF bomber crews in World War II.