Mens B3 Bomber Jacket in Brown with Sherpa Lining

A B3 bomber jacket is the heavy sheepskin flying jacket issued to American bomber crews from 1934, cut short in the body with a thick wool lined collar and a throat strap. This one is brown leather with a sherpa lining through the body and collar, in sizes XXS to 3XL.

Why the B3 looks the way it does

The B3 was issued to United States bomber crews from 1934, and every feature on it answers a specific problem. Bomber aircraft of that era were unpressurised and unheated. At twenty five thousand feet the temperature inside the fuselage reached forty below. Crews were not moving around much, which meant they could not generate their own heat, so the jacket had to do all of it. That is why the body is short and the insulation is thick. It is why the collar is enormous and lined, because it turns up and seals the neck. It is why there is a strap across the throat, to hold that collar closed against the wind. And it is why the leather is on the outside with the wool turned in, which is simply the most efficient way to use a single sheepskin. Nothing about the design was styling. It is a survival garment that happens to look good, which is the reason it has outlasted every fashion jacket of its decade.

What sherpa lining is, and what it is not

Being straight about this, because the terms get used loosely across this whole category. An original B3 was shearling: one sheepskin, wool still attached to the hide, skin turned out and wool turned in. It was heavy, expensive and extraordinarily warm. A sherpa or faux shearling lining is a separate synthetic pile fabric stitched into a leather shell. It looks similar, it is much lighter, it costs a fraction as much, and it is warm enough for a cold city rather than an unheated aircraft. Ours is the second kind, and we say so plainly because you should know what is in your jacket. If you want genuine sheepskin, it exists and it costs several times this. What you get here is the shape and the look at a price that makes sense for a jacket you wear to work.

How warm it actually is

Warm enough for genuine winter in most of the United States. Not an expedition garment. The pile lining through the body and the depth of the collar do most of the work, and turning the collar up makes a bigger difference than people expect, because the neck is where heat leaves fastest. The honest limitation is wind and wet. Leather stops wind well but the open hem does not seal at the waist the way a ribbed hem does, so wind comes up from below in the open. And no leather jacket is a rain jacket.

Fit, and this one is different

B3s are cut short in the body and wide through the chest, because they were made to go over a uniform and a sweater and to clear a seated position in a cockpit. Take your usual size. The lining takes up real internal volume, so a B3 in your normal size fits closer than a plain leather jacket in the same size. If you plan to wear a thick knit underneath, go up one. The sleeves will feel roomy and the body will feel short. Both are correct for the pattern.

Care

Condition the leather twice a year, keeping conditioner off the lining. Never machine wash it. The shell and the lining need opposite treatment and whichever you optimise for damages the other. Air it rather than cleaning it where you can, since most of what makes a winter jacket smell is moisture rather than dirt. Store it on a broad hanger with real air around it. This is a bulky jacket and it will crush out of shape if you wedge it into a full wardrobe over summer.

Specification table

Specification	Detail
Outer material	Genuine leather
Lining	Shearling
Closure	Front zip
Collar	Shearling collar
Cuffs	Shearling cuffs
External pockets	Two pockets at the waist
Internal pockets	Two inside
Back detail	Solid back
Colour	Light Brown
Fit	Regular, takes a mid weight layer
Sizes	XXS to 3XL, plus made to measure
Care	Condition twice yearly. No machine wash, no heat drying

Garment measurements by size. Measured flat, in inches. These cells stay empty until you send production figures. Publishing a measurement that is wrong causes returns, so I have not guessed.

Size	Chest across	Shoulder	Sleeve	Back length
XXS	40	18	25	25
XS	42	18	25	25
S	44	19	25	26
M	46	20	26	27
L	48	20	27	27
XL	50	20.5	27	27.5
2XL	52	21.5	27	28
3XL	54	23	28	29