Item Description
Original Item: One-of-a-kind. This is an M41 field jacket worn by a ground crew member of the 1st Combat Cargo Squadron during World War Two. The jacket is totally original with the exception of the large blood chit patch on the reverse which is a high quality reproduction, the original patch had been removed, probably by the veteran upon return to the US.
The 1st Combat Cargo Squadron, nicknamed the Great Snafu Fleet, was activated on 15 April 1944 and assigned to the 1st Combat Cargo Group. The squadron flew C-47 Skytrain aircraft throughout the China-Burma-India (CBI) Theater in WWII.
The jacket it in approximately size U.S. 40 and is in overall very good condition. The most notable aspect of the jacket is the ultra rare 1st Combat Cargo Squadron. The patch depicts a rabbit astride a C-47. The patch is hand made of leather pieces of several colors stitched together. The patch measures 6.5 inches in diameter and is superb in detail and quality.
One the left shoulder is a full color multi-piece leather construction CBI insignia. The right shoulder bears as USAAF full color multi-piece leather construction patch. Staff Sergeant chevrons are on each sleeve. The reverses of the jacket bears a large leather blood chit which is a recent addition and not WW2 period, it was added for the purpose of display.
Olive Drab Cotton Field Jacket (also known as OD Cotton Field Jacket, Parsons Jacket, M-1938 or M-1941) was a field jacket used by US Army soldiers, most famously during the beginning of World War II. In 1941 it started to be phased in as a replacement for the wool four pocket service coat, but around 1943 it was replaced in turn by an improved M-1943 model. Due to wide adoption, M-1941 is usually recognized as a symbol of the World War II American G.I.. The jacket was made in a lighter shade of olive drab called OD number 3.
History of the M41 field jacket:
When the US entered the war in 1941, the OD cotton field jacket was the standard outer garment for all army personnel, except those that had other specialist clothing (such as paratroopers, who wore the parachutist's coat and trousers (M-1942/43) Tankers, who were issued the famous (and widely sought-after) tankers jacket, or in extreme cold-climate conditions (parkas in cold weather, etc.). As a result, the field jacket could be seen worn in every theater of war and by nearly every type of soldier, making a rather ubiquitous symbol of the World War II American G.I..
Throughout the course of the war, the OD cotton field jacket proved to be an inadequate outer garment. The jacket's thin lining provided poor insulation during cold weather and the light cotton shell provided little protection from wet weather and wind. In addition, the lighter shade of OD 3 faded quickly and resulted in a beige color, thus compromising the effect of camouflage (many troops in the field found this out the hard way, and often turned their jackets inside-out because the wool lining was a darker shade of OD and didn't gleam in the sunlight like the poplin shell did.
The OD cotton field jacket was officially replaced as standard with the adoption of the M-1943 uniform ensemble, which included the much improved M-1943 field jacket. The OD cotton field jacket was redesignated limited standard and issued until supplies were exhausted. Photographic evidence shows that soldiers continued to wear the older jacket all the way through the end of the war, due to supply shortages and squabbling between the Quartermaster Corps, and field commanders who all had their own ideas of what the troops should "look like".
The 1st Combat Cargo Squadron, nicknamed the Great Snafu Fleet, was activated on 15 April 1944 and assigned to the 1st Combat Cargo Group. The squadron flew C-47 Skytrain aircraft throughout the China-Burma-India (CBI) Theater in WWII.
The jacket it in approximately size U.S. 40 and is in overall very good condition. The most notable aspect of the jacket is the ultra rare 1st Combat Cargo Squadron. The patch depicts a rabbit astride a C-47. The patch is hand made of leather pieces of several colors stitched together. The patch measures 6.5 inches in diameter and is superb in detail and quality.
One the left shoulder is a full color multi-piece leather construction CBI insignia. The right shoulder bears as USAAF full color multi-piece leather construction patch. Staff Sergeant chevrons are on each sleeve. The reverses of the jacket bears a large leather blood chit which is a recent addition and not WW2 period, it was added for the purpose of display.
Olive Drab Cotton Field Jacket (also known as OD Cotton Field Jacket, Parsons Jacket, M-1938 or M-1941) was a field jacket used by US Army soldiers, most famously during the beginning of World War II. In 1941 it started to be phased in as a replacement for the wool four pocket service coat, but around 1943 it was replaced in turn by an improved M-1943 model. Due to wide adoption, M-1941 is usually recognized as a symbol of the World War II American G.I.. The jacket was made in a lighter shade of olive drab called OD number 3.
History of the M41 field jacket:
When the US entered the war in 1941, the OD cotton field jacket was the standard outer garment for all army personnel, except those that had other specialist clothing (such as paratroopers, who wore the parachutist's coat and trousers (M-1942/43) Tankers, who were issued the famous (and widely sought-after) tankers jacket, or in extreme cold-climate conditions (parkas in cold weather, etc.). As a result, the field jacket could be seen worn in every theater of war and by nearly every type of soldier, making a rather ubiquitous symbol of the World War II American G.I..
Throughout the course of the war, the OD cotton field jacket proved to be an inadequate outer garment. The jacket's thin lining provided poor insulation during cold weather and the light cotton shell provided little protection from wet weather and wind. In addition, the lighter shade of OD 3 faded quickly and resulted in a beige color, thus compromising the effect of camouflage (many troops in the field found this out the hard way, and often turned their jackets inside-out because the wool lining was a darker shade of OD and didn't gleam in the sunlight like the poplin shell did.
The OD cotton field jacket was officially replaced as standard with the adoption of the M-1943 uniform ensemble, which included the much improved M-1943 field jacket. The OD cotton field jacket was redesignated limited standard and issued until supplies were exhausted. Photographic evidence shows that soldiers continued to wear the older jacket all the way through the end of the war, due to supply shortages and squabbling between the Quartermaster Corps, and field commanders who all had their own ideas of what the troops should "look like".
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