Mighty Eighth A-2's - Pics

[Burnsie]

From the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum in Pooler, GA - more posted on VLJ but thought the FL Outerwear crowd would also dig these highlights. Enjoy!

 

[cheaterome]

Wow thanks.


I have seen the "Heaven Sent" jacket in person about 8 years ago at an airshow here at the 440th airlift wing in Milwaukee. Talk about an impression.

That jacket was the on of the squadron leaders from the bloody hundreth. Some neat features from what I remember. It has blue cuffs on it from a b-15c and is a Bronco in a size 44 with a crown zipper!!

DUDE .... thanks.

Rome

 

[PADDY]

Beauties...

Glad you did share these with us as they are wonderful!!:eusa_clap

 

[Burnsie]

Some neat features from what I remember. It has blue cuffs on it from a b-15c and is a Bronco in a size 44 with a crown zipper!!

DUDE .... thanks.

Rome

You're quite welcome, glad they're being enjoyed! You know I don't recall the cuffs and of course I failed to get them in the picture! I hit the museum on "super Sunday" quite by accident - it was jam packed but I still managed these shots. Here's a few more - the top one shows evidence of interior pocket modification, the last is for the B-3 fans!

 

[Dudleydoright]

Cool

Thanks for posting those buddy !

The first jacket photo looks to have an extra press stud on the chest above the pocket and extra stitching that imply an stitched through leather inside pocket. Am I right ? Am I a sad anorakie type with no life ?

Dave

 

[Burnsie]

Thanks for posting those buddy !

The first jacket photo looks to have an extra press stud on the chest above the pocket and extra stitching that imply an stitched through leather inside pocket. Am I right ? Am I a sad anorakie type with no life ?

Dave

You're quite right sir! This is a more elaborate inside pocket mod - double stitched thru leather with interior snaps added. More intricate than the ELC Monarch or the jacket in my last post above. This is the one photo of the lot that I took last year and unfortunately this particular jacket is not on display currently. BTW I prefer to think we have rich lives made more full by our jacket worship...but maybe I'm a sad type too

 

[aswatland]

You're quite right sir! This is a more elaborate inside pocket mod - double stitched thru leather with interior snaps added. More intricate than the ELC Monarch or the jacket in my last post above. This is the one photo of the lot that I took last year and unfortunately this particular jacket is not on display currently. BTW I prefer to think we have rich lives made more full by our jacket worship...but maybe I'm a sad type too

Well spotted! The jacket looks like either a Star or the no-name 42-18246-P. Stars had nipple snaps and the no name small ring ones, but you can't see them apart from the one mentioned above, which is most likely a field modification.

 

[Dudleydoright]

There's hope then

A good take on the value of our hobby Burnsie !

The mod' to the jacket just shows the contempt with which these free issue jackets were held in by their original receipiants ! lol

Who in their right mind would do that to a $900 repro' ?

Dave

 

[Burnsie]

Who in their right mind would do that to a $900 repro' ?

Dave

Funny you should call that out...you see, my unadorned repro went home crying after seeing these rough and tough originals!lol

 

[jeep44]

8th AAF jackets,eh? here is my Dad's A2. 385th BG,548th BS, Great Ashfield,England. I wore this jacket all through college in the '70s,and I saw other guys wearing their dad's jackets,too. It is very fragile now,with a number of holes and cracks in the leather. The lining disintegrated back when I was wearing it,and I just tore it out,tag and all Maybe 20 years ago my dad had someone sew in this black lining.

 

[jeep44]

While I was at it,I dragged out another A2 I have-this is a Poughkeepsie Leather in size 42 (the size tag is curled up) The leather is in strong, supple condition everywhere but on the collar-sweat has caused it to rot. The lining is torn in places,too.

