I have a non-issue G-1. Most people don't even notice that it's different, and the ones that do think it's cool and ask where i got it and if i like it. Some other folks also have non-issue or modified issue jackets.
I was always fascinated by the legacy of the leather flight jacket and tradition of festooning it with patches so I suggested it as a topic to the editor of Air&Space magazine when I met him in 1986. He asked to write an article on it so I did and in the research phase, I realized how crappy the current issue jackets were in comparison to the original issue ones from the prior decades. To keep price to govt low, they had been relaxing the specification so that by the 70s, the original mouton collar had been replaced by a synthetic substitute and the goatskin leather was allowed to be replaced by anything that resembled it. After I was paid, I bought a Willis & Geiger jacket that was made to original specs. The difference was obvious and first time I wore it into the wardroom on JFK, I had people noticing it and an entire A-7 squadron used my connection to buy jackets for themselves.
Real goatskin is lighter than the curreny leather and "drapes" very well (industry term). Real mouton will turn honey brown after long exposure to the sun giving it a real vintage, salty look. The knit cuffs and waistband are also more robust and hold up better.
In a strange turn of effects, the Army Air Force canceled their A-2 leather flight jacket orders in 1942 because they had a tendancy to stiffen up in cold temperatures because it was lesser quality horse leather. Hap Arnold had worn them for years in open and unpressurized cockpits and was looking for the new technology multi-layer fabric designs to provide more warmth. So the Air Force went to the B-10 and then B-15 design jackets and the leather jackets slowly disappeared from their inventory. In 1987, the Air Force decided to bring back the flight jacket as an incentive for combat ready aircrews, but not as a piece of flight clothing (the Navy G-1 still remains a certified piece of flight clothing and only disappeared from inventory for a short period in late 70s due to supply system abuse until Lehman brought it back in early 80s). The odd circumstance was the initial issue USAF jackets in 1987 were goatskin whereas you never know what you'll get with a Navy jacket.
My advice, go get an authentic jacket (unfortunately, Willis & Geiger was bought by Land's End and then virtually disappeared and its jackets lost to history. They paid more for the raw materials than Navy was willing to pay for the finished jacket so they never bid on Navy contracts because the spec had been relaxed so much and they refused to sacrifice quality). The
Vintage Leather Jacket forum is a great place to check out who is making decent jackets these days.
There is no more enduring symbol of naval aviation other than wings of gold themselves.
