Leather Flying Jackets
Leather Flying Jackets really became popular just before WWII.
From the days of the early pioneers of flight, it became obvious really quickly that ordinary street clothes were not sufficient for pilots.
Until the turn of the 1900′s, all that was needed was a leather flying helmet,a scarf and a pair of warm gloves in addition to street clothes and you were all set to be a pilot..
The faster and higher the planes flew, the colder the pilots got.
WW1 Pilot
This was because the cockpit was open to the elements and pretty soon a wind and waterproof coat became popular with pilots and this was usually a full length leather coat as worn by the Royal Flying Corps.
This was standard with pleasure pilots but with the coming of World War one, more and more pilots realised that they needed more to protect them from the elements of wind and rain as they battled German planes in the skies over France and Belgium.
Baron von Richthofen was the leading Ace Pilot on the German side
The long Leather coats did service for most of the First World war but some pilots stuck to uniform jackets which gave greater mobility.In 1917 the first leather flying jackets as we know them were issued to pilots by the US Army Aviation Clothing Board.
These were heavy duty leather flying jacket with high wraparound collars and they had zipper closures with wind flaps and snug cuffs. The jackets had shaped waists and some even had fur linings and fringes – the cuffs were a snug fit to further keep out the wind.
These became the most deirable flying jackets until in 1926 when Leslie Irvin made his design of the Classic Sheepskin lined flying jacket.Irin became the official supplier of flying jackets to the Royal Air Force for most of World War 2.
Because of the huge demand,Irvin had to subcontract flying jacket manufacture and these often had variations from the standard Irvin design due to availability of raw materials.
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OUR WEBSITE is divided up into the following sections (categories):
Biker Jackets
Bomber Jackets
Ladies Leather Jackets
Leather Flying Jackets
Leather Jackets
Motorcycle Boots
Our Full Store Where you can find a huge selection of Leather clothing and accessories
These include hats,caps,Sheepskin Coats,Gloves,belts and Silver Belt Buckles
