35 - Flight Jacket History 2; Aces of WWI

Heddels Blowout

In our last episode we talked about the earliest experiments of humans with aviation, which mostly included people covering themselves with feathers and jumping off of tall buildings. However, that lineage eventually got us to the Wright Brothers, who pioneered the first powered flight in 1903.

They sold the first plane to the United States Army in 1909, but that would be far from the last plane bought by a military. Soon, every powerful nation on the face of the planet would be buying planes by the thousands, and also, of course, buying jackets for the people who flew them. In this episode we cover World War One and how it launched aviation and the associated apparel into completely new territory.

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Citations:

• “Boots, Aviator's 'Fug' Boots: RFC.” Imperial War Museums, www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/30016195.
• TheGreatWar, director. Fight For Air Supremacy - Bloody April 1917 I THE GREAT WAR Special Feat. Real Engineering. YouTube, YouTube, 29 Apr. 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=RfMY1j4wXak&t=312s.
• “World War I.” Ducksters, www.ducksters.com/history/world_war_i/aviation_and_aircraft_of_ww1.php.
• “WW1 Aircraft of 1914.” Military Factory - Global Defense Reference, www.militaryfactory.com/aircraft/ww1-airplanes-1914.asp.