herk115
Active Member
Given the fact that when the USAF starting issuing A-2s again in 1988 and that they were different in some regards from the original design, leaving most of us unhappy with them, I'm wondering about the evolution of the A-2. My current USAF issue Cockpit is far truer to the WWII A-2 than the Cooper, but it has inside pockets and handwarmer pockets (though the handwarmer pockets are merely the aft seam of the flap pocket left unsewn and can be sewn up if the wearer desires, I guess). Obviously, modern A-2s are different from WWII A-2s. The inside pockets are proving very handy and I think would have shown up at some point if nature and military will had been allowed to take their course. My questions are these: one, was there any kind of evolutionary trend that was showing up in A-2s between 1931 and the contract termination in 1942? There are differences in that period, yes, but they appear to be random. And second, suppose the USAF had never stopped issuing A-2s. Would there have been some kind of evolution of the design? Possibly an evolution that would have resulted in a jacket more removed from the original than the Cooper was? Was there any evidence either of these scenarios was happening? Just food for thought.