Why Flight Jackets Were Historically Brown Rather Than Black

[Riku]

Why are moto jackets black while flight jackets are brown?

The only black repro flight jackets I seen are those ww2 german flight jackets from Eastman

 

[AHP91]

Why are moto jackets black while flight jackets are brown?

The only black repro flight jackets I seen are those ww2 german flight jackets from Eastman

My understanding is that black dyed leather was more expensive to produce, more difficult to make uniformly during wartime. Also black absorbs heat easier making flights tougher. Also army generally goes more camo earth colors while black was traditionally more formal.

 

[Edward]

It would be interesting to see if there was any historical discussion on this at any stage. Though the bottom line is that much will - for the USAAF at least - be dictated by the fact that US military uniforms were primarily various shades of brown (even the boots stayed brown right up until 1959, post-Korea.... a detail M*A*S*H missed ). On that basis, I'd be very surprised if any colour other than brown was considered at that point in time. When this started to change for the USAAF was when textile jackets came in from 1943, and green, still an earthtone, was the order of the day for a very long time, barring the blip when the B15C went blue with the introduction of the USAF as a separate branch of service in 1947 - which, of course, was quickly shifted back to green during the Korean "Police Action" after they realised a downed airman in navy blue was a bit of a sitting target in the Korean countryside. Naturally this links back to why earthtones became a thing with military uniforms to begin with....

I wouldn't be entirely surprised if there was an element of cost consideration along the way at some point when it came to selection of dyes for uniforms in general. In an earlier era, the Brits' (in)famous redcoats were, contrary to the myth of disguising blood from wounds, that particular colour because the dye was cheaper than some alternatives under consideration.

 

[Tom71]

Why are moto jackets black while flight jackets are brown?

The only black repro flight jackets I seen are those ww2 german flight jackets from Eastman

Notably, the German Luftwaffe did not have dedicated leather pilot jackets. The pilots were expected to fly in their grey cloth jackets.

At least after the invasion of parts of France, some pilots "borrowed" jackets from French workers as they thought the cropped style worked well in the very confined space of a cockpit.
The jacket Eastman reproduces is modelled after pictures of Erich Hartman, one leading Luftwaffe officer who appears to have been an erly expert in (self-) marketing...

 

[raf]

It may also have something to do with the US Army using brown boots and Sam Browne belts.

 

[Bfd70]

If you take this over to vintageleatherjackets my guess is you’ll find a definitive answer

 

[Edward]

Notably, the German Luftwaffe did not have dedicated leather pilot jackets. The pilots were expected to fly in their grey cloth jackets.

At least after the invasion of parts of France, some pilots "borrowed" jackets from French workers as they thought the cropped style worked well in the very confined space of a cockpit.
The jacket Eastman reproduces is modelled after pictures of Erich Hartman, one leading Luftwaffe officer who appears to have been an erly expert in (self-) marketing...

And of course a lot of those pp Luftwaffe worn jackets were brown. An awful lot of stereotypes about uniforms of that conflict owe more to the big screen than history.