A-2 jacket. The Type A-2 leather flight jacket is an American military flight jacket closely associated with World War II U.S. Army Air Forces pilots, navigators and bombardiers, who often decorated their jackets with squadron patches and elaborate artwork painted on the back.

History
The Type A-2 flying jacket was adopted as standard issue by the U.S. Army Air Corps as the successor to the Type A-1 flying jacket on May 9, 1931, per specification number 94-3040 using illustrative Drawing 30-1415.

The A-2 Specification lists the garment as "Jackets, Flying, Type A-2". It describes the jacket's construction as "seal brown horsehide leather, knitted wristlets and waistband (skirt)".  
All contracts used a cotton lining. Cowhide was approved for use in July 1940, beginning with Aero W535-AC-16160, and goatskin was added in March 1941, beginning with Rough Wear W535-AC-18091. All three leathers were chrome tanned per the three different leather specifications and any could be used after being approved for use.

Broadly similar in construction to the A-1, it replaced the A-1's buttoned front and pocket flaps with a zipper and hidden snap fasteners (although the first three A-2 contracts retained the pocket buttons). The A-1's stand-up knitted collar, which buttoned closed, was supplanted in the A-2 by a shirt-style leather collar, with hidden snaps at the points and a hook-and-eye latch at the throat. Stitched-down shoulder straps were also added to the design. Sizes were listed as ranging in even numbers from 32 through 54.

The A-2 was replaced by the AN6552 (AN-J-3) per an Authority for Change of Status Equipment document dated May 24, 1943, and declared "Limited Standard", meaning replacements were available in addition to the A-2. The April 1944 USAAF catalog for ordering supplies does not list the AN-J-3 as an option, but both the A-1 and A-2 are listed (the A-1 for $4.00 and the A-2 for $8.12). The lack of AN-J-3 or updated AN-J-3A replacements may explain why three significant U.S. A-2 contracts were granted in Dec. 1943, or after the A-2 jacket was officially superseded. A-2 flying jackets were also purchased from Simpsons Gloves Pty. Ltd., Vic., Australia by the Department of the U.S. Army in 1942 and 1943. These "V505" jackets have been shown to be used by some members of the U.S. Fifth Air Force.) It wasn't until 26-Feb-1951 the A-2 specification was canceled and replaced by the MIL-J-6251 “Jacket Flying, Intermediate, Type B-15C”. The timing helped make the A-2 into a very popular 1950's surplus jacket for another generation.

Manufacturers

There were many manufacturers of A-2 jackets during the 1930s and 1940s whose product showed a wide range of quality, workmanship, and fit characteristics. All contracts used a cotton lining, though various replacements were made over the years. The first three (3) contracts had button pocket flaps, while all the rest were snapped pockets beginning with Werber order number 33-1729. Manufacturers included civilian clothing producers such as David D. Doniger & Co., makers of the popular MacGregor brand outerwear, as well as leather-goods companies like J.A. Dubow Mfg., whose chief peacetime product was baseball mitts. Rough Wear manufactured the A-2 under several different contracts, each varying slightly in color and style.

Since Mr Eastman's 2012 A-2 reference book five more A-2 contracts have been found: The Rough Wear 42-1671P by John Chapman of Good Wear Leather Coat Co. fame, the 1943 V505 by Vintage Leather Jacket (VLJ) member dinomartino1 noted above, and the Goldsmith 31-1897, Werber 32-6225, and 1942 V505 all by VLJ member 33-1729.

Modern Air Force A-2

With the exception of a very brief period from 1979 to early 1981 the U.S. Navy never stopped issuing its G-1 leather flying jackets to Navy, Marine, and Coast Guard flight crews. This meant that an entire generation of Air Force pilots and flight crews had missed out on an opportunity not lost to their Naval comrades. Years of effort by U.S. Air Force personnel to get the A-2 jacket reissued finally succeeded when the Air Force began issuing them again in 1988, a decision that may have been influenced by the popularity of the film "Top Gun", and the military apparel it popularized. The first Air Force A-2 contract was awarded to Avirex, but all subsequent contracts from 1988 to 1998 were awarded to Neil Cooper USA, now U.S. Wings of Ohio. The modern Air Force A-2 is authorized for wear by Air Force aircrews and missileers who have completed their mission qualifications.

See also

Cooper A-2 jacket
G-1 military flight jacket
MA-1 bomber jacket

References

1931 introductions
1930s fashion
Jackets
United States Air Force uniforms
Military equipment introduced in the 1930s
Hogan's Heroes