THE QATSPY® Quapaw Aviation Tiger Sportswear Performance, Yukan Outfitter Company
By: Charles W. Boatright
Nostalgic Leather Bomber Jackets/Khakis– Indelible Images that helped make both Raiders of the Lost Ark & TOP GUN Instant Blockbuster Movies
There are indelible images that still resonate from Raiders of the Lost Ark and both TOP GUN movies and why we are still are drawn by these two movies even after three decades. TOP GUN:MAVERICK released last year on May 27th, 2022 has earned over $1.478 Billion in past 14- months, to when this article was posted.
The mystic of both Harrison Ford and Tom Cruise’s larger than life characters had that swashbuckler charisma that added to their popularity that reminds us of our proud U.S. Military pilots, aviators, soldiers, and Marines. Both Harrison Ford and Tom Cruise are actual pilots in their on right.
When you think of either Indiana Jones or Maverick’s characters, you can’t help but to think of the leather jacket and Chino khakis that have an extensive history linked to both the British and U.S. Militaries for over the past ten decades and longer for the Chino khakis. History was one of my favorite subjects in high school and that I still enjoy reading and researching history even today, especially when history is in reference to military, sports, or fashion. History of fashion helps you to select clothes for multiple purposes, because they never go out of style.
Both Chino khakis and the leather bomber jacket were instant classics when they were developed, issued, and worn by both the British and Americans soldiers, aviators, and Marines as a badge of honor. Both were born out of necessity and function rather than just style and fashion alone that came later. This is what makes classics endure that sets standards for all others fashions that doesn’t fade from the public. Case in point are the classic 505 Levis that are a part of the American lifestyle.
My Standard Dress-Code
My standard dress-code was set at age 12 when I attended the Little Rock Air Force Base Airshow in Jacksonville, Arkansas; where I encountered pilots and aviators wearing those classic Chino khakis and leather jackets that are examples of nostalgic and history. These pilots and aviators entertained visitors and aviation enthusiast a like answering questions that were interested in these magnificent aircraft, like the P-40 Warhawk, P-51 Mustang, B-17 Flying Fortress, and my favorite, the F-4 Phantom, of the Vietnam era.
Since that airshow at the Airbase, I purchased chino khakis and French blue button-down Oxford shirts every time that I went into Pfeifer-Blass, which is now Dillards, an Arkansas based company. I wore my engineer’s shoes to replicate the style that I admired so much. There was nothing that I thought was more classic and nostalgic than Chino khakis with French blue button-down oxford or khaki shirts. I even wore this assemble working heavy bridge construction and transmission line work for 38- years.
A good friend of my grandfather’s that served in the Korean War gave me one of his A-2 Leather Bomber Jackets, shown above. It was almost like he gave me a classic Rolex Watch. This became my sports jacket that I could wear with my Chino khakis and button-down oxford shirt to any and all occasions that I attended, then and even now.
I attended a dear friend’s funeral in Arkansas this past February where I was meeting with two other friends that worked with my friend and me for 33- years. One of these friends worked with me in Civil Engineering section of AP&L. As I was getting out of my Toyota 4-Runner, he met me in the parking lot of the funeral home and commented that he knew exactly what I would be wearing. Even after 10- years retired, I still wear my standard dress-code of A-2 Leather Bomber Jacket, Chino Khakis, and French blue, button-down Oxford Shirt with my Engineer shoes.
I was so impressed with the A-2 Leather Bomber Jacket and Chino khakis that these became a subject of my high school term paper for my English and my History classes. So I started digging into the rich history of both that was more interesting then I could even imagine. The A-2 Leather Bomber Jacket and Chino khakis both have a rich historical significance. That made for a quite interesting research for my term papers.
Generation Z, when we did research in the late 70’s and prior, you had to go to the library and sift through several books and papers on the particular subject that you were writing about. Then take longhand notes for your research paper to be typed up later for your paper. There was no internet to access in those days where you could simply cut and paste information directly, then hit a print button on your laptop.
My High School Senior Term Papers
I had ulterior motive for this topic for my high school senior term paper; and here’s why. My English Teacher, Ms. Ryan, loved fashion and especially the fashion of the Gilded Age (between 1877 to the early 1900’s) and also of the 1940’s. I was able to use the same term paper for my History Class, because Mr. Dobson, my History teacher, was a U.S. Army Major that had a tremendous interested in Theodor Roosevelt as a Lieutenant Colonel in the Spanish American War of 1889. Lieutenant Colonel Theodor Roosevelt, future U.S. President, led his Rough Riders in the Spanish-American War, especially during the charge up San Juan Hill.
Here I could do one paper and knock out both final papers, with ONE Catch
Ms. Ryan and Mr. Dobson must had collaborated, because there was ONE HUGE catch. The catch was this, I had to type both reports separately in original format on my manual Royal Typewriter, shown below that I still have.
At that time, in 1978, printers weren’t available and very few people even had electric typewriters at home. Both Ms. Ryan and Mr. Dobson wanted to see the imprint of ribbon letters on paper and NO COPIES. The only computers in existence at the time were mainframe computers. Not quite user friendly for a simple term paper. One other issue, a Royal Typewriters in the late 70’s and prior didn’t have speller check nor did they have a correction option.
