Flying Tigers AVG 50 Mission™ Goatskin A-2 The AVG (American Volunteer Group) Flying Tigers were comprised of active-duty Army, Navy and Marine Corps pilots who volunteered to fight for China as civilians with the tacit approval of the US Government. The group was formed prior to America’s involvement in WWII and were brilliantly led by Claire Chennault (who was eventually promoted to the rank of General and commander of the 14th AF). The exploits & successes of the AVG Flying Tigers, usually against superior numbers, became legendary and so did their iconic shark-nosed P-40s. You can now pay tribute to the legendary AVG with our Flying Tigers AVG 50 Mission™ Goatskin A-2. This jacket is patterned after the WWII A-2 jacket and features two front cargo pockets with WWII-style pocket flaps (and no side-entry handwarmer pockets, just like the WWII version), a snap-down collar, throat hook, a one-piece back, and your choice of a plain poly cotton lining or our exclusive Vietnam map lining. Flying Tigers AVG 50 Mission™ Goatskin A-2 Our Flying Tigers AVG 50 Mission™ Goatskin A-2 also gives you the options of our original Flying Tigers with Flag, Flying Tiger P-40 or Blood Chit artwork on the jacket’s back, custom hand-painted by our resident artist Jim Harley. In addition, the jacket includes authentic hand-painted leather patches, including a hand-painted leather AVG Flying Tigers patch on the right chest, a hand-painted CBI (China Burma India) insignia on the left sleeve, and your choice of an AVG Squadron patch on the left chest (1st Squadron Adam & Eve, 2nd Squadron Panda Bears, or 3rd Squadron Hell’s Angels). The jacket also features a WWII-style leather name strip which will be embossed with your name (or any other lettering up to 14 characters in length) at no additional charge; optionally, the leather name strip can also be left blank if you wish to add your own lettering at a later date. *Note: we can also create this jacket on any jacket we sell or you can send us your own jacket if you prefer. Go to our Custom Hand Painting page for more details. The US Wings/Flying Tigers Connection: John Richard “Dick” Rossi, an original member of the AVG and an ace with 6.25 kills, was a longtime friend of US Wings CEO Sgt. David Hack (and a customer of US Wings). US Wings & Jim Harley recreated Mr. Rossi’s AVG Flying Tigers G-1 Jacket, which Mr. Rossi eventually donated to the Flying Tigers Museum in Zhijiang township in Hunan Province, China; US Wings & Jim Harley then went on to create Mr. Rossi’s replacement jacket a short time later. Check out the full story on our website. The Flying Tigers AVG 50 Mission™ Goatskin A-2 Jacket features: 100% Naked mil-spec Goatskin U.S.A.A.F Military Issue Snap-down collar Throat hook Two front cargo pockets NO Side-entry hand-warmers NO Interior pocket Tailored sleeves Brown poly-cotton lining One-piece back Hand painted leather patches: Left Chest Options (Choose One) 1st Pursuit Squadron – Apple 2nd Pursuit Squadron – Panda 3rd Pursuit Squadron – Hell’s Angel Right Chest – AVG Left Sleeve – CBI OPTIONAL: Left Chest: WWII-style leather name-strip which will be embossed with your name (or any other lettering up to 14 characters in length) at no additional charge Back: Flying Tiger AVG Blood Chit Hand Painted Flying Tigers with Flag Hand Painted Flying Tigers P-40 Lining: Add Vietnam Conflict Map Lining Jacket Lengths: Regular & Long Color: Seal Brown Fit: Normal Please note: Custom jackets are final sale. Protect your jacket with our new jacket care products. These products are all natural and hand made in the USA. It will help preserve your new jacket or add years back to your old one. Exposure to the elements and regular wear will dry out and fade your jacket. Replenish your jacket now! History of Cooper: Founded in 1922, Cooper manufactured raincoats for the US Army in 1917-1918 as well as field jackets from 1941-1945. On January 5 1942, Cooper was awarded the contract to produce A-2 jackets for the USAAF during WWII. In 1988, they were awarded a contract to produce A-2s for the USAF; the jackets were created using patterns from an original A-2 but were made in a fuller cut to accommodate modern physiques. In 1996, they were awarded a contract from the Defense Supply Center Philadelphia (DSCP) to re-design the A-2 into what would become the current military-issue version. Fit & functionality upgrades were made to this venerable Air Force flight jacket, including side-entry hand-warmer pockets and an interior pocket (which had previously only been available on civilian A-2 versions, not on military-issue A-2s), underarm gussets, and a more roomy fit. Their contribution to the civilian market was no less significant. Cooper produced a range of A-2s, G-1s, Indy jackets and more to customers around the world. US Wings partnered with Cooper in 1986 and ending when Cooper ceased production in the late 1990s. US Wings is the official home of the Cooper name and we’re proud to continue the tradition of excellence. This line consists of classic Cooper jackets as well as a number of “new classics” that are sure to appeal to any leather jacket enthusiast. Rest assured that we’ve retained Cooper’s commitment to quality, putting only the finest materials and the highest level of craftsmanship into the jackets that bear the Cooper Original name. This ensures that our jackets will be of the same high quality as the original Cooper Sportswear jackets worn by your father, grandfather or even great-grandfather. The Modern A-2: The A-2 leather flight jacket is an American military flight jacket. Originally invented and developed for the World War II U.S. Army Air Forces pilots. After a brief period of not issuing jackets to pilots, the modern A-2 was developed and issued. It was said that the popular film, “Top Gun” may have influenced the new A-2. The first Air Force A-2 contract was awarded to Avirex, but all subsequent contracts from 1988 to 1998 were awarded to Neil Cooper USA, now U.S. Wings of Ohio. The modern design differs from the original design in several ways. With a looser fit, made from goatskin in seal brown, side entry pockets, and an inside wallet pockets.
