This is a rare original M-444 flight jacket, made by Willis & Geiger. This contract is the very first of nine M-444 contracts during WWII, and it has nickel plated buckles, which are only seen on this contract. Willis & Geiger was a prolific contractor for the military, and made a massive number of Navy flight gear. They also were the makers of CAMCO’s American Volunteer Group (Flying Tigers) flight clothing just before America entered the war. This jacket is 76 years old, and is not in brand new condition, but it is solid and a great display item. Any M-444 is rare, but jackets from this contract are particularly difficult to find. We were lucky to find two of them to use for pattern reference. Note the name tag. We have researched R. Barhite, and we believe that he was an officer named Robert S. Barhite, born in 1917 and died in 1990. Territories theater of WWII. We have no other information about him than this. We replaced the zipper (which had one half in very poor conditionoriginal slider has been used on this new zipper) We also applied a few surface repairs on the sheepskin, and have tacked down a few loose goatskin areas. The sheepskin is solid, though it still has a few holes here and there (nothing worth dealing with at this point). WWII shearling jackets are notorious for being somewhat fragile, and this jacket could prove the same if worn hard. We also replaced the buttons, which were not on the jacket when we got it. The cuffs have quite a bit of moth holes, but we believe that replacing them would be far too much work, and the sheepskin would be hurt if that were attempted (the wool cuffs are integrated in the edge stitching of the top of the sheepskin cuff). Willis & Geiger used a khaki colored knit on their jackets, rather than brown. This jacket will ideally fit a person who is 5’10” to 6’1″, with a chest circumference of 42-43, and weight of 180-205 pounds. Front along zipper: 22…… Front chest under arms: 24.5…… Back width under arms: 24.5…… Back height: 25.5…… Shoulder width: 18.75…… Right sleeve, from shoulder to end: 24.25…… Left sleeve, from shoulder to end: 25.25. The item “WWII M-444 U. S. Navy Flight Jacket 44R Willis & Geiger ID’ed Talon Zipper” is in sale since Thursday, February 13, 2020. This item is in the category “Collectibles\Militaria\WW II (1939-45)\Original Period Items\United States\Uniforms”. The seller is “chapy2k” and is located in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. This item can be shipped to United States.