The Story behind the Bomber Jacket: From Flight Jacket to Mainstream Icon
MoMu’s collection presentation sheds light on the history of fashion through contemporary and historical clothing, textiles and accessories. The MoMu Collection consists of over 38,000 pieces: to display as much of the collection as possible to the public, the presentation rotates on a regular basis. Right now, the presentation includes a selection of bomber jackets by Belgian designers.
Today, it is not possible to imagine the runway and our streets without the bomber jacket. The origins of this short, puffy overgarment go back to the United States Army’s first aviator’s jacket, made in 1927. In subsequent years, the jackets were made of different materials, including leather, cotton and nylon. From 1953 onwards, a tricot collar replaced the original fur collar, making it easier for pilots wearing helmets to turn their heads. The iconic orange lining and ‘MA-1’ designation followed in the early 1960s. This allowed pilots who had crashed to turn the jacket inside out in the hope of being found more easily.
Casual Coolness
During the Vietnam War, production of the MA-1 bomber jacket increased, and it ended up in Army Surplus stores, where it was picked up by various subcultures, ranging from hippies, skinheads, punks and the LGBTQ+ community to gabbers. The associated connotations were just as numerous.
Just as the white shirt instantly gives you a fresh and dressy look, the bomber jacket harbours the archetype of coolness. It is that instant recognizable nonchalance that turned the design into an icon.
Archetype Reimagined
From the late 1990s, fashion designers such as Issey Miyake and Helmut Lang reinterpreted the design. At MoMu, you can now discover how Belgian designers reimagined the design - and more specifically the MA-1. Among others, you will find bomber jackets by Martin Margiela, Meryll Rogge and Marina Yee.
Romy Cockx: "The selection also includes a recent acquisition by Prada in which Raf Simons reverts to a multi-layered silhouette, pairing the bomber jacket over a dress coat. This is something he did twenty years earlier in his own collection (Autumn-Winter 2000-01)."
Learn more about the collection presentation here