Poison Gases and Promotion.
Reader123,
We weren't just testing delivery, I'm afraid. When we put the stuff down, they had their guinea-pigs marching about in it (to test anti-gas dubbins on their boots) and lying down in it in firing position to test anti-gas capes.
They were put out under our sprays to test capes and gloves. Inevitably, some gas got through, the M.O.s had a massive collection of pics of gas blisters "before and after" testing their various remedies. It did not make pleasant viewing ! (and of course, it was the same with the animals which were treated by the vets).
I agree with you as regards the horrific possibilities of a crash with a loaded aircraft. As the packages were deliberately flimsy, so as to ensure bursting on impact, the likelihood in any serious accident was that the crew would end up soaked in mustard. The thing then was to get the stuff washed off ASAP.
The degree of burn depended on the length of time the agent stayed on the skin. I was told that 20 mins would result in a third-degree burn, but this figure may be inaccurate. But my daughter (who is professionally skilled in these matters) tells me that the rule of thumb (for ordinary burns) is: add the % area of whole body of skin affected to your age, subtract from 100, result is your % chance of survival. Recovery would be painful and involve much skin grafting. Death would be as horrible as consciously dying in an aircraft fire, but more protracted.
The wartime promotion times for aircrew were : 6 months from scratch to F/O, then two years total commissoned service to War Substantive Flight Lieutenant (of course you might get acting rank earlier). In practice, out there your commission was so slow coming through that most people were already F/Os when it arrived. I believe that W/Os were commissioned straight away as F/Os. After the war ended, peacetime rules came back, of course.
Nearly time for bed,
Cheers,
Danny.
Postscript 1: Browsing about on Google, I lighted on a link: "BBC Home",
"WW2 Peoples' War, An Archive of World War Two Memories" > "Archive List" > "India Category" > "Diary of J.J.W. Donaldson 1943".
Well worth a read. Donaldson's account of the discomforts involved in "It ain't half hot, Mum" are the best I've read since Kipling's "Paget, M.P."
Postscript 2: "Spitfire" coming on "Yesterday" (FV19) in 5 mins. Must-see !
D.
Last edited by Danny42C; 26th Sep 2012 at 22:51.
Reason: Add Material.