Army Air Forces (AAF) Medical Services in World War II - Aeromedical Evacuation, Operations and Challenges in North Africa, Mediterranean, Attack from Great Britain, Offensive Against Japan

Professionally converted for accurate flowing-text e-book format reproduction, this history summarizes the Army Air Forces (AAF) medical achievements that led to the creation of the Air Force Medical Service in July 1949. When the United States entered World War II, our nation's small aviation force belonged to the U.S. Army and relied on the Army medical system for support. The rapid expansion of the AAF and the medical challenges of improved aircraft performance soon placed great strain on the ground-oriented Army medical system. By the end of the war, the AAF had successfully acquired its own medical system oriented to the special needs of air warfare. This accomplishment reflected the determined leadership of AAF medical leaders and the dedication of thousands of medical practitioners who volunteered for aviation medical responsibilities that were often undefined or unfamiliar to them. In the face of new challenges, many American medics responded with hard work and intelligence that contributed greatly to Allied air superiority.

Introduction * AAF Medical Independence * The Medical War at Home * Recruitment and Training of Medical Personnel * Aeromedical Evacuation * Aeromedical Operations in North Africa and the Mediterranean * Aeromedical Challenges in Mounting an Attack from Great Britain * Aeromedical Challenges in the Offensive Against Japan * Autonomy for the Air Force Medical Service * Suggested Reading

The Army Air Forces (AAF) relied on many types of medical support in World War II. One of the greatest medical contributions was research and development of personal survival gear and equipment for fighter and bomber crews. AAF doctors, for example, helped design the first flying suits that countered the physiological effects of the excess gravity forces (g-forces) in high-speed maneuvers. Aided by the U.S. Navy and organizations in Allied countries, the AAF Aeromedical Laboratory at Wright Field, Ohio, developed the first clothing designed successfully to counteract the negative effects of g-forces. Early in 1944, U.S. crewmen began to use the G-suits in Europe. G-suits were tactically valuable because they helped fighter pilots maintain consciousness under high gravitational forces. One P-51 pilot, who was credited with shooting down five enemy planes on one sortie, wrote: I found myself all alone in the middle of a bunch of Jerrys. Having no one to keep Jerry off my tail I had to keep full throttle and keep my air speed sufficient so that I could break away from anyone coming up on my tail. This maneuver would normally black me out but my G-suit kept me fully conscious of what was going on. I followed Jerry down to the deck, picking up an air speed of 600 mph. The Jerry went straight in without pulling out, and I would have, too, if I had not been wearing my G-suit.

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