Difference between revisions of "Common Questions and Answers"

First, it is useful to remember that the military accepted a range of heights and weights. For example, fighter pilots were permitted to be from 5' 4" to 6' tall and weigh 120 to 180 pounds.<ref>{{cite report |last1=Randall |first1=Francis E. |last2=Damon |first2=Albert |last3=Benton |first3=Robert S. |last4=Patt |first4=Donald I. |title=Human Body Size in Military Aircraft and Personal Equipment |url=http://collections.nlm.nih.gov/ext/dw/101708835/PDF/101708835.pdf |publisher=War Department, Army Air Forces, Air Materiel Command |id=5501 |access-date=13 March 2022 |location=Dayton, Ohio |page=6 |date=10 June 1946}}</ref> When it came to bombers, commissioned officers could be between 5' and 6' 4" and 120 to 200 pounds. However, the average airman was 5’ 9” tall and weighed 154 pounds unclothed.

Often, this question arises in reference to the ability of airmen to fit inside confined spaces – especially ball turrets. The Army Air Force was not unaware of this issue during the war and research in the field of anthropometrics, or the study of measurements of the human body, was carried out. The subject of anthropometrics in relation to gun turrets was already being discussed as early as the summer of 1940 and by December 1941 planning for a survey was underway. Based on this research, in January 1943 an upper limit of 70 inches and 170 pounds was set for gunners.

Interestingly, one of the bigger problems that was encountered was not just the size of the individual person, but also the bulk of the flying clothing and equipment they were wearing.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Link |first1=Mae Mills |last2=Coleman |first2=Hubert A. |title=Medical Support of the Army Air Forces in World War II |date=1955 |publisher=Office of the Surgeon General, USAF |location=Washington, D.C. |pages=238–239 |url=http://media.defense.gov/2010/Dec/03/2001329908/-1/-1/0/AFD-101203-018.pdf |access-date=13 March 2022}}</ref> Early enclosed gun turrets were designed at a time when airplanes operated at lower altitudes. This meant that relatively little protection was needed from the elements as the temperature there was warm enough and the air was breathable.{{efn|Aircrew flying in exposed gun positions (e.g. a dive bomber dorsal gunner) would have needed heavier clothing. However, this discussion focuses on the type of enclosed gun positions that had been common in medium and heavy bombers by World War II. Enclosed turrets offered protection from the wind blast – the primary factor necessitating covering up at low altitude.}} However, as technological advanced pushed aerial combat higher and higher, the temperature dropped and the air thinned, making heavy clothing and oxygen masks a necessity. Yet turrets were still being designed without consideration for the amount of space that these new provisions were taking up. As an example of bulk of this equipment, the standard uniform, electrically heated suit, and oxygen system alone added just under 30 pounds.