Travel Jacket Recommendations for Immediate Bug Out or Waste of Money

I admit I never heard of a Travel Jacket till I read an article a few hours ago in USA Today. If anyone has one that they'd recommend for immediate Bug Out Purposes please mention here by brand name. Same with other types of clothes with mass pockets including sock, underwear, etc. If you think Travel Jackets for survival are a waste of money feel free to state this. Thanks

 

What exactly is a "Travel Jacket?"

 

This will tell you what a travel jacket is. I guess I'm not the only one who never heard of it before. Scroll down in the article at this link, Don't want to check your luggage? Ship it or wear it and save till you get to Here's the best wearable luggage and read that.

 

An overnight bag with a shoulder strap is better in my opinion . I've carried a weeks worth of crap in a shoulder bag , and could throw it in the overhead storage on the plane ,, no problem . Of course I'm not like your ole lady with the hair curlers , blow dryers , nail polish/with extra nails , 4 pairs of daily shoes , 3-4 daily outfits , etc . I personally think your just buying into a gimmick . That's just me tho . I'm the grumpy old cuss that rejects change . No need in fixin' what already works .

 

Depending on the situation, I tend to go with load bearing vest, etc, with a poncho, wool jacket, wool sleeve winter shirt and long sleeve cotton shirt in the summer. Usual load out works well for me but I might have a little problem getting out of the car at the air port and I know I wouldn't have problems at the security check, I doubt if I would make it to the front door. Question isn't as off the wall as it sounds though, if you want to stay grey, what can you get that will both work and hide your gear and at the same time keep it available and not panic the officials and the sheeple? Old story, a bolt action rifle with a magazine is a much more effective weapon than a cheap 9 mm pistol, but I have years ago checked the rifle thru the airline on a hunting trip and I know that at Logan Airport in Boston, you wouldn't get 10 feet with a pistol in a holster and even with my NH permits, I would be looking at serious money and probably jail time now.

 

M 65 Field Jacket, and a small back pack.
NO ROTHCO Junk.

In cold temps use a LL Bean Main Warden's Coat. Water proof, hooded, Gortex, high tech insulation and down.

All the pockets you could want.

Buy one size up after all too tight and no good for movement or stuffing the pockets with gear and food.

Evidently nobody travels light any more or the question would not have come up.

 

Waste of money...a premium paid for a jacket that essentially has a lot of internal pockets...advertising hype persuading punters to part with their money ever since salesmen discovered snake oil.

@ $259 SCOTTeVEST: Home Page Ultimate Pocket Vest - SCOTTeVESTVs

circa US$30.00

or a Zegna 10 pocket gear patrol.... only a mere US$2300.00

Yes the designer jackets with multiple internal pockets look unobtrusive....but a fishing vest under a grotty great coat...or mackintosh would be much cheaper and do the job just as well.

like these guys





oh by the way, the last indigent dude is Sir Anthony Hopkins, playing King Lear with a shopping trolley....

Nobody would bother stealing the coat, much less searching through it for valuables or edible comestibles.

Mind you....boarding an aircraft for a business class seat might be a slight issue....in which case, go for the Zegna......after all you could probably afford it

 

If I were bugging out I'd want my arms free if I was driving a vehicle, pushing a cart or walking. If I was wearing anything beyond a shirt it would be to keep warm, keep dry, or to carry ammo.

I'd be a bit worried tat something designed for indoor use in a terminal/aircraft could stand up to the demands of a bug out.

Always good to think outside the box, but I don't think I'd be adding this to my list.

 

I plan to use one and a backpack for the purpose of transporting more things. For me has nothing to do with getting on a commercial plane but mobility getting the hell out immediately.

 

In short, a waste of money, unless you're a photog. We know you aren't, so ----
Build a BOB.

 

You can carry a ton of shit in a US military Gore-tex parka. I can't see anyone spending less for better.

 

Any good Surplus field jacket would be a excellent option, especially if you can also score the wubby with it!
Plenty of pockets for stuff and you could even sew pockets on the inside for even more capacity!

 

Sadly , the one I acquired 30+ yrs ago , doesn't fit anymore ,,,

 

I find them all the time out here, I especially love the 80's version of O.D. Green like I had when I first enlisted in 88!
I can usually score them for around $25 or so! Last one was a XL and with the wubby, is perfect now that I got the Fat Kid syndrome! LOL

 

Yep ,, mines OD green as well , from '82 ,, got some sentimental memories and miles on it ,, can't be replaced ,,

 

"Hey, whatcha got in your jacket there, friend?"

You have to consider what makes you appear to be a valuable target, or a threat. The photographers vest screams "gun" and may get you shot first. Long garments make observant people wonder what you have under cover. Winter coats in summer heat just make you look crazy. Any garments performance in water needs to be a consideration. Can you shed it quickly? Can it be used as a flotation device? Do you dare ditch it and scurry away from a threat? All your eggs in one basket?

I agree with Zimmy, I like the military issue Gore-tex parka. It has enormous pockets on each side that open with Velcro and would never be found unless you were going over the garment seam by seam. Large vents under the arms keep it reasonably cool even in summer storms.

 

I don't have an M65: I do have a war surplus WW2 fallschirmjäger 'splinter camouflage' jacket, I bought in '70 because the Australian army didn't issue combat jackets to their diggers then...that was a personal purchase item, to prevent hypothermia. I think it might have given some of the grey haired WW2 veteran warrant officers flashbacks, if they had served in Crete.



These days if queried about being a prepper, I think I'd say I was just an eccentric WW2 reenactor.

Inside the Weird World of Historical Re-enactors | The Walrus

 

Usually I try to blend in with my area and wear what the locals wear. In Astan and Iraq, a lot of locals would have vests that they would carry stuff in, esp if they were wearing man jammies. I am headed to Egypt and Isreal next month, so lots of earth toned clothes, comfortable shoes/boots, and a light weight fleece lined vest for cool nights. Where I live now Stateside, the locals wear a lot of cammo(Realtree, Mossy Oak, MilSurp) and Carharts. My cargo pants or shorts, boots, vests, etc, don't garner any attention (except maybe to ask where I got it from). I have an old vest I used for HAM radio that I would often throw on over my Carhart coat in the winter. I had a few people ask where I had gotten the two colored coat (tobacco brown and a sandstone vest). When I wore it to DC, no one batted an eye at me and I just sort of muddled through. At home it blends in well with the background environment. If needs be, I could remove the vest and wear it under my jacket and no one would know I had it. And it carries a lot of gear.
I know a lot of people call the 5.11 vests and similar multi-pocket vests "shoot me first" vests, but the majority of sheeple have no clue about them and will usually lump you in as either a nerd or someone without any fashion sense (lug soled boots, khaki or green cargos with an opposite colored shirt and a vest and ball cap? What a faux pas!). Heck, most cops don't know what they are either. Unless you are tactikewl knowledgeable, no one knows or cares. Wear what works for you. Blend in to your environment. I wouldn't wear desert boots and cargo shorts with a polo to a black tie event or to a job interview, by the same token I wouldn't wear a Tuxedo in the field trying to E&E from insurgents, James Bond be damned. Plan accordingly. Dress accordingly. Don't be "That Guy".