The A2 Flight Jacket was the iconic jacket of the US Army Air Force during WW2 with many fans including General Douglas McArthur who also wore the Ray Ban aviators, a man of style.
The jacket also was often embellished with the same paintings as the airmen used on their planes, the so called nose art. Both pictures from internet.
Afther WW2 they were still worn into early 1950s but the jacket was retired after the Korean war as more modern materials (like nylon) were introduced for flight clothing.
In 1987 the jacket was re-introduced to commemorate the 40th birthday of the US Air Force. According to the modern regulation: ‘the jackets will be issued only to officers or enlisted personnel who are in mission-ready, emergency-mission-ready, mission capable, or mission-support billets assigned at or below wing level who met the criteria on or after September 18, 1987, the Air Force’s fortieth birthday. Once a member is issued the jacket,‘ according to the regulation, “he or she may continue to wear it after being reassigned from the duties [that] originally qualified him or her for the issue. It can be worn with the flight suit, service uniform, or pullover sweater but not with civilian clothes. After he or she retires, the wearer may keep the jacket.’
This is an overview of the variations made between 1988-2007 as found on the USMilitariaForum as compiled by Cowboy4.
The use of Nose Art is longer allowed in regular use and is rarely seen as it can only be used off duty or after leaving the air force. These issued jackets are a modern collectable and still can be found but the early ones are getting harder to find especially in the larger sizes.
There are also a lot of commerical variations which can be nice but are not really collectables with a historical background as these issued piecesare. So you have to check if these military contract numbers are on the label:
Cooper Sportswear Mfg. Co., Inc. (under the Saddlery label) with numbers 1988 DLA 100 88 C0420 / 1992 DLA 100 92-M-0061 / 1995 SPO 100-95-C-4030 / 1996 SPO 100-96-D-4020 Branded Garments Inc. Orchard M/C Inc. with number 1992 DLA 100-92-C-0346A Avirex Ltd. with numbers 1998 SPO 100-98-C-5018 and 1999 SPO 100-99-D-4009-xxxx and the last supplier Cockpit USA, Inc. with number 2007 SPM1C1-07-D-1540 xxxx
Here two issued examples next to each other a 1988 Saddlery (the earliest version made) and a 1999 Avirex version. With differences in colour and detailing but also in cut. Most collectors especially favor the early Saddlery versions.
The Avirex also has been painted on the back and also has a custom made badge of the Air National Guard. The painting was done at Pop’s leather (Incirlik Air Base Turkey) in 2005. At that moment the 132nd Air Refueling Squadron was deployed as part of the operations of Iraqi and Enduring Freedom.
Below the Air National Guard custom badge, the signature on the artwork and an example of the patch (not my collection) on which the artwork is based. The concept of this patch stems from WW2 when the sqn was still a bombing unit. The winged skeleton has a bomb in its hands…
Below a picture from internet of the 132nd Air Refueling Sqn in action with an F22 fighter being fueled up.
Here a badge as shown on www.ericusafpatches.nl of the 132nd (nicknamed MAINEIacs as Maine is their home state) from when they were deployed as part of Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) and located at Incirlik Air Base where Pop’s is located.
Great collectables for daily wear by US aviators, former US presidents or just regular guys 🙂 like my son Tibor (Saddlery) and myself (Avirex).
Nametags with wings are a standard item in both Navy and Air Force clothing, so also on the A2, here some examples:
Left top and bottom belonged to the same person Staff Sergeant Sisco. In the top version he is a Aircrew Member (wing) and below his occupational badge – maintenance in the Air National Guard and below only with the aircrew wing and as part of the Air Force. He was a Boom Operator from 1993 to 2000 so by coincidence sort of matches with the A2.
Top right the Command Pilot wing of General J.C. Flournoy
Below the Aircrew Combat badge of the Marine Corps to K. Hagerman, a navy corpsman 3. With that also came the metal badge with one gold star. This probably could not be worn on an A2 jacket but the others could.