SIG MMG 338 Program Series

Air Force Uniform History in One Photo

While not all inclusive, this Air Force photo showcases a good cross section of the history of Air Force uniforms found its way on to wikipedia. We didn’t realize they were sporting Crocs back in the ’50s. That’s definitely not SAC.

From the same page, our third favorite Chief of Staff of the Air Force. Airline pilot uniforms were just the tip of the iceberg with this guy. If you ever want to know what happened to the Air Force, just thank Tony.

15 Responses to “Air Force Uniform History in One Photo”

  1. Paulie says:

    That AF uniform makes him look like a putz! ‘Hey Captain can i get an upgrade to first class”?

  2. JJ says:

    Yep…and along came leather nametags on BDUs…..Until someone figured out you couldn’t tell a AB from a Colonel…not to mention all the metal foil rubbed off if you wore H-Gear For a living.

  3. Conely says:

    Wow, I didn’t realize they wore Desert boots in WWI or Croc’s in the 1950s. Having the Air Farce show off uniforms is like having the French show you how to win a war.

  4. Administrator says:

    In all honesty, we have to tell you that this display of uniforms was conducted in a deployed environment and it’s a lot easier to provide uniforms in basic sizes than the proper footwear to go with them. It was a nice heritage gesture but the execution was a bit off. It would have been better to photograph them in such a way to crop the feet from the photo.

  5. RADAR says:

    looking at this picture, no wonder the Air Force has the worst uniforms currently. Lets just go to ATACs and also get rid of airline pilot/stewardess blues uniforms.

  6. Mike D says:

    Aim High.

  7. name says:

    I think this is a great photo. Yes not perfect but thats a lot of history in one room. quite amazing to think about. you should do this with all branches

  8. murphquake says:

    Masters of the functional uniform… hilarious that they couldn’t find appropriate footwear for the pic. Could be worse… could be the awesome Navy digicam

  9. Administrator says:

    On a positive note, no one is wearing their Air Force mittens

  10. Doug says:

    Ah, good ol’ Merrill…man, we hated that guy.

    Good call on the AF mittens! 🙂

  11. Infidel says:

    Didn’t notice any 1505’s represented. Best uniform USAF ever had. Reminds me of why I switched to the Army.

  12. mcs says:

    Man, I really liked their “Billy Mitchell” prototype uniform they were considering a while back.
    That makes me wonder why no WWI airmen uniforms are displayed in the photo above.
    It’s those standing collars that I love, that go so well with the epaulets and shoulder ranks, the USMC dress uniform being a wonderful example.

  13. pjcarpediem says:

    Shows exactly why the AF loves to switch uniforms more often then some change underwear. Someday they might have uniform they will stick to besides the awful ABU pattern and get rid of the nasty snot green boots.

  14. Doc Dodge says:

    It’s hard to admit that the USAF sprouted from the AAFs.
    At least back then the uniforms were good.

  15. Conely says:

    If thou post-ith thy picture, thou shall recieve smart-ass comments.