What have you learned about WW2 recently?

Discussion in 'General' started by dbf, Oct 22, 2010.

  1. Lotus7

    Lotus7 Well-Known Member

    If the Croix-de-Guerre is a gallantry medal then no my father never received any pension. He should have. (I would say that wouldn't I)

    David
     
  2. Ron Goldstein

    Ron Goldstein WW2 Veteran WW2 Veteran

  3. canuck

    canuck Closed Account

  4. A-58

    A-58 Not so senior Member

    US Medal of Honor recipients receive a pension and other privileges as follows:

    Privileges and courtesies[SIZE=small][edit][/SIZE]
    The Medal of Honor confers special privileges on its recipients. By law, recipients have several benefits:[90][91]
    • Each Medal of Honor recipient may have his or her name entered on the Medal of Honor Roll (38 U.S.C. § 1560). Each person whose name is placed on the Medal of Honor Roll is certified to the United States Department of Veterans Affairs as being entitled to receive a monthly pension above and beyond any military pensions or other benefits for which they may be eligible. The pension is subject to cost-of-living increases; as of December 1, 2012, it is $1,259 a month.[92]
    • Enlisted recipients of the Medal of Honor are entitled to a supplemental uniform allowance.[93]
    • Recipients receive special entitlements to air transportation under the provisions of DOD Regulation 4515.13-R. This benefit allows the recipient to travel as he or she deems fit across geographical locations, and allows the recipient's dependents to travel either Overseas-Overseas, Overseas-Continental US, or Continental US-Overseas when accompanied by the recipient.[94]
    • Special identification cards and commissary and exchange privileges are provided for Medal of Honor recipients and their eligible dependents.[95]
    • Recipients receive a 10 percent increase in retired pay.[98]
    • Those awarded the medal after October 23, 2002, receive a Medal of Honor Flag. The law specified that all 103 living prior recipients as of that date would receive a flag.[99]
    • As with all medals, retired personnel may wear the Medal of Honor on "appropriate" civilian clothing. Regulations specify that recipients of the Medal of Honor are allowed to wear the uniform "at their pleasure" with standard restrictions on political, commercial, or extremist purposes (other former members of the armed forces may do so only at certain ceremonial occasions).[101]
    • Most states (40) offer a special license plate for certain types of vehicles to recipients at little or no cost to the recipient.[102] The states that do not offer Medal of Honor specific license plate offer special license plates for veterans for which recipients may be eligible.[103]

    I lifted this from wiki of course.
     
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  5. Goodygixxer

    Goodygixxer Senior Member

  6. Deacs

    Deacs Well i am from Cumbria.

  7. archivist

    archivist Well-Known Member

    Recently, I have learned that the (obviously necessary) secrecy has been the biggest stumbling block to research. What I don't understand is why that secrecy needs to be maintained three quarters of a century later - in the middle of the nuclear age - when nothing either side had could possibly affect security today
     
  8. NickFenton

    NickFenton Well-Known Member

    Interesting one.

    The big American bombers, apart from the liberator, that were used in the bombing war over Europe had been supplied, in each position, with an ash tray for the aircrews cigarettes.

    Regards,

    Nick
     
  9. dbf

    dbf Moderatrix MOD

  10. idler

    idler GeneralList

    Today, I learned that the Spigot Mortar's (the original Blacker Bombard, not the Petard) anti-tank round was essentially HESH not HEAT.
    HESH's signature scabbing effects against thicker armour aren't mentioned so perhaps weren't apparent at this stage, as an 8lb 12oz dollop of 'gelatinous' HE on an early war AFV would have probably blown it apart!
     
  11. MEMORY

    MEMORY Member

    The lives that the POW'S had to endure was horrific, it is amazing that so many survived.
     
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  12. A-58

    A-58 Not so senior Member

    Warships and support vessels built in the US were modified when transferred to the Royal Navy. They had the canteens and ice cream making machines removed prior to delivery.
     
