Alpha Industries USAF MA-1 Intermediate Flyers Bomber Jacket Sage Green Large

Description: This is an Alpha Industries MA-1 classic flight/bomber jacket, purchased around 2014-2015, quite well-used but still in decent shape, in sage green color (with reversible bright safety-orange interior, a holdover from this design's original use as a USAF uniform in the 1950s). This jacket is size LR according to the very faded military tag within the left outer pocket (the official Alpha tags appear to be missing). It has a few differences from an off-the-rack new jacket -- the left inner pocket has a custom hook-and-loop closure sewn onto it, and the REMOVE BEFORE FLIGHT tag on the sleeve pocket has indeed been removed (though not by a fighter pilot). This jacket is DRY CLEAN ONLY as specified by the USGI tag, due to its low level water resistant nylon construction! The MA-1 flight jacket has a rich history in USAF usage, designed as a successor to the similar B-15 nylon jacket which was in turn created to supersede the outdated G1 and M422 jackets of WWII and the immediate post-war period. Given the leather construction of its predecessors, those were deemed unsuitable for use in then-new jet aircraft, which could fly much higher than propeller-driven precursors. In turn, the interior of jets would get quite cold and occasionally wet due to frosting over at high altitudes, making leather quite uncomfortable mid-flight. Alpha was only one of a few companies contracted to produce the MA-1, having won the US DOD contract for it in 1963. Though the design has undergone nominal changes in the decades it's existed, it's broadly remained the very same since the 1950s, even as it made the transition from functional Air Force uniform to stylish civilian clothing. The MA-1 is, and will remain, a real American classic for years to come -- don't pass up this well-loved example. Happy shopping!

Price: 59.99 USD

Location: Bronx, New York

End Time: 2024-09-28T18:47:55.000Z

Shipping Cost: 0 USD