A WWII 15th Air Force Consolidated B-24 Liberator A-2 bomber jacket belonging to an unknown member of the 451st Bombardment Group (724th Bombardment Squadron). This handsome dark brown leather, issue jacket with knit hem and cuffs has a single, original Talon front zipper with collar and front pocket snaps. The jacket, size 38, was made by Aero Leather of Beacon, New York, and has the one-piece label marked “Type A-2, Dwg. No. 30H1415, A.C. Contract, Order No. No. 42-18775-P, Property Air Force, U.S. Army.” The inner lining below the label is stenciled “C 8035.” The left and right shoulders bear hand-painted emblems of the American flag and the Fifteenth Air Force, and the left chest area features a hand-painted leather patch with the insignia of the 724th Bomb Squadron. In very good condition, with overall wear, including noticeable tears and missing leather to the shoulder patches; the chest insignia is well-worn with faded paint; small holes and rips to lining and fraying to the cuffs and hem; the leather is relatively supple and exhibits scattered scuffs and marks.
Activated on May 1, 1943, at Wendover Field, Utah, as part of the 451st Bombardment Group (Heavy), the 724th Bomb Squadron was deployed to Italy in early 1944 and was stationed at Castelluccio Airfield with a primary mission to conduct strategic bombing raids over Nazi-occupied Europe. The squadron primarily operated the B-24 Liberator, a long-range heavy bomber that was used extensively by the USAAF in the European Theater, targeting enemy installations, industrial facilities, and transportation infrastructure.