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  13. Fred Wilson

    Fred Wilson Member

    Ah.. got out of it somehow.

    That brought back a good laugh A-58.

    My Aunt was in the Canadian Forces. At the end of WW2 all female members in the forces were laid off in favor of keeping males in the ranks.
    Guess who was hiring, big time? The US. She went on to be (as I understand) the first female Colonel in the US Forces.

    When I knew her best she had retired - and made extensive and unabashed use of nearly everything you mentioned above.

    Aside:
    I, in my part, used to do a fair bit of Occupational Health and Safety Training, including US Forces.
    Whilst in Phoenix my Aunt would accompany me to Luke Airforce Base.

    My License Plate Number is AFB 669. A keeper! This is why:
    When I drive onto US Airforce Bases, I, with a Canadian Plate, would get waived straight through the guard gate. (Mind you this was pre 9-11 days.)

    I would stop, aghast, and ask why I was not asked to present identification. (My Aunt would get right livid with me at this...)
    The guards would get quite insistent: AFB License Plates mean you are authorized to enter Air Force Bases. ie "Stop wasting our time."
     
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  14. 17thDYRCH

    17thDYRCH Senior Member

    Fred,

    Neat stuff.
    Would the plate, AFB 669, have been issued by the BC govt....
     
  15. Fred Wilson

    Fred Wilson Member

    Yep. My boss was the one that arranged it. Ages ago. I had no idea why at the time.
    _________________

    Back on task... moved.
     
  16. A-58

    A-58 Not so senior Member

    After the formation of the first Eagle Squadrons (Nos. 71 & 121), it was not long that there were enough volunteers to form a third Eagle Squadron, No. 133. There were a fair amount of Texans in both 71 and 133 Squadrons, so they (the Texans) kicked the idea (while drinking in local pubs no doubt) around about the new squadron should be an All-Texan formation. Of course this was just big talk by big talking Texans, but there were those in the Air Ministry who heard the rumors and quashed them immediately. Seems that the Texans were the most rudest and crudest of the Americans (if that can be possible) in the RAF, and there was no way the RAF would allow a squadron of cowboys into the skies over England.

    I thought it was a pretty good story.
     
  17. Tom Canning

    Tom Canning WW2 Veteran WW2 Veteran

    To Harry Ree

    An old posting of yours claims that a Sherman Tank's fuel consumption was one pound per mile - probably why there was so many of them were used as the Churchills

    consumption was 4 miles to the gallon and we could use up 180 gallons per day in a battle…...

    Cheers
     
  18. Combover

    Combover Guest

    Yes, but not limited to the UK. Heroes of the Soviet Union got it, as well as free public transport for life, in the USSR.
     
  19. Harry Ree

    Harry Ree Very Senior Member

    Tom

    Churchill,you say was 4 miles/gallon compared to the Sherman of 1 mile/gallon according to the documentary.It would be interesting to compare the power units.As regards the fuel both were petrol powered and one consequence of that, after reading the account of a Russian war corespondent,was that the Russians preferred diesel power because of the fire hazard when their Sherman petrol fueled tanks were hit.Again both tank types would reflect fuel consumption on how they were driven and the terrain to be driven over.

    There should be some data available on consumption rates for these tanks from military specifications......some of the tank enthusiasts might oblige....interesting aspect of mobile machinery....didn't Patton's Third Army Shermans run out of fuel when pushing across Lorraine....advancing too quickly that the fuel logistics were mismatched.
     
  20. A-58

    A-58 Not so senior Member

    Since I was reading about the Eagle Squadrons in the RAF in my earlier posts, I found out that there was an all-Argentine squadron in the RAF as well, squadron No. 164. About 600 Argentines served in the RAF and the RCAF, along with about 4,000 more serving in the other armed forces of the British Empire.

    I wonder how those surviving veterans felt about things during the Falkland War in 1982?
     
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