Air Force Museum
WWII Aviator Jackets
An aviator's jacket could be working clothing, protection against cold, and a personal record of service. Painted emblems, insignia, and signs of wear connect individual people with the aircraft and units around them. These jackets preserve a human scale within a gallery filled with large machines.
In depth
History & service
World War II USAAF aviators often personalized their flight jackets (usually the popular leather A-2 jacket), using such painted decorations as unit insignia, artwork that appeared on their aircraft or a personal design. The extent of decoration varied, sometimes consisting only of a series of bombs or other symbols -- one for each mission. Other examples of jacket art were more elaborate. The wearer might paint the artwork himself or hire someone more talented.
Today, the original, decorated jackets are highly prized artifacts. Displayed are examples of USAAF jacket art from the museum's collection.
The second front was the factory and the flight line
Air power required far more than aircraft leaving a factory. Engines, radios, weapons, fuel, spare parts, tools, trained personnel, and suitable airfields had to arrive together. A machine grounded by a missing component could contribute little, however impressive its specifications. Maintenance and supply determined how much of a force was actually available on a given day.
The Second World War made this relationship visible on an extraordinary scale. Production expanded while aircraft designs continued to change. Training organizations had to turn large numbers of recruits into competent aircrew and specialists. Units then operated in climates and conditions very different from those in which the machines had been designed. Improvisation on the flight line worked alongside formal technical orders and a vast replacement system.
The smaller artifacts deserve attention within that story. A tractor moved aircraft and loads around an airfield. A jacket or oxygen mask helped a crew member function in an exposed environment. A trainer allowed procedures to be practiced without consuming a combat aircraft's life. These objects connect the spectacular mission to repeated daily work. Their history broadens the meaning of service: victory depended on people who built, supplied, repaired, taught, recorded, and cared for others, as well as those whose actions became famous in combat.
