The Mighty A-2: A Guide to the Army Air Forces’ Leather Flying Jacket

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David D. Doniger & Co. W535-AC-29971 42-21539-P​

Contract Awarded: 9 June 1942 (EA2G plate 36)
Date of Completion: unknown
Quantity: 5,000 jackets (EA2G plate 36)
Leather type: goatskin
Stitch color: medium or reddish brown (Chapman)
Zipper(s): Overwhelmingly Talon M-41 nickel; the Talon M-42 nickel is attested as well, however.
General Comments:

• There are two versions of the spec. label; one has the manufacturer’s name on it, while one does not.

Identifying/Distinguishing Details:

• Collar comes to sharp points (Acme Depot).
• Shoulder seams underneath the epaulets, as opposed to behind them (Acme Depot).
• Simple, triangular pocket flaps (Acme Depot), but more elongated than those seen on others with this type of pocket flap.
• Rotated inset sleeves.
• Goatskin
• All of these details are very similar to Spiewak’s contract, but what distinguishes the Doniger is the almost exclusive use of bell Talon zippers and the use of ball stud snaps.

Doniger Example No. 1:

 

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Doniger Example No. 1 continued:

More photos…

 

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Simpsons Gloves Pty. Lt., Vic., Australia “V505”​

Contract Awarded: 19-May-1943 and amended 02-Jun-1943
Date of Completion: by December 1943, based upon 125 jackets/week per contract
Quantity: 3,132 jackets
Leather type: cowhide
Stitch color: brown
Zipper(s): Zipp
General Comments:

• After VLJ member @dinomartino1 found a reference to this contract in the Commonwealth of Australia Gazette, Canberra, June 24, 1943, no. 137, p. 1313 @33-1729 hired an Australian researcher to scour the National Archives of Australia in Canberra for the contract details. The researcher found that the Minutes of the Australian Contract Board Supply Business Paper Numbers 8605 (dated 19 May '43) & 9032 (dated 2 June '43) confirm this contract for the U.S.A. Air Corps.
• This is the only contract where all of the jacket construction materials, except the cotton lining, were supplied by the firm instead of the US Government.
• Leather samples were supplied with the bids and Simpsons Gloves had the “lowest offer received” and fastest delivery time of the four bidders (The contrast with the production velocity of US-made A-2s is abysmal, but Australian industry during the war was in turmoil. See Hastings 2008:336-339 for a brief summary).
• Business Paper 9032, dated 2-June-1943, noted the firm was unable to secure supplies of art silk lining, so the U.S.A.A.C. arrange for a free issue of cotton material in lieu of art silk and reduced the contract price accordingly. As planned the V505 would have been manufactured with a silk lining, but ended up with cotton like all the other contracts.
• The label was coded V505 because of Australia's proximity to the war and the need to shelter business identities from possible attack.
• V505 jackets were used by some members of the U.S. Fifth Air Force (an example is shown below)
• This is the only surviving contract where an accurate reproduction has not been produced. The original “Made in Australia” label limits possible reproduction to an Australian company

Identifying/Distinguishing Details:

• The only confirmed contract with double-stitched pockets (also see Appendix C).

V-505 Simpson Example No. 1:

 

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Part IV: A Confused Conclusion – the AN-J-3 and the Last Three A-2 Contracts – December 1943​

The last phase of A-2 production is opaque to us. On 2-June-1943 the A-2 was officially switched to Limited Standard issue. While this moment has often been portrayed as the end of the A-2, Limited Standard Issue really meant the A-2 had been superseded by newer equipment, but that military procurement was still allowed (source; see also the Authority for Change of Status of Equipment dated May 24, 1943 with the approval date noted at the bottom of the page below). The official replacement for the A-2 was drawing no. AN-6552, better known by its specification number, AN-J-3.

From Sweeting’s Combat Flying Clothing book, this jacket type “...was used in limited quantities by both the Army and Navy during the latter half of the war. Quite similar to the A-2 jacket [with the addition of an inside pocket], the AN-J-3 was made of brown leather, including the collar, had knitted cuffs and waist band, and a zipper-fly front…” Except for the Smithsonian Institution photograph below, a verifiable military-issued AN-J-3 has never been located, although similar jackets have been found, some with civilian labels, some without any label at all.

Instead of pursuing the AN-J-3 further, in December of 1943, the AAF ordered three more A-2 contracts, all from tried and true contractors. Why they chose not to pursue the AN-J-3 but did choose to order more A-2 jackets is an open question and likely will remain so until further records of this transition are discovered.

The government also undertook the refurbishment of existing A-2 stock, along with many other items, to help alleviate supply issues and ensure quality control. VLJ member @Grant spoke with a woman who worked for Aero during the war and she noted they received literal truckloads of jackets to refurbish (new hardware, lining, knits, etc.) and any jackets with art on them were destroyed. A-2s continued to be issued to pilots who might need them (or really wanted one) through the end of the war. When the A-2 specification was eventually canceled, on Feb 26, 1951, it was replaced by an intermediate jacket under Specification MIL-J-6251 “Jacket Flying, Intermediate, Type B-15C” (see below).

File No. 06-242 - the document that made the A-2 “Limited Standard” Issue

Existing A-2 stock took a while to thin out. Note the Feb 26, 1951 approval date.​