A-1 Jacket / A1 Flying Jacket - The ultimate Golden Era flying accessory!

[Fletch]

(In Italy Leather has never gone out of fashion)

Has it anywhere? I imagine wearing leather will last as long as people eat meat. Mmmmm...meat.

What never has quite gone out of fashion in Italy is the A-1 itself. Nowadays it's seen mostly in tan suede, and is worn as a sort of upscale cardigan by middleaged gents on weekends. Once the style died out everywhere else, it came to be considered an Italian style.

Jackets in market stall, Verbania Intra (Lago Maggiore), May 2007.

 

[fishmeok]

A-1 Test Jacket

This is my A-1 test jacket. It worked out OK, but some things I need to change on the next one. Longer arms, bigger armscythe, 2 inches off the middle, etc. I also tried to make the pockets offset A-2 style, but that doesn't look right with a button up front. I'm pretty happy with the basics though.
Cheers
Mark

 

[bburtner@moran]

Willis and Geiger A1

Topic: Willis and Geiger A1 on ebay.My question to the A1 junkies,did Willis and Geiger make a deceit A1? The price seems right so far.PLEASE no nasty replys like"throw it in trash"....

 

[feltfan]

Topic: Willis and Geiger A1 on ebay.My question to the A1 junkies,did Willis and Geiger make a deceit A1? The price seems right so far.PLEASE no nasty replys like"throw it in trash"....

It's not nasty to say "throw it in trash" if it is trash.
I don't know anything about Willis and Geiger, but
I do think you should expect what you pay for here.

That said, my response is, "no discussion of current eBay
auctions", which is a rule here.

 

[bburtner@moran]

So Sorry

fftopic: Sir excuse my ignorance.

 

[Flitcraft]

Wilis & Geiger quality is generally very good...

know more about textiles- safari shirts and such- but in general, W&G was a quality company.
Only seen the A2 in person- good quality, but not authentic by any stretch.
If the price is low enough, give it a shot. Just don't expect too much in the way of museum quality accuracy.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Topic: Willis and Geiger A1 on ebay.My question to the A1 junkies,did Willis and Geiger make a deceit A1? The price seems right so far.PLEASE no nasty replys like"throw it in trash"....

They did make a more than decent A1. The Willis Geiger that I've seen were made of capeskin...one peice back...and a nice repro.
Their A2s did leave much to be desired,tho.
HD

 

[WhiskeyTangoFox]

Topic: Willis and Geiger A1 on ebay.My question to the A1 junkies,did Willis and Geiger make a deceit A1? The price seems right so far.PLEASE no nasty replys like"throw it in trash"....

I have one of those Willis & Geiger A-1 jackets. It's really comfortable to wear because of the capeskin material. As far as accuracy goes, it's not the most accurate out there in terms of color (the leather is too light colored) but otherwise it's a solid jacket. Mine has 11 years of hard mileage on it and has no signs of giving up yet.

Noel

 

[Creeping Past]

I think you've got the A-1 down, too, Fishmeok. :eusa_clap

A talent like yours doesn't come along every day....

 

[kampkatz]

I agree with Creeping Past. Your design is right on. You would have no problem mass marketing that style if you had the production capacity. Your talent is indeed blooming since your earlier efforts. I enjoy seeing you post your latest endeavors. Can't wait to see what's next!

 

[Nighthawk]

Has it anywhere? I imagine wearing leather will last as long as people eat meat. Mmmmm...meat.

What never has quite gone out of fashion in Italy is the A-1 itself. Nowadays it's seen mostly in tan suede, and is worn as a sort of upscale cardigan by middleaged gents on weekends. Once the style died out everywhere else, it came to be considered an Italian style.

Jackets in market stall, Verbania Intra (Lago Maggiore), May 2007.

Lost Worlds has a couple of nice suede A-1s near the bottom of their sale page. The description says they were made for an upscale Italian company.

ADDENDUM: I agree with the idea that the A-1 never went out of style in Italy, kind of like the A-2 in the US and the Irvin in the U.K. That doesn't mean that exact repros were always made, just that the same basic design has stayed around.

As for the idea of an upscale cardigan, wasn't the A-1 always considered like that, at least the civilian version? Buried in this thread somewhere is a picture of a couple of golfers wearing civilian A-1s.

NH

 

[fishmeok]

I agree with Creeping Past. Your design is right on. You would have no problem mass marketing that style if you had the production capacity. Your talent is indeed blooming since your earlier efforts. I enjoy seeing you post your latest endeavors. Can't wait to see what's next!

My production capacity is about 2 jackets a month, so it's going to take a while to get the Spring line ready....

I really like the A-1, will be working on a leather version here soon. It has some interesting differences from a basic A-2 pattern, shoulder seam, arms, and body are all unique to the jacket. Jacketmaking is a fun hobby, very much worth the time.
Cheers
Mark

 

[PADDY]

Such a classic design!

And to my mind much more versatile than the A-2 in wearing situations/environments. You gotta love the A-1..!!

I'm really enjoying the authenticity of JC's products in this line.

 

[John Lever]

Lost Worlds has a couple of nice suede A-1s near the bottom of their sale page. The description says they were made for an upscale Italian company.

ADDENDUM: I agree with the idea that the A-1 never went out of style in Italy, kind of like the A-2 in the US and the Irvin in the U.K. That doesn't mean that exact repros were always made, just that the same basic design has stayed around.

As for the idea of an upscale cardigan, wasn't the A-1 always considered like that, at least the civilian version? Buried in this thread somewhere is a picture of a couple of golfers wearing civilian A-1s.

NH

Maybe it's an original Italian design pre-dating the WW2.

 

[Creeping Past]

Maybe recognised as a good pattern and taken back to Italy from Spain in the late 30s...

 

[Italian-wiseguy]

Maybe it's an original Italian design pre-dating the WW2.

My opinion is that A1 design was introduced in Italy by Regia Aeronautica pilots in the 30s.

I remember I've seen photographs of italian air force pilots wearing A1s in that period (the age of Balbo and trans-atlantic flights) curiously alongside genuine italian jackets (the so-called Marus that pre-dated american B10 in basical design).

It's interesting that, prior of alliance with Hitler's Germany, Fascism had some sort of fascination (I'd dare to say, in same way, mutual) with USA;
maybe A1s were simply originally privately purchased from the USA by pilots, as they nevere seem to had been military issue in Italy, just becasue their style was appealing.

Ciao!

 

[H.Johnson]

Good points. There is documentary evidence that when pilots met in peacetime they sometimes traded flying kit as mementos (of course, in wartime they sometimes wore captured enemy flying gear as 'trophies'). In the late 1920s and early 1930s occasions such as international competitions (e.g. the Schneider Trophy) would have given plenty of opportunity for US and Italian (and other) fliers to either swap or copy each other's gear.

It's worth further investigation.

 

[Fletch]

Then again, it may just be that certain looks, like certain kinds of movies or music, appeal more to certain nationalities at certain times. The USA has supplied the world with goods and culture and then thrown most of it on the bonfire of history. So it's not surprising if some of it has taken refuge overseas and forgotten about the folks back home.

 

[fishmeok]

A-1 with USN style pockets

I'm going to stop making individual posts for my stuff, this thread needs new life anyway. This is a 46 A-1 (style) based on the Doniger pattern that I made for a customer. He wants the higher USN style pockets and 25" sleeves, first time I have done that. I think it turned out well, but I need to find some better snaps.
Cheers
Mark

 

[fishmeok]

More pics: