The B-10 flight jacket was the first non-leather jacket issued to the USAAF and introduced in 1943. The TYPE B-10 features a durable cotton sateen outer shell paired with a warm alpaca wool lining and a sheepskin collar for added comfort. It also includes wool ribbing for a snug fit, a 1940s-style bell-shaped front brass zipper with cotton tape, and is constructed using strong cotton sewing thread. Designed to replace the earlier sheepskin jackets, it was ordered approximately 18 times over a span of nine months, leading to significant production numbers.

Although specific temperature guidelines weren't firmly established at the time, the B-10 was generally intended for use in intermediate climates, with some jackets bearing labels marked "INTERMEDIATE."

Typically, B-10 jackets come with epaulettes, but a few original examples without them are known to exist. These epaulette-free jackets were not assigned unique contract numbers; instead, they appear sporadically within several contract batches.

Variations among original jackets extend beyond silhouette differences to include collar shapes, cotton shell shades, and the color of the mouton lining. Notably, mouton ranges from various shades of brown to a natural, undyed look. Similar natural moutons were also used in the B-11 jackets produced during the same period, often by the same manufacturers. This likely reflects wartime resource shortages, with manufacturers using whatever materials were on hand.

100% Cotton Sateen Outer Shell

50% Alpaca, 50% Wool Lining

Sheepskin Collar

Wool Ribbing

1940s Bell-Shaped Front Zipper, Brass, Cotton Tape

Cotton Sewing Thread Construction

Made in Japan