Originally Posted by
DODGYOLDFART
Hearing loss as a result of working in or around aircraft is something that the RAF has been aware of since at least the early 1960's. Some time back whilst working on Human Factors at Cranfield Uni. I came across a medic who had worked on a project at Farnborough looking into this problem. As far as he could remember this was either 1961/2. The project concluded that whilst most jets of the period were capable of damaging hearing the worst by far was the Gloster Javelin. This was apparently something to do with the harmonics created by the Sapphire engines mounted side by side.
Early sixties, umm. Aircraftprep at Lyneham, as I have said elsewhere if eardefenders existed at all they were a plastic shell will a tiny piece of foam glued inside the body and fitted with pads filled with glycerine which leaked almost as soon as you wore them dribbling down the neck which was uncomfortable and cold.
Engine runs on Comet twos created a "blue note" and as a very junior radar mec on the shift it always fell to me to man the fire bottles so lots of noise there. And then Hunter avpin starts, like a lot of you the list is endless.