"ArtKramr" wrote in message
...
Subject: More on Powell and the guard
From: Cub Driver
Date: 3/5/04 1:53 AM Pacific Standard Time
Message-id:


When I finished Basic at Pensacola in 1950 and got to Corpus Christi
for Advanced, we were told that anyone over 5' 10" could forget about
getting into F8Fs.

I suspect that was pretty much true of WWII fighter pilots. R T Smith
of the AVG Flying Tigers noted the difficulty he had in cramming
himself into a P-40. While there were six-foot fighter pilots in those
years, just as there are six-foot downhill racers, more typical in
both these fields of endeavor was the stocky, fireplug guy. Think
Chuck Yeager.

With respect to bombers, Glen Edwards noted his discomfort in the
B-17, and his relief when got into the A-20 where he could reach the
pedals without stretching.

I was 5'11" and couldn't sit straight up in the nose of a B-26 If I did my
flak
helmet would slide down over my eyes. what a pain.


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

I don't know about any "history" involved, but the cockpit of the 51, the
P40, and the Jug will easily handle a six footer. Of all the prop fighters I
have flown, the F8F was the tightest.
Dudley Henriques
International Fighter Pilots Fellowship
Commercial Pilot/ CFI Retired
For personal email, please replace
the z's with e's.
dhenriquesATzarthlinkDOTnzt