Image via Complex Original
Much of menswear owes its allegiance to military history. From shirting to outerwear, most of our most commonly worn gear comes straight out of your local military base. For those who dig a little deeper, you'll discover a rich clothing history that's not only rooted in functionality, but style and design.
The bomber jacket—or MA-1 if we're being technical—has a longstanding history that stretches from the middle of the 20th Century into today. Starting as a jacket that was best suited for chilly, cramped cockpits, the jacket has become into an outerwear staple that's seen high fashion reinterpretations for the modern man. Here's how it evolved from standard issue outerwear to the wardrobe staple in your closet.
1940s: The A-2 and B-15 set a standard.
With the advent of air combat in World War II, pilots needed outerwear that was going to be functional in high-altitude cold weather, while still being streamlined enough to stay out of the way of plane operation. As flight tech advanced, cockpits became more cramped with tech, and planes could fly faster and higher. It's these details that spurred innovation from leather and fur, to wool and waterproofed nylon.
The bomber jacket as we know it today would not have existed without the influence of two jackets that came before: the A-2 and the B-15. The A-2 is a horsehide leather jacket with snap button closure, a neck flap, and two flap pockets that adorn the front of the jacket.
The B-15 jacket shares a much more obvious connection with today's MA-1 bomber jacket. In an effort to cater to the new needs of pilots, which centered on higher, faster planes, the B-15 was fixed with a fur collar (cutting down on overall jacket bulk), a “pen” zip pocket on the sleeve, and the “slash” pockets that, to this day, adorn MA-1 bombers.
While the B-15 was a huge jump from the A-2; much like the difference in flight tech, the B-15 is only slightly different from the MA-1 of today. The B-15 comes with a cotton outer, the use of leather straps on the chest to hold oxygen masks in flight, and the lack of the now signature orange liner.
1949-1950: Enter the MA-1.
When making the switch to MA-1 jackets, which occurred between 1949 to 1950, a few changes were made to the B-15 style. Most notably, the fur collar was replaced with a knit collar, primarily because the fur collar got in the way of the parachute harness. An orange liner was added to help promote rescue visibility in the event of a plane crash, making the jacket reversible. A nylon body became the standard due to the relatively new (at the time) material's ability to remain dry and prevent rain or water from soaking into the jacket.
While we associate the Army's “sage green” with just about anything military related, the original color of bomber jackets were in a “midnight blue.” During the course of the Korean War, and especially during the beginning of the '60s and the Vietnam War era, the jacket was shifted to the sage green color in order to more effectively camouflage soldiers in countrysides with dense vegetation and plant life.
Mid-1950s: Bombers enter public service.
Bomber jackets were a major part of military life, but following the Korean War, and especially after the Vietnam War, the MA-1 was integrated into civilian life. While the jacket was obviously for U.S. military personnel, the jacket quickly (and more easily) spread to a non-military audience. Much like the pilots who wore the jacket in an era when planes didn't have closed cockpits, normal individuals could enjoy the warming qualities that are built into the jacket. Traditionally constructed bomber jackets work in a temperature range that goes from roughly 14 to 50 degrees Fahrenheit, so the style was much desired for those who happened to need a functional jacket that could be worn ideally from autumn until the middle of spring.
Of course, in the switch from combat to civilian use, changes were made to the jacket. Notably, the wool collar and cuffs were changed to an acrylic knit (with more time in home storage, insects were known to eat at the wool). There was a switch to a non-quilted liner, and certain manufacturers applied extra water repellent treatments for those in wetter environments.
Police departments have even added the MA-1 to their uniform, especially for those who live and work in outdoor temperatures that are exceptionally cold. To put it simply, the bomber jacket wasn't just for pilots anymore, and was simplified for other tasks, but became popular for its lightweight body and simultaneous cold weather functionality.
Late '60s-'80s: The bomber jacket goes through a rebellious phase.
Perhaps because of the milder winters, Europe and Australia were the first to heavily wear the jacket outside of the U.S. military. By chance, when MA-1 manufacturers began shifting from exclusive military contracts to civilian production in the late '60s through the early '80s, a variety of subcultures rose up throughout Europe, the U.S., and Japan.
