A modern MA-1 bomber/flight jacket, with sage green exterior and safety orange lining. The MA-1 bomber jacket (also known as the MA-1 flight jacket) is an American military jacket which was developed in the 1950s. The MA-1 and its predecessor, the B-15 flight jacket, were originally developed and needed at that time because the characteristics of the new jet aircraft created new requirements
When the U.S. Air Force first became an independent service in 1947 airmen initially continued to wear green U.S. Army uniforms with distinct badges and insignia.The Air Force adopted redesigned enlisted rank insignia in 1948 to further distinguish themselves. These uniforms were worn with polished black leather accessories instead of the russet brown leather previously used. In the original Top Gun, which was released in 1986, Lt. Pete "Maverick" Mitchell (played, of course, by Tom Cruise) wears a leather G-1 Jacket — an item that has been an option for fighter pilots since 1940.Back in '40, though, it was called the M-422A.It wasn't the G-1 Jacket until 1947, when it was standardized across the United States Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard.