Did Donald Healey write of his time in the RAF? There was a program several
month ago about flying for the RAF in WWI. The folks must have been made of
iron. With a 66% casualty rate, we should all be glad that he survived.
Interesting that diarrhea was common among flyers. Would you believed that the
engines leaked oil? Since they were using Castrol, which originally had a
castor oil base, the oil would blow back into the pilots face and some would
be swallowed resulting in the problem.
It was an interesting program and I wish I had taken notes. I can only
remember some of the hardships. I had always wondered why WWI flyers didn't
use parachutes. The hour said that the pilots didn't want the added weight.
Some pilots carried revolvers handy in the cockpit. If the play caught on fire
or was going to crash, the program said they shot themselves in order to spare
the pain.
Jack
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