Just a Sense of the Impact of Khakis Pants and the A-2 Leather Bomber Jacket
Just to give you a sense of the historical significance of khaki pants, they date back to 1846 in India. The term Chino dates back to 1889 during the Spanish American War. The A-1 Leather Bomber Jacket dated back to November of 1927 that was later replaced by the present day U.S. Military issued A-2 Leather Bomber Jacket in June of 1931, that we carry in our online store.
Very little has changed with the original design of the A-2 Leather Bomber Jacket, shown above from The Korean War that was given to me by a close friend of the family. The Title of a term paper is essential, so my term papers was entitled, The Gilded Age of Warring Fashions that I have summarized in the following article below from my term paper from high school:
The Gilded Age of Warring Fashions
The Gilded Age, was from 1877 to the early 1900’s, that also corresponded with the American Industrial Revolution where fashion had a significant impact of status in American’s lifestyle due in large part to the robust economy that created this era in American History. The American Industrial Revolution spread across the entire country and World, even across the Pacific Ocean to China, where cotton was being used to manufacture the U.S. Military uniforms. This shows that very little has changed from our past to the present era, with imports from China.
The Origins of the Word Khakis was Tied to British Military in India
A British Officer, Henry Lumsden, commanded a Corps of Indian Scouts in India in 1846. He noticed that his Indian scouts were using a mixture of native soil and tea to dye their white issued trousers to a beige, or sand, color for concealment. This dying process added a sand color to their white issued trousers to allow them to blend in with their surroundings when on patrol and during scrimmages.
This soil and tea mixture that the Indian Scouts used to dye their white trousers provided such a strategic advantage in the field that the British Military high command started issuing beige uniforms in 1848 to all their military. This is what is referred to as Military Intelligence at work. It only took the British Military from before the Revolutionary War in 1776 to 1848 to figure out the advantages of beige color uniforms. This also included issuing beige shirts and caps to all their military personnel both in the in British Army and Navy.
There was just one problem, you can’t call military issue clothing by the term beige uniforms. The Hindu language has a great amount of terms among many that we use in everyday language today, like Yoga. The word used for the sand, or the soil, color in Hindu language is the term ‘khaki’. The name, khaki, used to describe these beige color uniforms stuck. Today we still use the term khaki to describe our favorite article of clothing.
The term khaki is used even today interchangeably to describe the pants and the color of the pants along with shorts that we enjoy wearing in the hot summertime. Even today, almost all militaries are issuing what are now call khakis uniforms to their field units in the army and to their naval fleets with additional camouflage pattern added, especially during the Gulf Wars.
The real advantage of khakis, as many people may realize, is just how well khakis shirts and pants can go with any other color and how neutral khakis fit in different business and casual settings. This can be a huge advantage if you are traveling for business and trying to just pack a carry on luggage for convenience, like I do. You can use the same pair of trousers to meet clients in the boardroom, then just change out your shirt to play a round of golf; or wear for a casual outing with friends and clients later that evening.
The term Chino came 50- years later during the Spanish-American War of 1889 where one future U.S. President made a daring charge up San Juan Hill leading his Rough Riders to securer the high ground. This was key for my term paper being accepted for my History class by Mr. Dobson.
The Origins of the Term Chino
During the late 1800’s toward the end of The American Industrial Revolution, In April of 1898, Cuba sought independence from Spain that led to the Spanish-American War with the mysterious sinking of The USS Maine in Havana Harbor. The U.S. Army for the first time during the Spanish-American War used smokeless gunpowder since its invention in 1884, by Paul Vieille. The smokeless gunpowder was being used with the 30-40-220 cartridge and in their howitzers.
Smokeless gunpowder removed what was called the fog of war from the battlefield where infantrymen and the cavalry could actually now have a clear line of sight to their target. This made khaki uniforms a necessity during scrimmages and during battle line engagements in Cuba. Another development that dramatically improved the accuracy of rifles used by both infantrymen and the cavalry units was barrels with riflings that made rifle fire significantly more accurate. Rifling were introduced in to actual action on a large scale just after the American Civil War ended in 1885.
During The Spanish American War, the khaki color cotton fabric that was being used by the U.S. Military was being imported from China. The American soldier with the Rough Rider Cavalry led by a future U.S. President, Lieutenant Colonel Theodore Roosevelt, called the khaki color cotton fabric by the French term for China. The Rough Riders soldiers used the term Chino to describe the khaki color cotton trousers imported from China. The name Chinos stuck like the term khaki did but had a dual purpose to describe both the fabric and color. Which Chino was actually used to just describe the fabric only.
The term Chinos became a part of the American lexicon that described the trousers worn by military and civilians alike, but even more of a huge favorite, are those khaki shorts for summer wear. There’s not a more classic looking and comfortable feel for business and casual settings than Chino khaki pants worn with a button-down Oxford shirt and either a blue sports jacket, or what I prefer, is the A-2 or the G-1 Leather Bomber Jacket, shown below. The wearing of a tie is always optional.
