I guess that the first thing I'd remind everyone is that the A-2 was and is, by specification, a SUMMER flight jacket. It dates back to an era of open cockpits when it was first introduced. As any motorcyclist can tell you, a stiff breeze gets cold real fast, and even old airplanes can outrun motorcycles. The others are also summer flight jackets. So Carlos comes closest with his description of a leather sweater.
They are really windbreakers; if you needed warmer, there were the RAF Irvin types and the B-3s, etc. I have a custom G-1 with Thinsulate that holds up pretty well for most winter conditions. The Nomex CWU-45P jacket works pretty well for winter, as well.
I don't have a scan but the current German Luftwaffe flight jackets are pretty neat.
Regards,
OCD
Posted on Nov 23, 2001, 4:39 AM from IP address 64.24.247.106