. Hi Kat,    Thank you for the kind words, I will say however that Johan's passion for historical technical detail precedes mine, being older than Johan I still very much have the philosophy that a Jeep is a Jeep is a Jeep and used / use it as such, driving it daily as much as possible is much more of the passion of a Jeep for me.   It's still here with me after all the years of use and abuse . . . . . . .  ( and the screen down at all times  )         Norman D. Landing, Forum Normandy Correspondent, April 26 2O25.   ….      

Maybe this will be of help.      

Informal Portrait with Steel Helmet of a 5th Armd Div GI 1945

A collector friend and I at the 5th ESB memorial visible in your photo above... This one was taken in June 1999 shortly before some vandals stole the large bronze ESB insignia from the memorial...    

Funny how all of us Jeep'rs seem to do the same things through time... My GPW on Omaha Beach in June 1994... Back then it was still marked for the 1st Division's 16th Infantry which landed more or less on that part of the beach. Hard to believe this was over 30 years ago...    

Thx Kat,   Well that’s what 50 years of passionate collecting does…. 😉

GIs with the 9th Armored Division take cover behind a rise along a Autobahn in Germany - April 1945   LIFE Magazine Archives - John Florea Photographer WWP-PD      

Thank you very much for all your help. Then the 462 patch is not for an unit, it's an unauthorized patch that a Aircraft Armament Systems Specialist wore on his uniorm,

only saw one Army KIA on the registry name E Gage. There were other postings of service men. the site is usuall pretty accurate for KIA listings. others veterans are listed by family or friends. Im leaning towards odds are this was a WIA award.   https://wwiiregistry.abmc.gov/honoree-plaque/?honoree_id=978436   https://wwiiregistry.abmc.gov/honoree-search-results/?first_name=E&last_name=Gage&hometown&branch_code&state_code&db_code[0]=R&db_code[1]=W

Okinawa April 1945