Jump boot

Jump boots, also known as paratrooper boots, or "Corcorans" after The Corcoran And Matterhorn Company, a division of Cove Shoe Company, which had the exclusive Department of Defense contract to artifice and supply them for years,^{[citation needed]} are a type of combat boot typically associated with soldiers (called paratroopers) assigned to parachute units.

Description

Jump boots are fully laced from the instep to the top and give more support to the wearer's ankles, whereas ordinary combat boots during World War II were laced just above the ankle and had to be worn with leggings or puttees to prevent mud and dirt from entering the boot. Some types of jump boots are constructed with zippers on their inner sides, to facilitate pull-on and removal.

Origin

Jump boots were originally designed by William P. Yarborough in 1941 for use in the 501st Parachute Test Battalion.^[1]

Usage

In modern times, nearly all combat boots are fully laced, therefore modern jump boots are mainly worn as dress and parade boots. It is a tradition to have Jump Boots laced a particular way.^[2][3] While these boots are sometimes worn by non-paratroopers in Portugal, only paratroopers wear them with surplus green paracord instead of the usual black string. On parade, they are usually worn with white paracord.

Construction and permissible wearing

Their uppers are generally made of smooth black leather, with toe-caps and heel counters that accept a high polish, also called a "spit-shine" or "spittle-shine." No US Army soldiers were authorized to wear anything other than the standard black lace. Only ceremonial units wore white or other colored laces. Jump boots with zippers were not authorized for wear by US Forces.

Navy usage

A modified version of the paratrooper boot was issued to U.S. Navy personnel working on flight decks and Aircrewmen. This variation of the jump boot featured a steel-toe and zig-zag pattern on the out-sole designed to prevent gathering FOD, or Foreign-Object Debris, that could potentially damage aircraft by being sucked into the Jet engine's intake. These boots were sometimes colloquially referred to as "wing-walkers." Generally they were black in color, but a brown version was issued to Flight Officers. This style is no longer issued, but is still generally authorized to wear with most Navy working uniforms (i.e. NWUs, coveralls, Aviation Working Greens).

Other usage

Certain Portuguese and US Army soldiers, notably those parachute qualified and assigned to an Airborne/Special Forces unit, are authorized to wear jump boots with their Class A uniforms.^[4]

Jump Boots in foreign countries

During WW2, the Fallschirmjager worn jump boots with side lacing. Side laced boots were also used by Czechoslovak Paratroopers after 1945.

Brazilian Paratroopers wear brown leather jump boots manufactured by Atalaia. Jump Boots in Portugal are manufactured by Proheral^[5] and are laced in a distinctive way not only for traditions but to increase ankle support during a parachute jump.

References