During
1976 Flt. Lt J. Clark and Fg Off L. Patuzzo of 1260 (Newark) Squadron ATC
discussed the possibility of a tie for staff who attend Proteus Camp with
East
Midlands Wing ATC. The idea was still being researched in 1977 between the
two
officers, but no progress was made as Fg Off Patuzzo did not attend Proteus
that
year due to 1260 commitments to celebrate the Queen's Silver Jubilee which
fell
during Proteus week.
Early in 1978 various designs were considered by the two officers and a final design was drawn up by Fg Off Patuzzo which consisted of the original Proteus camp badge, that is the Saxon Crown (to represent Eastern Division Army Command based at Colchester who cover Proteus Camp) crossed by two feathered arrows which represents the Dukeries Training Area originally part of Sherwood Forest. The Crown and Arrows were supported by the ATC Eagle to indicate the unique nature of our inter-service co-operation in the use of Proteus Camp.
This design was then passed by Flt. Lt Clark to the GOC's office at Colchester for approval. This was duly given and the road was now clear to obtain tenders for the supply of the Proteus Tie. It was decided at an early stage that a fully embroidered tie in synthetic silk should be specified to give a professional look, and several well-known tie suppliers were asked to tender for 100 ties to be supplied in time for 1978 Proteus Camp. Tenders were duly recieved and Sharps Freeman Ltd., Maidstone, Kent provided the best offer, £486 including VAT for 100 ties, this also included approx £70 to provide the original jacquard pattern to weave the ties. This pattern was registered to Flt Lt J Clark and Fg Off Patuzzo as their patent design and could not be used without permission. The registration of the design was passed on to East Midlands Wing ATC for the second batch of ties in 1988.........