[edwest2]

During World War II, 'aviation medicine' was part of keeping pilots alive at high altitudes. This also included studies into rapid acceleration. We all experience the force of gravity, however, in the case of rapid takeoffs and rapid changes in direction, especially up and down, a change in the force of gravity is experienced by the human body. This is expressed as the letter G along with a number. So, in a rapid maneuver, a pilot may experience 2 G's or more. A blackout could occur where blood rushes toward the feet, momentarily depriving the brain of oxygen. Although brief, the pilot might lose control of the aircraft upon recovery.


Next, the Germans were fitting ejection seats to aircraft, which required prior testing. An example would be the Heinkel He 219. Further work was carried out in the United States immediately after the war using captured German documents. The man given the job was Doctor John Paul Stapp. He was also an officer during the war and promoted to the rank of Captain in 1946. In August 1946, he arrived at Wright Field in Dayton Ohio to work as a project engineer assigned to the pilot escape technology program. Although he pointed out he was not an engineer, he was issued 1,200 pages of captured German technical documents. (See Sonic Wind by Craig Ryan.)


In 1950, the US Air Force issued a two volume set titled "German Aviation Medicine World War II." This was done, in my view, to intimidate the Russians who had embarked on the Korean War.