Painted Flight Jackets - Planes, Names, and Dames

[442RCT]

BIG BEAUTIFUL DOLL II

I stopped painting jackets, stopped looking at jackets, and stopped buying jackets...back in those days it wasn't all that hard to go cold turkey since I wasn't on the internet, didn't have ebay, and the only flight jackets were from the Cockpit/Avirex catalogs. Except for wearing the ones I already owned, I pretty much let sleeping jackets lie. About a year ago I met a guy whose shop looked like his personal flight museum. He and I became instant amigos. I asked him what kind of flight jacket he owned, did it have artwork...*gasp*, he told me...none, but did always wanted one. I gave him my advice and went on ebay to look for a jacket for *him*...while I was looking for a jacket for *HIM* , I noticed there were a lot of jackets I found interesting...bad mistake. He ended up ignoring all my advice and ordering a new A-2 from US Wings. In the mean time, jackets 'won' on ebay started piling up in my den. I pretty much bid primarily on painted art jackets. The good thing about them is that they are pretty much a personal statement of the previous owner...because not everyone likes what another guy had painted on his jacket. So, some poor guy who bought a jacket for $1 K and had someone paint it for $ 200-500 was lucky to get half of the total cost on ebay. I'm a self admitted flight jacket art nut so I would consider any and all painted jackets. Bonus points if they were on a premium manufacturers jacket, but I was okay with Coopers n'such.

This is a jacket painted by a Japanese artist. it's a Real McCoy Japan (RMJ). The artist took sandpaper to the finish of the jacket to give it a distressed 100 mission look...not my preference by any means. His artwork was by my book, fantastic !

I'd painted a Big Beautiful Doll tribute jacket for someone, so when this one came up for sale, I really liked it and bought it.

 

[442RCT]

Jerome Urbaniak

I don't believe any here need an introduction to one of the pre-eminent jacket artists of the day, Jerome Urbaniak. When I began jacket hunting on ebay about a year ago, the night before while surfing on the VLJ Forum, I saw links and raves about this artist. He has an online website with photos of his work.
http://www.picturetrail.com/jrome
I was totally amazed with the level of detail he put into his work on the jackets he painted. I don't know if it was serendipity, kismet, whatever you want to call it, the very next day, a Urbaniak painted jacket shows up on ebay :eusa_clap

I had to think about bidding on it, since it wasn't my size, but I wasn't buying it to wear anyway. I didn't have high expectations on being the high bidder. Being a work by Urbaniak, I figured it would go for a fairly high price...but, I won !!! I heard from the artist right after winning and posting on VLJ, and I told him that it would remain in my permanent collection never to be sold again.

This is the original jacket from WW2

Rather than re-posting what's already available on Jerome's website, I'll just wish him a happy birthday...whenever it may be.

 

[Speedbird]

I was beginning to think you might be Jerome in disguise! lol

You have an impressive collection J!

 

[Stearmen]

Hand Painted

I thought I might add this one from the late 80s. Not as good as the new airbrushed ones, but not bad for hand painted!

 

[442RCT]

Kewl period looking paint job...

 

[Speedbird]

whoah! It did look great why it lasted - but why has it been deleted by photobucket?

I see a lot of that on the lounge - there's a photo posted but shortly after deleted .. can anyone tell me why?

 

[442RCT]

Tom Paine Plane

This is a jacket I got off of eBay, none else bid on it. After I bought it, I found a photo of the plane that gave the artist the inspiration for this jacket.

Many art jackets are like that, very personal to the owner. It may have been the plane a relative was a crew member of. [huh]

 

[Stearmen]

Devil's Delight

Kewl period looking paint job...

Thanks, that was my one and only jacket that I painted! Traded it for a Colt 1911 made in 1918, so I came out good!

 

[442RCT]

Moonbeam McSwine

In an epic battle on January 1, 1945, Captain William T. Whisner flying his assigned P-51D Moonbeam McSwine downed an Me 109 after a head-on pass despite having been hit in the oil tank and wings. Whisner and the rest of the 487th FS had taken off into a hornets nest of Messerschmitts and Focke Wulfs. At around 1,500 feet he ran into about thirty FW-190s and quickly shot one down. While doing so, "Moonbeam McSwine" was hit in the oil tank and wings. Despite his dropping oil pressure and having lost control of his left aileron, Whisner continued into the fight. Moments later, he shot down a second FW-190 then engaged a third in a dogfight that lasted ten minutes before he dispatched that one also.

