Atlantean military aircraft national insignia



This is a listing of the nationality markings used by military aircraft of the Atlantean Republic, including those of the Atlantean Army Air Branch, the Atlantean Air Force, and the Atlantean Naval Air Branch.

History


Early in the history of Atlantean military aviation the entire branch was woefully under-funded and ignored. Given these early limitations there were very few aircraft to mark. Due to a limited budget the earliest Atlantean roundels were only painted with a single color, red. The earliest roundels were simple red triangles usually painted onto the fuselage of the aircraft. The entirety of Atlantean military aircraft were controlled by the Army, so unlike other militaries of the time there was no division between Army Aviation and Naval Aviation insignia, because any aircraft flown by the Atlantean Navy were on loan from the Army.

Atlantean Neutrality in World War I
Because of Atlantis' neutrality during the First World War the military did not have any experience using aircraft in combat, thus depriving the Atlantean armed forces of much needed experience going in to the next World War. In addition, because Atlantis was a non-combatant nation during the war the generals felt no need to modify their insignia, as none of their aircraft were ever going to be in a combat zone where an ambiguous insignia (a simple red triangle) could cause confusion.

Post-WW I and interwar period
December 1917 saw the Atlantean military make more investment in their aviation sector. During this period the Atlantean Navy also began to develop its own aviation programme, however it too was underfunded compared to other industrialized nations' air branches. The Army Air Branch, with its modestly increased budget, finally modified its simple red triangle roundel to an inverted white triangle superimposed on the traditional red triangle. After a six year period of the red and white triangle roundel the Army Air branch modified its colors to match those of the Atlantean flag (clockwise from the top: blue, gold, green, and a white inverted triangle centre). The Naval aircraft were marked with a white triangle on a red triangle on a blue triangle.

Atlantean entry into World War II
In the months before the Sinking of the Vakearen Uzoe the Atlantean military was well aware that the nation was on the path to becoming involved in the World War. There was little doubt, even in the minds of the common citizens, that Atlantean forces would again watch Europe descend into war and drag North America into it and not become involved. Due to this assurance of involvement in the conflict, the Atlantean Armed Forces, lead by the Head General Nakádz Hentrilak, published the 'Unified Aircraft Symbol Code' which standardized all symbols on the Atlantean aircraft, regardless of military branch. There was a large contingent of military pilots who had lobbied the Head General to avoid using superimposed circle roundels as these were thought to resemble targets, and the pilots were feeling superstitious. Eventually it was determined that the use of an ancient Atlantean symbol, as opposed to something generic like a star, diamond or circle, was preferable because it would not be easily confused with any other roundels, and it was hearkening back to the ancient Atlantean Empire which was a strong martial symbol.



Atlantean D-Day: Crescent Beach Invasion
On June 8, 1944 Atlantean Marines executed a daring and completely unexpected naval invasion in northern Germany in the region of Cuxhaven, Bremerhaven, Wilhelmshaven, and Esens. This second part of the D-Day invasion (planned with reluctant acceptance by the other Allies who thought that the Atlanteans would be throwing away their troops) caught the Germans entirely by surprise due to excellent Atlantean spies fooling the Germans. The Atlantean pilots who would be flying out of England had petitioned the Atlantean High Command for permission to modify their tail markings to commemorate the momentous and dangerous invasion. Given the high number of expected casualties (which was not shared with the pilots) the High Command thought that it would be a good morale boost. Surprisingly, the loss of Atlantean aircraft was much less than expected. Many pilots felt that this was due to the 'luck' from their modified symbols which now included the colors of the modern Atlantean flag, thus combining an ancient symbol of conquest and martial dominance with the virtues of a democratic society protecting the rights of the people. Quite a few Atlantean aircraft sported their altered symbols until the end of WWII.

Pre-Cold War (1945-1956)
With the end of WWII, Atlantis maintained a military presence in Europe, but was not interested in continuing the stand-off with the Soviet Union. With the exhaustion brought on by the war, as well as the enormous cost of keeping the 'Atlantean Zone' policed, the Atlantean government made a statement to the world by changing its aircraft insignia from their previous martial symbol to a simple white star. This symbolic declaration was welcomed by the Soviet Union while Atlantis was, privately, considered to be "a nation of cowards" by certain Allied generals.

Throughout this period of time Atlantean Forces were not being brought up to face off with Soviet Forces, with the limited exception of an area in Vorpommern and in Berlin itself, so the Atlantean High Command considered a white star (a six-pointed star is the accepted symbol of the modern Atlantean Republic) to be sufficient.

Cold War/NATO Atlantis
After many years of attempted Soviet spy insertions, and one ill-fated (and incredibly poorly executed) coup plan, Atlantis finally joined the rest of the Allies from WWII as a part of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). During Atlantis' transition into the NATO bloc it also reformed its roundels to better signify its place as a full military partner in the alliance. Unfortunately, the insignia changes were not well received by Atlantean military personnel, which delayed their full adoption and implementation for a number of years.

Eventually the similarities between the Atlantean and US insignia were considered to be unacceptable so the Atlantean Forces gradually adopted newer, more distinctive forms of roundels. These star (Air Force) and Triangle (Naval Air Branch) insignia were considered to be very good changes and were widely appreciated by NATO allies. A novelty album cover for Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon, was published in Atlantis, with the central prism being replaced by a stylized Atlantean Naval Air Branch insignia.

Atlantean Army Air and Atlantean Air Force Insignia
Official dates refers to when a new insignia was officially ordered but implementation was not always immediate.

Atlantean Naval Air Insignia
Official dates refers to when a new insignia was officially ordered but implementation was not always immediate.