Orange flightsuits

[DMD]

Here is a 1963 dated K-2B flight suit that I have had for a while. The seller had two other K-2Bs, one was in fair used conditon and was orange with a plastic pocket on the left breast with a leather nametag with command pilot wings. The other suit was just like the one I have shown, but sage green. I have no reason to suspect that this one is a put-together.

 

Question: Why would you see a flight suit in slightly used condition that would not have a name tag with wings, or at least the plastic pocket that would have held the tag. Wasn't there a regulation that said a name tag should be worn?

[DMD]

The 329th Fighter Interceptor Squadron flew F-106s out of George Air Force Base in California. Their mission was to intercept and destroy the incoming Russian bombers.

[DMD]

The Qualified patch showed that the pilot had reached a certain level of experience. There were two higher levels, Skilled and Expert.

[DMD]

Sometimes you see an aircraft patch on the shoulder, sometimes you don't. But in any case, there should be a unit insignia (SAC, TAC, group or squadron or whatever), rank insignia for officers, and some sort of nametag. The photos I have seen from this period all show identification. The nametag doesn't necessarily need to show the wings, it may just show the name and unit in text.

 

So when would a pilot wear a flight suit with no nametag?

[Lee Ragan]

You'r talking about the old Air Defense Command here with this orange K2B. Understand that ADC had a reputation of not being always "by-the-book", when it came to flight clothing. (I was a SAC supply guy who issued this stuff to ADC F-101 crews.) A flight suit without name tag/wings wasn't uncommon at all. Some guys wore their flight suits all badged up, and some hardly any insignia on it at all. Many didn't wear rank on flight clothing. It could also be that this suit at one time had the left breast name/wings removed for some reason. (ADC was quite a contrast to SAC which was a spit-and-polish type outfit - even for flight clothing.)

The F-106 patch on the right sleeve was a common thing in those days. Depended on what type aircraft a squadron operated as to what (if any), a/c type patch was worn. Most guys in F-101 units wore a Voodoo patch that said One-O-Wonder (for pilots) or Scope-Wizard for Radar Intercept Officers. There were several other Voodoo patches for other flying & non fly specialities too. I've got patches like this worn by F-100 and F-4 crews, plus many others.

This orange K2B is quite a find and looks to be in very good condition. Thanks a lot for sharing it with all of us and seeing one like this brings back some foggy old memories for me.

[Lee Ragan]

 

 

This is a winter weight insulated flight suit. They had sage green ones and orange ones. I issued many of these back in the late 60's while an Air Force supply type. Normally an aircrew member would get two of these and four K2-B summer flight suits every three months. (They had to turn in the unserviceable ones in a one-for-one exchange.) The CWU-1/P suits seldom wore out because many crewmembers didn't like wearing them, even in the winter. SAC bomber & tanker crews got the sage green versions while Air Defense Command fighter interceptor crews got the orange. (We had an F-101B Voodoo unit on base and those planes had a 2 man crew: pilot & RIO.)

As a side note, most of the fighter crews would wear the orange CWU-1/P suits deer hunting in the fall because of all the orange.

[Steindaddie]

Although this type of winter flightsuit dates back many years, they were still required to be worn by the crews of F-4 Phantoms while I was in Alaskan Air Command in the early 1980's.

 

AAC - gone, but not forgotten !

 

Will

[Mr-X]

I was a USAF supply troop in a SAC bomber outfit and we had an ADC fighter interceptor squadron on base, so all I can testify to is the use of this winter flight suit by those aircrews

 

Here is the Orange CWU-1/P of Lt Col Robert E. Prince who flew F-101s with the 60th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron (Fighting Crows) at Otis Air Force Base, Massachusetts in 1970.

 

[Bob Hudson]

We've had some info about orange flight suits scattered about the forum and in some of those posts the pictures have disappeared, so I am going to try to consolidate things here.

 

Air Force Air Defense Command fighter interceptor crews wore these as did, I believe, some helicopter crews, especially search and rescure crews operating over water.

 

There are winter and summer weight flight suits.

 

Here's the CWU 1/P winter flight suit. These were made of wool and nylon or wool and rayon:

 

 

 

 

And your basic summer weight:

 

 

[Bob Hudson]

Here's the backside of the CWU 1/P

 

[Obviousman]

Sorry for the thread necromancy here but I just got a summer orange flying suit and am trying to identify its history a little. The clothing tag is too faded to read much (I can just read 'summer' and I think it is a size 44), so I don't have a name. There are Captain's bar on the shoulders. There is velcro for a name tag but no name tag with the suit. The sleeve patches are a squadron patch for the 318th FIS and a F-106 patch however on this suit the squadron patch is on the right sleeve, and the F-106 patch on the left..... is that normal? Previously in this thread it was said that ADC had the squadron patch on the left. 

 

I'll post a couple of piccies when I get home.

[Obviousman]

Some images of the suit. If anyone can tell me more about the suit, etc then comments are welcome.

[manayunkman]

Here is one with a name tag.