Here is a shot of the tag:

 

[greyhound68]

Fantastic photos thanks for sharing these.:eusa_clap

 

[SIGGY]

Great photos of jackets

Hey thanks for showing the 8th Museum jackets,I was there a few years ago and highly enjoyed the museum and the jackets , it's a great place to visit if you get the chance,they also have a very big and well stocked library upstairs that's worth a look, plan on spending at least a day there in the library if you're a book nut like me!!!!
:eusa_clap

 

[Tito]

Phantastic

Hey Burnsie, awesome...this makes dream. Thank you

 

[Dudleydoright]

Pics

8th AAF jackets,eh? here is my Dad's A2. 385th BG,548th BS, Great Ashfield,England. I wore this jacket all through college in the '70s,and I saw other guys wearing their dad's jackets,too. It is very fragile now,with a number of holes and cracks in the leather. The lining disintegrated back when I was wearing it,and I just tore it out,tag and all Maybe 20 years ago my dad had someone sew in this black lining.

I live just up the road from Gt Ashfield. And not far from so many USAAF airfields. If you want any photos of the area, let me know. I'm sure I could get you some. (Local pubs and a few of the remaining airfield building etc).

I've escorted a few 'Yanks' around the area on tours and sent bits of airfield tarmac and broken perspex from Lavenham to interested relatives too over the years.

Dave

 

[jeep44]

My dad revisited the area in about '92 or so,and took a number of photos. if I recall, there were just a few buildings remaining that he could recognize on the airfield itself.

 

[Edward]

I've long loved the artwork on period jackets - I'm a sucker for 40s pin-up style art. I have what might be perhaps described as a 'complicated' reaction to the bomb artwork.... it has always seemed more than a little grisly to me to see those little bombs, each one marking a successful mission, sometimes, as in Dresden, where civilians have been the deliberate target. These sorts of hi-res photos where one can see that these were painted by hand, carefully and probably not long after returning from a raid, make me think about them from another angle: the relieved aircrew, returning intact (when quite probably friends and comrades didn't) marking another milestone, and a step closer going home. Difficult to imagine the mixed emotions they must have had themselves.

 

[Burnsie]

8th AAF jackets,eh? here is my Dad's A2. 385th BG,548th BS, Great Ashfield,England. I wore this jacket all through college in the '70s,and I saw other guys wearing their dad's jackets,too. It is very fragile now,with a number of holes and cracks in the leather. The lining disintegrated back when I was wearing it,and I just tore it out,tag and all Maybe 20 years ago my dad had someone sew in this black lining.

I never thought of that - campuses in the 60's/70's must have seen their share of vintage flight jackets! In the 80's I begged my Dad to let me wear his G-1 to school, but no go.
Thanks for these pics!!!

 

[Burnsie]

I've long loved the artwork on period jackets - I'm a sucker for 40s pin-up style art. I have what might be perhaps described as a 'complicated' reaction to the bomb artwork.... it has always seemed more than a little grisly to me to see those little bombs, each one marking a successful mission, sometimes, as in Dresden, where civilians have been the deliberate target. These sorts of hi-res photos where one can see that these were painted by hand, carefully and probably not long after returning from a raid, make me think about them from another angle: the relieved aircrew, returning intact (when quite probably friends and comrades didn't) marking another milestone, and a step closer going home. Difficult to imagine the mixed emotions they must have had themselves.

Seeing these jackets displayed with other personal items and gear it's very hard not to personalize their experiences...mixed emotions indeed. I can see the modern response to the little bombs, perhaps on a repro item designed simply to look cool, but to see the original jackets is to remember these guys didn't feel very cool at times, just trying to make it in one piece to the next mission...

 

[jeep44]

I never thought of that - campuses in the 60's/70's must have seen their share of vintage flight jackets! In the 80's I begged my Dad to let me wear his G-1 to school, but no go.
Thanks for these pics!!!

One day when I was moving out of the dorm at the end of the term,I saw another student wearing the coolest painted A2 I've ever seen-On the back were several bombers at shoulder level, and they were dropping sticks of bombs on a large,3-dimensional swastika laying flat at ground level near the bottom of the jacket back. The swastika was painted to resemble concrete,and there were large cracks in it. I only saw him wearing it that day,so I never got to examine it more.
Just to make you even more sick, I remember going to a used clothing store just off campus and looking at an old A2 for sale cheap. I didn't buy it because it was too big for me