The story of the CWU 45 jacket

CWU45/P

Pilots wear CWU45/P jackets in most countries. From the 70s onwards, leather flight jackets were taken over by the fireproof CWU-54/P with detachable hood and the lighter CWU-36/P. The modern design secured the comfort and safety of the pilots. Substituting the buttons avoided t

heir loss, thus leading to preventing foreign matter from getting into the engine, the tilted side pocket with two velcro strips enabled the pilot to put the hands in a pocket in cold weather.

The jacket was renamed CWU45/P in 1977 when the velcro name label on the chest and the width of the collar was reduced. In the following, the sewing of the back part and the width of the wind-covering strip were altered.

The last modification took place in 1984 (MIL-J-83388D) which actually remained the most popular flight jacket model of the United States Marine Corps.

Currently the crew of the Air Force uses the lighter CWU-36/P jacket in more moderate climates and the CWU45/P in more severe weather conditions. The difference between the two pieces of clothing lies only in the thickness of the padding.

The jacket is popular with the ground personnel servicing the flying crew. Although the regulation forbids the wear of the jacket on top of the civil outfit outside working hours, many put it on away from the air bases since it also represents a sort of status symbol, too. In colder months, many high rank officers may be seen wearing CWU45/P in the Pentagon.

The US Air Force exercises a strict regulation regarding the labels and tags worn on jackets. The nametag can be found on the left chest side and the mark of the regiment on the right. On the left shoulder, the name of the class, and on the right, the sign of the unit is displayed.

Many airmen wear military jackets with more labels and tags which typically show the years of service, number of missions, in other words, the military career pursued.