In 1947, the U.S. Air Force became an independent branch of the military. In 1950, the Air Force began developing a lightweight survival and personal defense weapon for the aircrew. Colt and Smith & Wesson submitted aluminum alloy revolvers with two-inch barrels for testing. After the initial round of testing, the Air Force ordered 1189 Colt "Aircrewman" revolvers. They were numbered A.F. No.1 thru A.F. No. 1189. By 1959 a number of blown cylinders or frames had been reported so the Commanding Officer of the Air Material Command ordered all Aircrewman revolvers destroyed. Only around 50 have been catalogued as being authentic. (this information was taken from the Rampant Colt Summer 2009) According to the Blue Book, maybe less than 25 have survived. Kwill has documented a 100 or so. 25 or 50, or 100, doesn't really matter, these are extremely rare. They were produced in 1951. The caliber is 38 special. The frame and cylinder are made of aluminum. The sights are fixed. The grips are checkered walnut and have silver Air Force medallions.
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