U.S. Army Air Forces · Original Spec · Z2107H
Cockpit USA Horsehide A-2
Russet Horsehide Flight Jacket — WWII Spec
$756.00
Russet-brown horsehide — the A-2's original specification leather, standardized in 1931. No side-entry pockets, no interior pocket: strict WWII configuration, down to the contract-number neck label. Made in the USA.
Fit — Trim Military Fit
Cut trim to the military pattern at 26 inches long. Between sizes or layering? Take the next size up.
Original Spec · Z2107H
Cockpit USA Horsehide A-2
$756.00
The original leather.
Russet horsehide — the material the 1931 A-2 specification called for. Originals are still intact today.
Strict WWII spec.
No side-entry pockets, no interior pocket — plus a WWII-style contract-number neck label.
Made in America.
Brass zip with leather pull, wool-blend knits, russet cotton military lining.
Medium-weight russet horsehide
Breaks in slowly. Outlasts everything.
Horsehide wears hard and records years of use in its patina — the reason so many WWII A-2s survive.
The Workshop · Since 1975
Spec means spec.
Scalloped flap pockets, box-stitched epaulets, hook-and-eye storm panel, contract-number label — nothing added the wartime pattern didn't have.
One-piece back — the nose-art panel
Fit
Trim military fit.
Cut trim at 26 inches long, like the originals. Between sizes or layering? Size up.
Measurements
The A-2 Family
Choose your A-2.
Horsehide A-2
The original 1931 material
$756.00
You’re looking at it
Before you fly.
Why horsehide?
It was the A-2's original specification leather — slow to break in, extremely hard-wearing, and famous for the patina it develops. Many WWII originals survive to this day.
Why no handwarmer pockets?
The WWII specification never had them — and this jacket follows the specification.
How does the sizing run?
Trim military fit, 26-inch length. Between sizes or layering? Take the next size up.
What's the neck label?
A WWII-style contract-number label — the way original A-2s identified their maker and contract.
Made in USA?
Yes — cut and sewn in the USA by Cockpit USA.
More from the flight line.
Army Air Corps · Specification 94-3040
The leather the spec
actually called for.
When the Army Air Corps standardized the Type A-2 on 9 May 1931, the specification read horsehide — and horsehide clothed USAAF pilots through the 1930s and the war. It breaks in slowly, wears hard, and develops a patina that records every year of use; that longevity is why so many original wartime A-2s are still intact today. Cockpit USA builds this one to strict WWII configuration: no side pockets, no interior pocket, scalloped flaps, hook-and-eye storm panel, and a contract-number neck label. Made in the USA.
Medium-weight russet horsehide — the original A-2 leather
The Material
Horsehide.
The 1931 specification.
The original A-2 was horsehide — issued to USAAF pilots throughout the 1930s and 1940s. It breaks in slowly, wears hard, and develops a deep, irreplaceable patina that records years of use.
The lining is russet cotton, military-style — as the originals were cotton-lined, whatever the silk myth says.
Construction
Strict spec. No exceptions.
One-piece back
The nose-art panel, seamless as the spec drew it.
No side or interior pockets
True WWII configuration — the spec never allowed them, so this jacket doesn't have them.
Scalloped flap pockets
Two scalloped-flap patch pockets and a snap-down A-2 collar.
Storm panel + hook-and-eye
Front storm panel with the A-2's hook-and-eye neck closure; brass zip with leather pull.
Wool-blend knits
Knit waistband and seamless flared cuffs; underarm ventilating grommets.
Contract-number label
A WWII-style contract-number neck label — the maker's mark, done the wartime way.
“Many original WWII horsehide A-2s are still intact today.”
The case for horsehide · the original 1931 specification leather
The Workshop · Since 1975
Spec means spec.
No conveniences were added and none subtracted: scalloped flaps, box-stitched epaulets, vent grommets, hook-and-eye storm panel, and a contract-number neck label, exactly as wartime contractors labeled theirs.
Cut and sewn in the USA by Cockpit USA — official U.S. government supplier.
Russet cotton military lining — no interior pocket, per spec
The one-piece back — a canvas for nose art
The Details
Spec details, down to the label.
Brass zipper with leather pull — scalloped flap pockets
Russet cotton lining · contract-number neck label
Fit
Trim military fit.
26 inches long.
The A-2 was a fitted jacket, and this one honors that: trim through the body at the original 26-inch length (28-inch in Long at Cockpit USA).
Fit — Trim Military Fit
Between sizes, layering, or broad through the shoulders? Take the next size up.
Full chart with all eight sizes (38–52) in the Size Guide. Measurements taken flat; chest is armpit to armpit.
The A-2 Family
Three A-2s. One pattern.
What Customers Say
Questions
Before you fly.
Why horsehide instead of goatskin?
Horsehide was the A-2's original 1931 specification leather. It breaks in slowly, wears extremely hard, and develops a deep patina — the reason so many original WWII A-2s survive. Goatskin entered later and is today's military standard; this jacket is the original recipe.
Why are there no handwarmer or interior pockets?
The WWII specification never included them — and this is the strict-spec A-2. If you want the modern comforts, the USAF 21st Century A-2 adds them invisibly.
Was the original A-2 silk-lined?
No — a documented myth from an erroneous period Type Designation Sheet. Originals were cotton-lined, and so is this one: russet cotton, military-style.
How long does horsehide take to break in?
Longer than goatskin or lambskin — it starts firm and molds to you over time. That slow break-in is the price of a jacket that can outlast its owner.
How does the sizing run?
Trim military fit at the original 26-inch length. Between sizes or layering? Take the next size up. Full chart in the Size Guide.
Made in USA?
Yes — cut and sewn in the USA by Cockpit USA.
