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Aviation History
1945
1945 - 1759.PDF
248 SEPTEMBER 6TH, ig45 JUNGLE MAI NTENAN C E temperature inside an ah- iTait would rise to as high as 156 dcg. F. in the hea.t ot the day and work in them could be done only lor a lew minutes at a time. The tem- perature rose, too, lar above the safety line for certain ex- plosives and ammunition. Guns have fired owing to the ammunition "cooking ofl." [n tht wet season the reverse prevailed, and dumps flooded more quickly than the am- munition could be removed to dry ground. Lu the hottest part ol the year, beginning in February, units aimed to start work at dawn and stop between noon and 4 p.m. This, however, was seldom possible "Operational necessity," which meant anything from keeping squadrons at strength to an impending move, applied most of the time. On the Meiktila airstrip, used by R.A.F. squadrons before the Japs had been completely mopped up, it meant making the aircraft sufficiently serviceable to fly out before dusk—or burning them. For several days the enemy in- filtrated at night, occupied the strip, and remained until they were driven out at dawn. Extremes of heat and humidity were the cause of many servicing problems. Irritating troubles arose with spares and metal parts. Abnormal expansion would prevent bolts and rivets fitting ; pouring petrol over them some- times solved this problem. During the monsoon, spares became rusty overnight and precious time was spent ser- vicing equipment that was listed as "ready for use." Glued parts and laminations on wooden-fuselage aircraft and fabric or stressed skin on some types caused trouble. Armourers, struggling through the monsoon mud, rearm a Spitfire bomber. One or two types, in fact, which had proved notably suc- cessful in Europe proved troublesome in Burma. Cyclone Damage Sometimes when ground crews were working at full pressure a cyclone would strike the area. This might damage as many as 50 per cent, or more of the parked aircraft. First would come the wind, swirling the dust and sand under cowlings and into engines. As it increased in intensity aircraft would be uprooted from their moor- ings and nearly every tent in the vicinity would be flat- tened. Torrential rain would soak everyone's bedding and kit and turn the camp into an ankle-deep quagmire. Not only would days of work be undone in an hour, but the unit would for a long while afterwards be piecing together damaged equipment and drying sodden sleeping gear, as- well as sorting its records and papers out of the chaos. In the monsoon work had to stop and the aircraft Salvaging an aircraft which had been turned over when the monsoon swept over a forward airfield in Burma.
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