I got one from this guy.
ARMY/ NAVY AN 6551 / ANJ- 2 PILOTS FLIGHT FLYING JACKET | eBay
Constructed with a bi-swing back for a comfortable fit, with a nicely embroidered label sewn inside.www.ebay.com
I don’t see the 421 currently in his line up, but worth an e-mail. Can’t speak to absolute accuracy, but looks and feels like the real deal.
Sleeves were long on mine…I had them hemmed.
Hi TiesHey @B-Man2 / Burt,
don't you have one of these, as well?
Any comment on the quality? And are they made in the US? At that price I can hardly believe that...
Best regards,
Ties
Dunno, I like the unstructured, casual look to it.Here’s mine. For the price, I think it’s quite nice. I will say though that it doesn’t necessarily fit all that well into a contemporary wardrobe…unhemmed with the belted back it feels a little too Marlon Perkins for me to really pull off.
View attachment 79016
View attachment 79017
View attachment 79018View attachment 79019View attachment 79020
It was meant as a summer flight jacket and for tropical environment. It was widely used in the ww2 pacific theater. A leather jacket would be too warm there and quickly rott away.I'm curious: what was the 'use case' for this jacket? Ground crews? A particular aircraft crew position? It looks so much like the M-422, but in cloth I wonder what the reason for its existence was.
It's difficult to tell in that one vintage pic on pg. 1 (too many Mae Wests in the way), should the M421 sit at the waist?FWIW, The fabric on the 5* looks like a cotton twill - originals were made from a super light weight tightly woven poplin that makes them super comfortable, even in warm weather. Also, the cut too long in length, hence the safari jacket vibe.