A French Indochina Navy Petty Officer’s Visor Cap from the riverine Patrol Boat Comete (PC-3). (The French Navy does not use prefixes for its ship like "HMS" for the Royal British Navy for example.) Typical early 1940’s construction French navy visor cap for a Chief Petty Officer (Maître or Premier-Maître). The tan khaki cotton top is lightly tacked in place so it could be also easily removed for use with the dark blue top or the white top, depending on the season and the designated uniform of the day. The upper portion of the khaki cap is sun-faded. Typical WW2-era black leather visor and black leather chinstrap affixed with small French Navy gold buttons. The cap has a removable tailor-made cotton tube with soft stuffing up in the lining to weight the sides and give the cap a stylish, salty "crusher" look. Textbook French brass and gold bullion Navy anchor-in-wreath insignia on the front is mounted to the typical black or dark navy blue wool band around the cap. The black quilted silk liner is maker marked "Fabrique de Casquettes Le Créateur Toulon," the large French port city and Navy base on the Mediterranean coast. The liner is complete with black leather sweatband. The enamel insignia of the French Patrol Boat Comete (PC-3) which served in French Indochina from 1946-1954 is semi-permanently mounted to the black band to the right of the French Navy insignia. High-quality construction WW2-vintage cap typical for a professional officer or senior petty officer. With research on the Comete. The whole cap has a wonderful "salty" appearance and is in excellent condition for its age. Rare piece of French Indochina militaria associated with riverine operations, the forerunner of the U.S. Navy "brown water" PBRs in Vietnam.