AN - 6530 goggles AN - 6530 Goggles were produced during WWII as eye protection for United States Army and Navy flight crews . In 1943 , the AN - 6530 design replaced as standard the nearly identical USAAF B - 7 goggle produced by Chas Fischer Spring Company of Brooklyn , NY . Contracts for AN - 6530 goggles were awarded to Chas Fischer Spring Co . and American Optical . Construction . The AN - 6530 ' s frame is nickel - plated brass and steel . Construction consists of stamped and milled pieces , soldered together . Milled brass pieces form the bridge and ferrule / strap lugs , and pieces of stamped sheet steel form the frame to hold the facepad and lenses . The ferrule / strap lugs are split lengthwise to facilitate removal and insertion of the lenses and rubber facepad . The lugs are secured closed by a salt - blued or parkerized and knurled carbon steel ferrule . The frame has vents on the upper and lower edge . The upper vents were produced in two patterns . One using a small brass tube with the inward open end faced slightly forward along the top edge of the frame . The other with a lower profile design that consists of a stamped and soldered channel , curved along the upper edge of the frame with two milled openings , one facing forward and one downward . The frame ' s lower edge vents are three depressions or three sets of small holes on the flat area of the underside . The two - piece milled bridge acts as a hinge and the larger midsection of the hinge is stamped ' AN 6530 ' . The manufacturer ' s identification / inscription can usually be found stamped on the left half of the frame ' s underside of the Charles Fischer Spring Co . goggles . The American Optical goggles are not identified . Regarding the vents , many collectors believe the tube - type were " early " design and the streamlined vents were " later design " . If this is so , why do we see the " later " vents on some forerunner , B - 7 goggles ? Truth is , both tube - type and streamline - type vents were being produced at the same time ! The difference was , Charles Fischer was using his patented streamlined vents in the construction of his B - 7 ' s , Navy Mk - II and AN - 6530 ' s , while American Optical was using their own tubular design . You can always distinguish a Charles Fischer Spring goggle from an American Optical made goggle at first glance simply by looking at the vent design . Also on the lower vents , AO used small round pinholes , while Chas Fischer used triangular - shaped stamped vent holes . No such thing as " early tube - type " or " later streamlined vent - type " . Both styles were being made at the same time . The facepad is a single piece of natural gray medium - density rubber . Leather chamois is glued to the face side to increase comfort and prevent bonding to the skin due to low temperatures at high altitudes . Nickel plated or salt - blued steel rings are sewn to the frame side of the pad , which allow connection to the frame by resting in the frame ' s inner channel . Some came with right and left eye cushions made of soft rubber . Parts numbers are 33B5021 - 3 for the right cushion and 33B5021 - 2 for the left . The strap is black , white or gray cotton webbing with interwoven rubber tensioners . Hardware consists of nickel plated or salt - blued steel wire bails at either end with a stamped nickel plated or salt - blued steel adjuster . The wire bails are inserted through holes in the ends of the frame ' s strap lugs and are retained by their own clip tension design . The bails also act as retainers for the lug ferrules . AN - 6530 lenses are ground and polished optical glass , approximately 3 / 32 of an inch ( 2 . 4 mm ) thick . These share their design with B - 7 , Navy Mk - II and commercial ' Skyway ' brand goggles . They were produced in clear , amber , green , and a high - density dark green for gunnery to facilitate spotting targets against the sun . Lens contractors were Americal Optical , Bausch & Lomb Optical and Libby , Owens Ford . Small quantities of clear plastic lenses were produced in response to lenses being shattered by flying debris during combat use . Use . AN - 6530 goggles saw use in nearly every type of U . S . flight crew position during World War II , particularly with pilots , gunners and observers who needed protection from glare , wind and debris . Expense in production technique , time , and materials and issues with lenses shattering and contributing to eye injury led to the development of the rubber - framed , plastic lensed B - 8 goggle . The B - 8 goggle was standardized in 1944 , making the AN - 6530 obsolete . Despite its 1 year run as standard issue , the AN - 6530 goggle became an icon of its era and is now highly sought after by collectors .