Bonus: ferris scheme on the jet!
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Aviation Uniforms and Customs for the new ENS
- Thread starter jointhelocalizer
- Start date
Wild how much those guys (maybe you were one of them?) influenced the next quarter century, or more, of fighter aviation. What a cool experience to have had.
Commissioned '79. VS dude. Cruised PAC fleet CAG 2 and CAG 11. Everyone wore leather jacket in VTs. Brown shoes issued and worn. Don't recall dips on Studs. Just avoided wings until earned.
Fleet squadron khakis worn in squadron spaces on the beach unless just before and after flying. Ball caps were a thing but optional. Rarely worn on the beach. Duty in khakis.
Deployed, almost no one in the wing wore flight suits all day. Khaki pants and flight deck jerseys representing your ground job was very common. I never went that way. Even the LSOs manned the platform in khaki pants and white jerseys as did the Boss and Mini. Ball caps more common on cruise. Only recall VF-1 with real shit hots. Everyone else went embroidered. Patches on flight jackets were all over the map. On my green jacket had an Arizona Wing Confederate Air Force blood chit. Helmets decorated in standard squadron design. First cruise helmet red with reflective viking horns. Busted for required percent of reflective tape that was reversed second cruise.
Fleet squadron khakis worn in squadron spaces on the beach unless just before and after flying. Ball caps were a thing but optional. Rarely worn on the beach. Duty in khakis.
Deployed, almost no one in the wing wore flight suits all day. Khaki pants and flight deck jerseys representing your ground job was very common. I never went that way. Even the LSOs manned the platform in khaki pants and white jerseys as did the Boss and Mini. Ball caps more common on cruise. Only recall VF-1 with real shit hots. Everyone else went embroidered. Patches on flight jackets were all over the map. On my green jacket had an Arizona Wing Confederate Air Force blood chit. Helmets decorated in standard squadron design. First cruise helmet red with reflective viking horns. Busted for required percent of reflective tape that was reversed second cruise.
Being a ships company guy really opened up the sartorial options. I could go six days without wearing the same uniform and still be in uniform:
-1-4. Yellow, blue, red, or purple deck jersey to show the ABs in the Vs I loved them all equally. Could also get the ABs to put some cool stencils on it.
-5. Bag Show the ACE and SAR bubbas I'm still a pilot. Just one with a shitty job.
-6. Coveralls Ship's company unity plus they're comfy as hell and have pockets that work outside of an airplane. But had to wear coveralls with brown boots and either the nomex or G-1 to remind the SWOs how much cooler it is to be an aviator. I never did manage to scam green coveralls though.
-7. NWU Nope, just kidding. That uniform was total crap and only worn when required.
Back in the mid to late 1980s and early 1990s on Diego Garcia, officers and Chiefs wore wash khaki shirts and short pants, flight boots and either a ball cap or piss cutter. Most wore the ball cap on Diego because of the hot sun (where we wore piss cutters everywhere else due to them being easy to tuck away).
Likewise, Es wore dungaree shorts and shits (or just t-shirts) with boots and ball caps.
The Ship's Store sold pith helmets and they were authorized for all ranks. Went we first arrived, and when new guys arrived, everyone bought one and wore it. They lasted a week or two until it was realized they were a pain in the ass to carry around.
Once a new island CO tried to mandate everyone wear low quarter shoes and knee socks with the shorts (like Renegades Nellis F-14 det picture) but everyone just played stupid or ignored him until he quit trying. He claimed knee socks and low quarters were the only thing authorized by the uniform regs with shorts. Probably true but who cared?
Likewise, Es wore dungaree shorts and shits (or just t-shirts) with boots and ball caps.
The Ship's Store sold pith helmets and they were authorized for all ranks. Went we first arrived, and when new guys arrived, everyone bought one and wore it. They lasted a week or two until it was realized they were a pain in the ass to carry around.
Once a new island CO tried to mandate everyone wear low quarter shoes and knee socks with the shorts (like Renegades Nellis F-14 det picture) but everyone just played stupid or ignored him until he quit trying. He claimed knee socks and low quarters were the only thing authorized by the uniform regs with shorts. Probably true but who cared?
Was service dress yankee ever popular?
The yachting uniform?
We did it once in VP-46 for a dinning in on Diego Garcia in the late 80s just because... Never saw it other than that one time.
But on USS Theodore Roosevelt in the mid 1990s when we had a MARDET, we used to have the Marines dress up like that (dress blue jackets, white pants) to usher and serve drinks/hors d oeuvres to visiting VIPs during port visits during our cruises. We'd set up tents and stuff on the flight deck and have a VIP party. The Marines called it a "Sunset Parade" as it was usually the evening time and the Marines thought being part of a "parade" was better than being called waiters...
Not exactly SDY, but I know @Schnugg mentioned to me once that in the 80s/early 90s they would go to bars in summer white tops and SDB pants so as not to wreck the pants and allow the person to sit down at the bar. I have a hard time picturing it looking good but I remember him saying it did well.
That was authorized for a time. Can't recall the formal name but was referred to as salt and peppers.
Google...
I didn't remember Chiefs or officers wear salt & peppers but I guess they did. I thought Chiefs and officers and officers had wore either whites or gunfighters. Guess not.
@HAL Pilot what are gunfighters?
@HAL Pilot may have something else in mind, but perhaps he's referring to the all-black "Johnny Cash" uniforms...long sleeved shirt over SDB trousers. Either with both tie and ribbons (service uniform), or without both (working uniform). Much bigger on the east coast, I think, than it ever was on the left.
Max the Mad Russian
Hands off Ukraine! Feet too
Imagine real brown shoes here instead of black ones
