Subject: Aircrew casualities
From: "Gord Beaman" )
Date: 9/18/03 1:31 PM Pacific Daylight Time
Message-id:

(ArtKramr) wrote:


I wore a chestpack. The tail gunner and the top turrest gunners also had
chestpacks and we wore them in our positions with no problem. We never ever
flew missions with chutes off. And in 1943 both our pilot and copilot flew
with
backpacks, the rest of us wore chestpacks and once in the air never took
them
of except when I had to enter the bomb bays. I couldn't fit through the
bombay
access door with a chestpack on.


Arthur Kramer

Art, I remember three or four days ago you mentioned that your
escape route was through the bomb bay, here's what you said:

In the B-26 we had no escape hatch at all. The bombardier
had along path to creawl in front of the copilot then
out the bombay.

How did you work that?...or did I misunderstand something?.
--

-Gord.
Entering the bomb bay for two different purposes. When entering the bombay to
do repaireslike kicking out a hung up bomb, I wore no chute at all, Nervious
work with the bombay doors open. For bailout, unhook one side of the chest
pack, step out, rehook it and bail out.But where possible go out the nosewheel
well. It is a lot faster and a shorter trip. Luckily I never had to do either.


Arthur Kramer
344th BG 494th BS
England, France, Belgium, Holland, Germany
Visit my WW II B-26 website at:
http://www.coastcomp.com/artkramer