The set of photos
directly above show the super cool A-2 flight jacket. The
jacket was made by Aero and is a size 38R. We have included
a lot of detailed photos of the jacket to detail its
condition, authenticity and historical details.
First, the overall
condition of the jacket is very nice. It was obviously used
on many secret night missions and has probably seen some
amazing things during the war - if only this jacket could
talk. The leather is still soft and supple, no dry rot.
There are some blemishes in the leather, but no gaping holes
or marks that shouldn't be there.
The rust colored waste
band does appear to be original and in good condition. The
knits on both sleeves are probably replacements that do show
some war time repair. We have close-up photos of each above.
The jacket does
retain the original lining with the A-2 tag present. There
are no major or noticeable holes or tears in the lining.
There is the typical wear near the collar that is thin or
has small tears, but nothing really bad or that would
prevent the jacket from being worn on the rare occasion.
On each epaulet the Lt.
bars can be seen. On the left shoulder is a sewn CBI theater
patch which is in great condition. The other shoulder does
not have any patches or marks.
The back of the jacket
does have a painted American flag. The painting is faded but
also still visible. The leather on the back of the jacket is
very nice! The
front of the jacket features some very cool and rare
patches! Lt. Arthur's leather name patch is on the left
breast. Directly below that is a rare leather 349th Night
Fighter Squadron patch. This squadron was actually a
training squadron that Lt. Arthur was part of and documented
in his diary.
Also documented in his diary is his transfer into combat
duty. This is when he covered the 349th leather patch with a
5th AAF felt patch. The original photo shown above that
comes in this grouping shows the 5th AAF patch sewn over the
leather patch. That patch was found in the pocket of the
jacket and will come with it!
On the left breast of the jacket is the
super rare felt 547th fighter squadron patch. This was an
un-official insignia used by the squadron, therefore any
original patches are very rare. Not only does this jacket
have one, there is a 2nd one included in the grouping and
shown below!
Also shown above is the
stitching behind each patch on the lining. The 547th patch
is 100% original and has never been removed or replaced from
the jacket. The 349th patch is also original and never
removed from the jacket. The stitch holes from the 5th AAF
patch are evident on the leather 349th and to be expected
since it was covered up when he was sent to combat duty.
Overall, this A-2 jacket
is really nice and has the look and feel of a leather jacket
that has seen real action during the war. The addition of
the photo documentation, patches and art work really put
this jacket over the top in regards to its historical,
visual and just plain cool factors!
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