The three were Captain John Smith, Lieutenants Jim Colegrove and John Reeder. The CO assigned objective was to capture – in more contemporary graphic form - the World-wide Deployment-Tactical Nuclear strike capability of the Squadron.

The elements of the design were:
A Bouche Shield (associated with the historic Germanic shield ‘notched’ at the upper corner and with a ridge running top to bottom) to pay respect to the Luftwaffe Fighter-Bomber tactics developed in World war II by the German air forces.   [No contemporary citation could be found for Germanic origins of this type of shield. -jhc]

The Falcon Head was meant to honor the predator spirit of the 510th Fighter-Bomber Squadron with a heritage dating back to the World War II Squadron’s combat action over Europe in support of Gen. Patton’s 3rd Army. The newly operational Air Force Academy, in about 1957, adopted the Falcon as its mascot and team name. [The Falcon head at some time later (between 1957 Langley  and Viet Nam) became identified as the Buzzard. I don’t know the origin of the change – but the ‘Buzzards of Bien Hoa’ certainly has a better ring than the ‘Falcons of  Bien Hoa’. -jhc]
The Purple background color of the upper portion is simply the squadron tail color inherited from the World War II era.  [The 510th is – as far as I know – the only Squadron with Purple tails and although I don’t see purple on the few color P-47 photos from the war –there was purple on the “Willie” emblem and on some of the aircraft  tails when I got to Langley in 1955.-jhc]

The Black portion, with lightning bolts striking a globe represent the world-wide mobility mission of the squadron. The Squadron (Group and Wing) at that time maintained ‘mobility kits’ designed to allow the squadron to deploy and initiate combat operations without major outside support. These kits  included aircraft spares up to and including engines, armament, etc.  Obviously outside support in the form of air-to-air tankers (KB-29 & KB-50), airlift (C-124, C-119) for the ground crews, additional air crews, mobility kits, etc. - as well as runways, POL, were necessary – but the deployed aircraft could fly from the US with their nukes, land at a forward base, refuel and strike…

The Atom at the center represented the Nuclear weapon capability. [I don’t think any of the three of us were technically smart enough to realize that the atom we drew only had six electrons which is about right for carbon – but not the 235 electrons of Plutonium – jhc]

Some months after we submitted our work it was ‘approved’ and the first patches ordered. Col. Scott was reassigned to Elgin AFB to the Phase 5 testing of the new F-105, and Major John Allen became our CO. We also transitioned to the F-100D. [I only recently learned that Squadron level emblems were to be round – not shield shaped and that ‘our’ patch had never been officially blessed by the USAF patch bureaucrats.- jhc]
Soon the 510th got involved through PR channels with the some historical anniversary observances of nearby Jamestown – and having a Capt. John Smith in our ranks, the picture below with the first aircraft (F-100D) to display the new emblem was taken. On the nose just behind Maj. Allen’s head was nose art commemorating the Jamestown event.

The patch project was started while Col. Scott was Sqdn Commander ('56), and adopted officially in '57. John Reeder was killed a couple of years later while flying on duty in Germany. I believe John Smith is alive but we've had no luck contacting him nor Don Allen.

While I'm very proud of my identity with the patch, I don't really recall who did what. I suspect John Reeder's father - a commercial artist as I recall - actually did the renderings of our collective ideas. I also have contemporary pictures of Sgt. Trank, who developed the original 510th patch in WWII.