Enfield1940 Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 Hi, I'm currently awaiting the delivery of a "brand new" size 6 example of the above. (£19.19 inc. postage from eBay - hopefully a bargain) I was having a browse through the current aircrew order of dress document on the RAF website and I noticed that under DPM jacket it lists the CS95 rather than the Mk2A. Does this mean the Mk2A has been replaced by the CS95, or have I missed something?:??? Thanks, Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdbikemad Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 Hi, I'm currently awaiting the delivery of a "brand new" size 6 example of the above. (£19.19 inc. postage from eBay - hopefully a bargain) I was having a browse through the current aircrew order of dress document on the RAF website and I noticed that under DPM jacket it lists the CS95 rather than the Mk2A. Does this mean the Mk2A has been replaced by the CS95, or have I missed something?:??? Thanks, Mark Hi, I'm currently awaiting the delivery of a "brand new" size 6 example of the above. (£19.19 inc. postage from eBay - hopefully a bargain) I was having a browse through the current aircrew order of dress document on the RAF website and I noticed that under DPM jacket it lists the CS95 rather than the Mk2A. Does this mean the Mk2A has been replaced by the CS95, or have I missed something?:??? Thanks, Mark Nice jacket.....often termed the "Rolls Royce" of combat smocks......still made from the original heavy cotton sateen DPM fabric used in the older British combat clothing and made to aircrew specifications so you know it's gonna last ! I have a Size 4, 7 and 8 (the largest made), the latter dated 2009 so still in production until recently....... The DPM aircrew MK2A combat suit first appeared during 1971 and has remained largely unchanged in specification since.......the DPM suit replaced the earlier MK2 olive drab aircrew combat smock and trousers (very rare today), this in turn replacing the blue-grey MK1 & 1A suit of the 1960's...... Even in the RAF, the DPM MK2A suit saw limited use, mainly being employed by helicopter and hercules aircrew...........oddly enough, I was issued with one during 1985 when stores didn't have my particular size in the standard combat smock.....I still had it until last year when it fell apart after considerable use.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enfield1940 Posted May 27, 2011 Author Share Posted May 27, 2011 Thanks. I kind of caught the bug for this sort of thing last year when I found a size 8 1971 dated green Mk3 aircrew jacket in a charity chop for £3.:-D (My main collecting interest is British guns and bayonets) The Mk2A is sort of a companion piece - at least that's how I've justified the purchase... I don't suppose you could point me towards a picture or two of the MK2 olive drab aircrew combat smock and trousers? It would be interesting to see. Cheers, Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdbikemad Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 Thanks. I kind of caught the bug for this sort of thing last year when I found a size 8 1971 dated green Mk3 aircrew jacket in a charity chop for £3.:-D (My main collecting interest is British guns and bayonets) The Mk2A is sort of a companion piece - at least that's how I've justified the purchase... I don't suppose you could point me towards a picture or two of the MK2 olive drab aircrew combat smock and trousers? It would be interesting to see. Cheers, Mark Mark, I haven't seen one for years...........although I do know someone who had a pair of the trousers a few months ago now......don't know if they're still available..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enfield1940 Posted May 27, 2011 Author Share Posted May 27, 2011 (edited) I've now received it. Wow! What a fantastic bit of kit. Superb build quality and loads of detailing. I can see why they would be a popular item to acquire by non-aircrew prior to the introduction of the P1994 smock. It compares very favourably with my P1960 and P1968 smocks. It's not "brand new" as it has a name written on the label - anyone know a 'Steve Coote'? But it's nearly new and for under £20 delivered I'm not complaining. It was made by Beaufort - contract date 2005 - and there's a 'Base Inspection 7' stamp on the label. Just need some excuses to wear it now. Unfortunately my better half is not a big fan of olive green or camo... Mark Edited May 27, 2011 by Enfield1940 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdbikemad Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 (edited) I've now received it. Wow! What a fantastic bit of kit. Superb build quality and loads of detailing. I can see why they would be a popular item to acquire by non-aircrew prior to the introduction of the P1994 smock. It compares very favourably with my P1960 and P1968 smocks. It's not "brand new" as it has a name written on the label - anyone know a 'Steve Coote'? But it's nearly new and for under £20 delivered I'm not complaining. It was made by Beaufort - contract date 2005 - and there's a 'Base Inspection 7' stamp on the label. Just need some excuses to wear it now. Unfortunately my better half is not a big fan of olive green or camo. Mark That must be one of the last MK2A jackets made by Beaufort....the company amalgamated soon after..... Most RAF aircrew clothing from the 1960's until the early 1990's was made by either Beaufort Air-Sea Equipment LTD or ML Lifeguard LTD, although the manufacturers name did not generally appear on such garments until the late 1980's..... Most RAF aircrew clothing is now manufactured by Cosalt Ballyclare LTD, including the MK3 "Bumfreezer" flying jacket and dungaree cold weather trousers, flying suits and the MK2A DPM aircrew suit.....but fortunately, the quality has remained excellent.... RAF regs normally require aircrew clothing to be returned to stores for refurbishing, reissue or disposal once the wearer has ceased using it......much of that on the market today is from MOD disposal sales or the occasional personal acquisition....... Edited May 27, 2011 by wdbikemad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enfield1940 Posted May 29, 2011 Author Share Posted May 29, 2011 the manufacturers name did not generally appear on such garments until the late 1980's..... Ah. I had wondered why my Mk3 jacket didn't have a maker name. Was this a specific RAF policy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdbikemad Posted May 29, 2011 Share Posted May 29, 2011 Ah. I had wondered why my Mk3 jacket didn't have a maker name. Was this a specific RAF policy? Most RAF flying clothing up to the late-1980's didn't feature the manufacturers details, just contract and stores ref numbers.......this is in contrast to Army combat clothing that generally featured manufacturers details up to the mid-1990's....the latter was officially discontinued (on most clothing at least) thereafter due to changes to the MoD contract procurement system that included tenders from non-UK manufacturers.....perhaps a little politically sensitive at the time ....? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enfield1940 Posted June 2, 2011 Author Share Posted June 2, 2011 I forgot to ask: was there ever a desert DPM version of the Mk2A jacket? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdbikemad Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 I forgot to ask: was there ever a desert DPM version of the Mk2A jacket? Sadly....no.... The item is a temperate item of clothing (eg: European/cold-climate wear).... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enfield1940 Posted June 16, 2011 Author Share Posted June 16, 2011 Something else I forgot to ask - although it's a more general question - why is the old British sizing system (Size 1, Size 2, etc) still being used for aircrew clothing when the army ceased using it long ago? Thanks, Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdbikemad Posted June 17, 2011 Share Posted June 17, 2011 Something else I forgot to ask - although it's a more general question - why is the old British sizing system (Size 1, Size 2, etc) still being used for aircrew clothing when the army ceased using it long ago? Thanks, Mark The RAF aircrew clothing persists using a numbered sizing system, but with the caveat "size must be determined by selective fitting"............sizes (on the MK2A & Mk3 clothing at least) run from 1 to 9......(not the same for flying suits though)....any larger than a 9 and you are too big for a plane !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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