English punks and skinheads would wear the bomber jacket over tucked in T-shirts, cuffed skinny denim, Doc Martens shoes, and other military-inspired gear like M-65 jackets and M-51 fishtail parkas. However, unlike the midnight blue and sage green you'd see on a military issue MA-1, punks often gravitated to jackets dyed in burgundy—something that would never have been released for military use, and was distinctly different from the jackets that came before it.
In Japan, as the cry for Americana in the '60s was it's own counterculture movement, there was an increased interest for American clothing imports in the men's clothing market. While this is traditionally associated with the preppy styles meticulously documented in tomes like Take Ivy, this also applied to American military gear. Japanese guys adopted both the MA-1 and the earlier B-15 as outerwear in the '60s and '70s, wearing it in a much more traditional way, styling it like servicemen in the late '50s or early '60s.
1980s: The bomber jacket goes Hollywood.
It would be difficult to forget the role that film has played in not only spreading the MA-1 to the public, but for keeping it as a popular outerwear option today. Initially, the films of action star Steve McQueen, and specifically The Hunter in 1980, showed how badass bombers could be. A year later, Harrison Ford's Indiana Jones character ran from huge boulders and cracked his trademark whip in Raiders of the Lost Ark clad in a custom brown bomber inspired by the A-2.
Image via The Man and Glam
1986's incredibly popular Top Gun featured patched-out A-2 leather jackets on Tom Cruise's character, ensuring bombers were firmly planted in popular culture. Over time, films that have looked back at punk and skinhead culture, like cult film This is England, or American History X, show how the style was worn by those in the subcultures of the '80s and '90s.
There's been a major resurgence in the style lately, like Kanye West's confederate flag adorned “Yeezus” Alpha Industries bomber. He's even put his daughter North, in a miniature version of the jacket.
2000s-Now: The bomber meets the runway.
Today's bomber, depending on where you buy it, will either be a very close reproduction of the classic, or tailored towards modern tastes. A brand name in their own right, Alpha Industries received a military contract in 1963 to create MA-1s, and began producing for civilians in the '70s. You'll find that their jackets are military spec replicas, with concessions made in color, and materials for a wider civilian audience.
Streetwear brands like Stüssy and Supreme regularly reinterpret the bomber jacket, often collaborating with old-school manufacturers like Alpha Industries or Schott NYC to make custom versions. On the other end of the spectrum, labels like The Real McCoy's and Buzz Rickson aim to make super accurate reproductions of the standard issue versions, down to every last detail. Rickson's excruciating attention to detail got the label a mention in William Gibson's 2003 book Pattern Recognition, making a black Buzz Rickson MA-1 bomber jacket an indelible part of protagonist Cayce Pollard's uniform.
Ironically enough, Buzz Rickson actually never made a black MA-1, but had been planning to release a jet black version for its tenth anniversary in 2004. As fate would have it, Gibson and Rickson went on to collaborate on a collection of military repro outerwear.
Image via THIRD LOOKS
The bomber jacket has also provided countless inspiration to high fashion menswear designers, who consistently revisit and reinterpret the silhouette. Whether you're talking about the now classic Raf Simons oversized "Pyramid" bomber from his Spring/Summer 2000 SUMMA CUM LAUDE collection; Helmut Lang's iconic "bondage" bombers from 2004; elongated bombers from street goth favorites Rick Owens and Fear of God; or floral printed versions from Balenciaga and Dries Van Noten, bomber jackets are now runway veterans.
For the most part, these reinterpretations forgo the bulky sleeves and extra pockets, in an effort to further streamline the silhouette of the jacket. Considering Raf Simons and Rick Owens are known to design collections inspired by punk rock, gothic, and/or counter culture as a whole, a bomber jacket is an obvious fit for these types of designer brands. Newer brands like STAMPD add to the meta-ness of it all by channeling Helmut Lang for its recently released Strapped bomber.
Even fast fashion retailers like H&M and Topman have designed their own versions for those on a tighter budget (albeit at the cost of functionality). While newer versions may not be cockpit-ready, there's a reason that most guys want bomber jacket: You can't hate on something that's as practical as it is stylish.