Original Item: Only One Available. Development of protective flight uniforms and equipment began with the advent of military aircraft in WWI and continued on into the Weimar and the Third Reich eras, resulting in three distinct one-piece combination pattern flight suits being approved before WWII and worn for the duration of the war with minor modifications. Regulations of July 4th, 1940 and April 24th, 1941 introduced two piece protective flight suits for fighter pilots designed to increase the wearers mobility and not be as restrictive in the close confines of a cockpit. The two piece flight suits consist of separate jacket and pants and were commonly referred to as the "Kanalanzug", (Channel Uniform).

This is a very good condition pair of heavy winter flight trousers, constructed from a blue twill fabric shell, with blue velvet plush type material lining. This extends all the way to the bottoms of the legs, and really looks great. It features a plug in wired heating system, which still looks to be intact, having a wire connector coming out of the left outer pocket, which would connect to the electronic system of the aircraft. This connector actually even still has the extension cord that would plug into the electronics of the aircraft, and there is a clip lanyard for a knife as well, but no knife is attached. There is also an interior connector that would probably connect to the jacket portion of the set. as well as connectors at the ends of the legs for the use of heated boots.

We checked the snaps and they are not maker marked, but do have a pattern on the female side, which matches on all the snaps. The main front closure zipper is by RHEINNADEL, a known Luftwaffe supplier, while the waist pockets are Elite brand, another known Luftwaffe supplier. The zippers on the bottoms of the legs and the left side lower pocket zippers are ZIPP brand with D.R.P. on the back, another known Luftwaffe supplier. All of the zippers still have their leather pull tabs and are fully functional, albeit a bit stiff. Everything looks totally correct, and we see no signs of post war alterations.

There is still an original maker label on the inside of the waist, which also bears an inspection stamp in the lower right corner. It reads:

KARL HEISLER
BERLIN C2
Magazin Str. 14
Gr. IIb  17859

We assume that the "IIb" refers to the size of the trousers, and there does not appear to be any other type of size indication. Karl Heisler was a large supplier to the Luftwaffe during WWII, making many articles of clothing, as well as liners for the M38 Fallschirmjäger helmets.

The trousers show light to moderate use, with some minor pilling on the exterior fabric, as well as some stains and dirt. There is a long stain on the back of the right leg, which we have not attempted to remove. Most of the snaps are fully intact, though a few have pulled through or came apart. There are no suspenders included with these trousers, however they still have the correct buttons and risers for them to attach to.

A lovely pair of Luftwaffe Heated Winter Flying trousers by Heisler, ready to research and display!

Approximate Measurements:-
Pants:
Waist: 16.5"
Inseam: 29