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I first consciously thought of American flight jackets some time around 1987, when a friend in high school said he wished he had
one. My interest in WWII aviation led me to read magazines on the subject and I would frequently see advertisements
for reproductions of the A-2 and G-1 jackets. I realized that I had to have one! I wasn't rich enough to get one of the more
expensive reproductions, so I found a very cheap copy of an A-2 in a U.S. Navy exchange. I was so happy to own my first A-2
jacket, though it was quite different than an A-2 in that it was made of brown suede leather.
As human nature would dictate, I had to have a better A-2 a couple years later. I saw more WWII photos of men in their jackets
and wished that I could get my hands on one that I liked, so the next one was an Avirex, and then a Cooper.
The Cooper was a jacket that I really enjoyed, and I painted the nose art of Nine-O-Nine on the back and added a squadron patch, which was exciting and
drew comments and questions. However, I learned about companies making far better reproductions and over time I wanted
to get one that was more accurate to the WWII details. Armed with a good paying job and access to the internet, I found forums
of people who were also interested in flight jackets, and of course, eBay.
With new friends and access to lots of photos of jackets from eBay, I was able to see a good number of originals and understand more
of the designs that each maker had. I also was able to see many reproductions in detail, which had eluded me before having access to the
internet. I had once thought that the Navy only made G-1 jackets, but found that many iterations of the design existed from before WWII
to the present. I found that A-2 jackets had a significant amount of variation between the different makers, and even their contracts. I saved
photos, compared them, and when finances allowed, I would even buy a jacket from eBay. My first vintage original was a Cagleco Sportswear
G-1 that was too small, but to have one in my hands that I owned was a huge treat.
Now that I was getting to know this information, I wanted to copy what others had done, to photograph jackets and their details. I knew
very little about photography, so I used disposable cameras and took blurry images of my jackets, or used the scanner at work to shoot detailed
images of the jackets, because I couldn't get a close shot with what I had. It was the start of photographing over three hundred flight jackets.
Over time I was able to use the digital camera at work or a friend's, and though I still didn't know much about photography, I was able
to get some nice albums of the jackets I'd seen. With that, some people invited me (or maybe I invited myself) to take photos of their jackets,
so the collection of photos grew.
I was able to buy more and more jackets, and sell them as well, constantly looking for a jacket that I thought would be the final purchase.
I would also spend time studying the images of other collectors who either sold on eBay or posted images of their jackets, and then I
scoured Google.com to find anything new on the internet. I found that I could tell a little about the age and maker of jackets by their
contract number, the materials used on them, and who made them. It was easy to tell which companies produced large numbers
of jackets, and which ones were small.
I have a few friends who are very serious collectors, and they've sent me a good number of jackets that I've been able to photograph, and for
this I'm extremely grateful. There are rare and pristine jackets which I never would have been able to see had it not been for their
generosity and trust in allowing me to borrow the jackets for a time. In this process, through much trial and error, I think
I've been able to grasp photography to a small degree. One can easily tell which albums were done in the earlier stages of my understanding
of lighting and photo editing, and where the process got a little smoother. I've also had a much better camera over the last two years.
Many people are familiar with the Club Photo site that I posted all these images on. I've also posted images from other collectors to add more
content to the site. This has helped people to see detailed images of both originals and reproductions, and my hope has been that we can get
a better idea of the type of jacket that we want by seeing them close. It's hard for some people to get their hands on originals and repros, and the
repro makers generally have just a few images of their jackets.
I hope to photograph more jackets over time. I know enough people who are constantly buying jackets that it should be rather easy to increase the
albums. My hope is that more and more people will photograph their own jackets, as my collection is a limited grouping, though a good one, and
there are so many people who have access to fantastic flight jackets. It's fun to know what's out there, and I'm suprised on a regular basis by new
versions of jackets I've never heard of.
Here's to jacket collecting!
Reference Information:
My dimensions are...
Height: six foot one inches (73 inches, or 185cm)
Weight: 190 pounds (86 kilograms)
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