END OF LINE/CLEARANCE 1940 RAF Battle of Britain: Off White

New from Aero, our recreation of the 1940 Pattern Aircrew Sweater issued to Royal Air Force personnel during WW2 and a particularly poignant reminder of The Battle of Britain.

This classic off white Roll Neck Sweater is knitted locally in Hawick here in the Scottish Borders exclusively for Aero in 6 ply Pure New Wool, especially selected to best replicate the wool used in the original issue sweaters that served our young men so well in the harshest of conditions encountered during the conflict.

The pattern closely resembles the RAF Comforts Sweaters knitted by Volunteer Groups which had proved far more popular with Air Crews than the more common “Frock” sweaters with their very wide neckline and absurdly long bodies. The neck on this hand loomed sweater is designed for both comfort and warmth, the roll is knitted not to be restrictive and has extra length to allow to be worn fully raised to protect the face against the bitter cold encountered at high altitudes.

To further replicate the original we've sewn a facsimile of an original Air Ministry label onto the ribbing on the left hand side. The use of external labels was experimented with on various items of issue knitwear for ease of size identification in Quartermaster's Stores. Like the originals, our label is sewn on with a large stitch making it easy to remove. While some fliers wore their sweaters with the label intact throughout their term of duty, others removed the label upon issue. The large stitch we've used gives the new owner the same option.