A-2 jacket
The Type A-2 is an American military leather flight jacket closely associated with the pilots, navigators and bombardiers of the US Army Air Forces in the Second World War, who often decorated theirs with squadron patches and painted artwork on the back. In our handling, it is the single most reproduced garment in the Japanese heritage-clothing world.
Definition
The A-2 is defined by its specification. It was adopted as standard issue by the US Army Air Corps on 9 May 1931, under specification number 94-3040 and drawing 30-1415, as Jackets, Flying, Type A-2. Compared with the earlier A-1, it replaced the buttoned front with a zip and the pocket buttons with hidden snaps, although the first three contracts kept pocket buttons. The A-1's knitted stand collar gave way to a shirt-style leather collar with hidden snaps at the points and a hook-and-eye at the throat, and stitched-down shoulder straps were added. Sizes ran in even numbers from 32 to 54.
The leather changed with the war. The A-2 originally used chrome-tanned horsehide with a cotton lining. Cowhide was approved on 17 July 1940 and goatskin on 10 March 1941; all three leathers were chrome tanned.
Origin
The A-1, standard issue from November 1927, was a chocolate-brown chrome-tanned sheepskin jacket intended to replace the pilot's sweater, but it proved not durable enough, which led to the A-2. Contrary to popular belief, the A-2 did not formally supersede the A-1. It was itself replaced by the AN6552, or AN-J-3, by a document dated 24 May 1943, and declared Limited Standard. Severe leather shortages meant the air force never procured the AN-J-3, and significant A-2 contracts were still granted in December 1943.
Research continues: since Gary Eastman's 2012 identification manual for the A-2, five more A-2 contracts have been found. The jacket's afterlife began with the painted backs. In our reading, the combination of a strict specification and very personal decoration explains why collectors, and Japanese makers, have studied individual wartime contracts so closely.
Key facts
| Adopted | 9 May 1931, specification 94-3040 |
|---|---|
| Leathers | Horsehide; cowhide from 1940; goatskin from 1941 |
| Lining | Cotton |
| Details | Zip front, snap pocket flaps, leather shirt collar, shoulder straps |
| Sizes | Even numbers 32 to 54 |
| Replaced | By AN-J-3, 24 May 1943; A-2 contracts continued |
How to identify it
- Read the label. Wartime jackets carry a contract number and maker. Japanese reproductions usually name the contract they copy; our guide to The Real McCoy's A-2 explains how.
- Read the leather. Horsehide, cowhide and goatskin age differently; our entry on horsehide sets out the first.
- Size and fit. In our handling, wartime sizes run in even chest numbers and fit close and short in the body; Japanese reproductions usually keep the original sizing, so measure rather than assume.
- Check the collar. Hidden snaps at the collar points and a hook at the throat are part of the pattern.
- The back. In our handling, a painted back can be wartime, later or new; the house describes it as it reads and never guesses.
Where it appears in the collection
A-2s sit on the flight jacket and nose art shelf. Examples include a wartime Spiewak A-2 with a T. Van Kirk name strip, a Buzz Rickson's Rough Wear A-2 with a Memphis Belle patch and a Toys McCoy Shangri-La A-2. For the painted backs, see our guide to WWII A-2 back paint.
Related entries
- Nose art: the aircraft painting carried onto jacket backs.
- MA-1: the nylon jet-age jacket that followed.
- Amekaji: the Japanese style that keeps the A-2 in production.
In the Lexicon: G-1 jacket. Read next: Avirex in Japan.
Sources
- Jackets, Flying, Type A-2, encyclopaedia entry, history and specification. wikipedia.org
Last reviewed 15 November 2026. The Japonista Curation and Concierge Team, Tokyo, Japan.