Stories of the Jacket: Airborne 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment A-2

Crafted from the original 1941 russet brown American horsehide and emblazoned with the insignia of 506 PIR, this Airborne 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment A-2 is a grand replica of the 1941 original. Nicknamed the Curahees after the Apache word "stand alone" and made famous in popular culture by American historian Steven Ambrose in his book Band of Brothersby and its television movie adaptation this jacket was issued to officers of the U.S. Airborne unit. First constituted in 1942, these brave soldiers  fought in World War II in Normandy, Holland and held the line at the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944 and captured Hitler's mountain hideout in 1945. After World War II, the 506th became an Air Assault regiment and in Vietnam five troopers from the 506th were awarded the Medal of Honor. In 2004 and 2005 the 506th was deployed to Habbaniya, Iraq and was then redeployed by early 2008 in Operation Enduring Freedom to Afghanistan. The Pair O'Dice insignia which has been displayed on the original 506th A-2's remains a symbol today that cannot be stopped in the cause of freedom. If heroism were recreated as a jacket, this would be it. Proudly made in the USA.