Typically, I wear my Chinos pants or blue jeans, with my logo button-down Oxford shirts and my leather bomber jackets for business travels and casual wear. My leather bomber jacket is so versatile and durable, that I routinely use my A-2 Leather Bomber Jacket for a biker jacket riding my INDIAN motorcycle and in the cockpit. I always have a tie folded up in the front left patch pocket, for when and if I need it.
But I totally agreed with the late Coach Mike Leach, that we lost way too soon and miss him terribly, Coach Leach, the Football Head Coach for Mississippi State University, had once stated that ties should have gone the way of powder wigs. I definitely can live without a necktie.
The A-2 Leather Bomber Jacket- The Major Influence of the Indiana Jones’ Leather Jacket
Nothing defines Indiana Jones’ Character more than his leather jacket, with a close second being his Chino khakis pants and his fedora hat. The leather jacket that is Indy’s signature that is a part of his outfit was based on the 1931 A-2 Leather Bomber Jacket that we are wearing in our hangar in the photographs below.
I’m shown here with my good friend Noah Newman, who was a sportscaster with WJTV-12 here in Jackson, Mississippi. These are part of our Cockpit Collection and our Flight Operations Collection, along with the Chino khaki pants and THE QATSPY® logo button-down Oxford Shirt.
The A-2 Leather Bomber Jacket that was submitted to the U.S. Army Air Corps to replace the A-1 Leather Bomber Jacket on June 09th, 1931, the upgrades were due to the Spanish Flu Epidemic and future pandemics. The A-2 Leather Bomber Jacket identified the charisma and the exploits of the U.S. pilots and aviators during World War II. These men and women that wore these leather jackets while in their cockpits or walked across the tarmac with that charisma style was what instill in us what courage and confidence that these men and women had that we are grateful for today.
I had an aunt that served in what was called the WASP during WWII that wore an A-2 Leather Bomber Jacket while flying aircraft to forward bases to be used in the war effort in Europe and in the Pacific.
The 4-C’s of Fashion for Business & Casual Wear
The 4-C’s of Fashion includes Charisma, Confidence, Comfort, and that Classic look for your business and casual wear, that helps represent us during those first impressions. THE QATSPY® Outfitter carries both the A-2 and G-1 Leather Bomber Jacket that can replace your current cloth sports jacket. There is Nothing that catches the eye more than a classic A-2 Leather Bomber Jacket that inspired the Indiana Jones’s Leather Jacket. Either A-2 or G-1 jacket reflects that same character and charisma of those pilots and aviators projected while flying their sorties.
Both Jackets are refined enough to attend an elegant social function and then turnaround to enjoy a casual outing like a tailgate or even robust enough to be worn riding a motorcycle. The Chino khaki pants with The Button-down Oxford shirt in our Cockpit Collection fulfills the 4-C’s of Fashion consisting of Charisma, Confidence, Comfort, and that has that Classic look and feel that travels as good as our Cockpit Collection looks.
The photograph of Noah and me was taken a few weeks before Noah Newman (on the left, above) left WJTV-12 as their Sports Director to head to Wisconsin. I enjoyed the friendship and talking about his, Noah, extensive career in sports. We are shown here in this photograph in our hangar where I had the chance to interview him and his sports casting career and announcing.
I am below with Heather, our model that poses for us, on July 14th, 2023 to promote our Fall Line of our Cockpit Collection. This promotes the 4-C’s of Fashion consisting of Charisma, Confidence, Comfort, and that Classic look and feel that you want when traveling for business or attending a leisure casual outing with friends.
Our Cockpit Collection of our Leather Bomber Jackets and Button-down Oxford shirts even goes perfectly with your favorite pair of blue jeans. My blue jeans are my second favorite pants that I wear for a more leisure setting for tailgating and other outdoors activities with friends, especially with football season coming up this fall.
I wear our khaki shirts with a pair of blue jeans and our A-2 Leather Bomber Jacket while riding back and forth from the hangar and for those early Sunday morning rides on my INDIAN Motorcycle. This also goes for when I do some field engineering and surveying work in my spare time, I’m shown below, running my K&E Transit surveying a friend’s farm.
To have that Model-Type Charisma, Confidence, Comfort, and Classic look and feel
If you want those great looking clothes to look as good on you as they did on those professional models in those ads or at the store after you get home, you’ll need to follow a simple, effective, and efficient health and fitness SPA program that is in my new eBook in my online store. At age 66, I have followed THE PFX-25 Health & Fitness SPA Program since November 28, 2014.
I just didn’t drop weight and inches only (refer to my Waistline Chart, below), but I dropped my blood pressure, blood glucose, cholesterol, and something even more impressive, I dropped 3- decades off the health and condition of my skin. I have the skin that I had in my mid-30’s now at age 66.
In the image below, I did an AB Challenge after our July 14th, photoshoot for our SPORTY’S WRIGHT Bros. & Cockpit Collection. I let you be the judge if you think that THE PFX-25 Health & Fitness SPA Program is effective, PLEASE USE the PHOTO LINK below to PURCHASE YOUR EBOOK TODAY and start looking great within 6- weeks:
