Flotation devices......

[Bob Wright]

Somewhere in another post was mention of the life preserver known as the "Mae West."

As I recall, in the WW II time frame there were three persoanl flotation devices: the life jacket (or life vest), the Mae West, and the life belt. The life vest was worn by sailors in combat in case of the ship's sinking or being knocked overboard. It was made of canvas with pockets filled with kapok or cork, and required no inflation.

The Mae West was worn bib-like over the chest and strapped fimly in place. It went behind the head to keep the face above. This was worn by pilots and aircrewmen. It was inflated by CO2 cartridge, but could be further inflated by mouth. It was yellow to make it easier to spot by rescuers flying over the area.

The life belt was inflatable also. Because it was called a life belt, it was worn, erroneously, around the waist. The intention was that it be worn under the armpits. Many soldiers drowned during the D-Day invasion by improper wearing of the life belt. Inflated, and worn by an unconscious solder, it held the mid-torso above water while the feet and head were left submerged.

Bob Wright

 

[Uncle Howie]

Thanks for the history lesson, Bob!

I would have expected the soldiers to have been better trained... what a tragedy! :shock:

 

[blume357]

Interesting item I discovered while preparing to fly down to Belize a few years back... did y'all know that inflatable life vest are allowed in your carry on when flying? I seriously thought about packing one for me and one for my wife but then had too much already to carry on. Was a cool flight though... followed the west coast of Florida then went straight down to Cuba and about 12 miles out did a hard right and headed straight over to Cancun and then did a hard left and down the coast of Mexico to Belize.
(stayed as close to airports as possible)

 

[blackhawknj]

Many soldiers drowned on D-Day because:
1. They were unloaded too far offshore.
2. They were overloaded.

 

[Jimbo357mag]

My parents had a Kapok tree in the lot behind our house. The tree was huge about 40' high with a trunk about 3' in diameter. The trunk and all the branches were covered with very hard thorns that stood out about one or two inches. I don't know how old the tree was but one year when I was a kid about 12 the thing grew all these green pods which later turned brown and very had shelled. Then all of a sudden the pods started bursting open and fluffy white cotton like stuff with seeds mixed in started floating off and covering everything. My dad told me how that stuff was used in life preservers of which we had many.