The airstrip was still under attack as Whisner approached and saw an Me-109 strafe the northeast end of the field. They made two head-on passes at each other, and on the second pass he hit the Messerschmitt in the nose and wings. It crashed and burned east of the strip.

After chasing several more enemy fighters without results, Capt. Whisner was forced to return to the base and land as his windshield was covered with oil. When the day’s results were tallied, the 487th had shot down twenty-three of the Luftwaffe attackers and had suffered no losses. This was Capt. Whisner’s fourth victory for the day, bringing his total to 15.5. "Whiz" later flew with the 4th Fighter Interceptor Wing and the 51st FIW in Korea scoring with both units. He shot down 5.5 Soviet MiG 15s and damaged 6 others, making him one of only a handful of "two-war aces" and giving him a grand total of 21 victories.

This artist decided to paint a tribute jacket to honor Bill "Whiz" Whisner and his ride, "Moonbeam McSwine" named after one of the female denizens in the comic strip 'L'il Abner' by Al Capp. Notice he matched the lettering on the jacket with the lettering on the P-51.

 

[442RCT]

Little Friends

When I found this photo of a ground crew wearing their painted flight jackets, each with a different character from the Disney movie "Snow White", I wondered if this was where the original artist got the idea to paint the jacket I copied. [huh]

 

[Edward]

whoah! It did look great why it lasted - but why has it been deleted by photobucket?

I see a lot of that on the lounge - there's a photo posted but shortly after deleted .. can anyone tell me why?

If a photo you have linked to from a photobucket account is deleted or even moved elsewhere in the photobucket account, thedirect link will be broekn and so it won't be visible on here any longer.

 

[Speedbird]

When I found this photo of a ground crew wearing their painted flight jackets, each with a different character from the Disney movie "Snow White", I wondered if this was where the original artist got the idea to paint the jacket I copied. [huh]

Do you still own the Snow White jacket 442... or was it a commission?

There is so much humour in that original photo - you say it was ground crew in the photo. Did the aircrew adopt the same design for plane and crew? I hope they made it, but sadly it is just as likely they didn't.

 

[442RCT]

Do you still own the Snow White jacket 442... or was it a commission?

There is so much humour in that original photo - you say it was ground crew in the photo. Did the aircrew adopt the same design for plane and crew? I hope they made it, but sadly it is just as likely they didn't.

It's one of my personal painted jackets, I painted a smaller size exact duplicate design for my sister at her request. That jacket back is the one most coveted by the ladies who see it. She wore it to work at Boeing and her coworkers went ga-ga over it.

I don't know anything about the aircrew or unit wearing the Snow White jackets. It'd been nice to think the pilot and co-pilot wore a jacket similar to the one I copied, with Snow and the all the 7 dwarves. [huh]

 

[Speedbird]

Yeah, that's a nice idea...

I think the Pilot would be Snow White and the Co-pilot 'Grumpy' though.

Hey, while we are on this and I know this is ludicrous... but do you think 'Memphis Belle' could have dipped liberally into this for inspiration for the crew:

The seven dwarves:

Doc, Grumpy, Happy, Sleepy, Bashful, Sneezy, and Dopey

???????????????????????

I know ... I know .... I am away with the fairies again in cloud cuckoo land....

 

[442RCT]

343 BS 98 BG 9th AF

I found these photos in a nose art book, these are the B-24s of the 343 BS, 98 BG, 9th AF. No photos of their jackets, but with each plane painted as a Snow White character, not that much of a stretch to imagine.

 

[Silver Dollar]

Hi all. My account was finally activated and I've been jumping at the bit to add to this fantastic thread. Here are some jackets that I've collected over the years. The first group I painted myself. The second group is the vintage section. Those I didn't paint. Hope you enjoy.

 

[Silver Dollar]

Now for the real thing. These are some vintage jackets I was fortunate enough to find.

Hope you enjoy these.

 

[Speedbird]

Wow ... that's an impressive debut post Silver Dollar .... lovely collection of both old and newer jackets!!! :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

 

[kampkatz]

A fine collection, Silver Dollar. Your artwork is impressive. Thanks for sharing. Welcome to the FL.

 

[Silver Dollar]

Thanks so much for the kind words. I heard about this thread from 442RCT who is also on VLJ site. If there was ever an iconic symbol of WWII, it's the painted jacket. It's also one of the most expensive collectibles which is why I haven't gotten anything new in the last 4 years. Thanks also for the warm welcome. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who finds the 30's and 40's eras so interesting. They've got the most style I've seen.