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15 Best Bomber Jackets for Men for 2025, According to Esquire Editors
Outerwear doesn’t get any more cinematic than this.
There’s a cool factor that is instantly recognizable when wearing a great bomber jacket. It’s a closet staple, a tried-and-true piece that never falters. Similarly to a leather jacket, there’s a confidence that bombers give off that you just can’t deny. You know that, we know that—it’s a fact.
What you might not know is that a lot has gone into getting bombers to the suave status that they hold today. In the early 1950s, the U.S. military enlisted Dobbs Industries (the predecessor of Alpha Industries) to make nylon jackets that were lightweight, durable, and water-resistant, allowing pilots in bomber planes to move freely while protecting them from the elements.
Our Top Picks:
- Most Iconic Bomber Jacket: Alpha Industries MA-1 Bomber Jacket, $200
- Best Reversible Bomber Jacket: AllSaints Bassett Reversible Bomber Jacket, $279
- Warmest Bomber Jacket: Abercrombie & Fitch YPB Quilted Bomber Jacket, $120
- Best Weather-Resistant Bomber Jacket: Buck Mason Flight Nylon LZ Bomber, $298
- Best Inexpensive Bomber Jacket: Gap Relaxed Bomber Jacket, $39
The thus-dubbed bombers were functional and practical and quickly became a cultural icon in the years to follow. Naturally, Hollywood helped catapult them to fame: Marlon Brando in A Streetcar Named Desire, Steve McQueen in The Hunter, Ryan Gosling in Drive, and Daniel Craig in nearly all his Bond flicks are just a few notables of the style.
Alpha Industries began producing bombers for the masses. The style was adopted by blue-collar workers and British skinheads in the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s. A decade later, the fashion industry caught wind and the jacket became a staple on runways and in the closets of stylish men. Movie history and fashion history show that bomber jackets are here to stay, so you might go ahead and invest in a little snippet of that history with one of our top picks below.
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