History

On March 25, 1933 the DLV (Deutscher Luftsportverband = German Air Sports Association) was created as a civilian sports organisation, the umbrella organisation of all air-related sports. However, from the very beginning, the DLV was used to secretly train its members for future roles in the newly emerging Luftwaffe, a breach of the terms of the Versailles Treaty.
The organisation should not be confused with the Deutscher Luftfahrtverband (also abbreviated DLV), which was formed in 1902, but disbanded in favour of the new DLV under Third Reich rule.

The DLV was split into two groups, the civilian section and the secret military section, known as the “Fliegerschaft” (air crew). The organisation eventually became obsolete after the official unveiling of the Luftwaffe in 1935, and it was disbanded and replaced by the National Socialist Flyers Corps (NSFK or Nationalsozialistisches Fliegerkorps) in 1937.

The same initial belt design was worn by Enlisted Ranks in the DLV and RLB (Reichsluftschutzbund = National Air Raid Protection League). The difference between the buckles used is that DLV eagles had straight wings, while those on RLB buckles are angled slightly downwards. However, there seems to have been a lot of confusion about this in the early 1930s, leading to both designs being worn by both organisations interchangeably.

The rectangular buckle is generally composed of nickel, aluminum, or nickel-plated brass with a pebbled appearance; the nickel, aluminum, brass may also be silvered. The obverse features an eagle with spread wings. The eagle is clutching a wreath with a swastika in its claws, the swastika may or may not be enamelled/painted black. The entire eagle is surrounded by a laurel wreath.

The reverse of the buckle has two bars. The prongs bar was used for attaching the leather tab and also features the double prongs, while the left bar is the buckle catch which attaches to the leather belt strap. The reverse may also rarely feature a manufacturer’s mark.

The leather tab was sewn around the prongs bar, and it was meant to support the canvas pouch. While the manufacturer marks are generally located on the reverse of the buckle, they may also be stamped into the leather tab. The leather tab may also feature the stamp “L.B.A.” for the Luftwaffe Clothing Department (Luftwaffe-Bekleidungs-Amt), or “Techn.-Kon” for Technical Control.

On May 27, 1935, an order was released that delineated the official forms of the Luftwaffe uniforms. This edict removed DLV belts from circulation and wear by Luftwaffe personnel, and introduced official Luftwaffe belt buckle and strap regulations.