Personnel Aircraft Nose Art B-17 Thunderbird Ground Support Uniforms Journals More Info Mission Reports Combat Crews Individual Photos Photos POW KIA MACR Overseas Graves TAPS Molesworth, England, 6 July 1943 – S/Sgt. William W. Fleming from Jenkins, Kentucky, a waist gunner on the 427th BS Billy Southworth Crew, views the pile of clothing which an airman must wear before going on a bombing mission. S/Sgt Fleming dons the electrically heated flying suit over his heavy underwear. After donning the electrically heating flying suit, S/Sgt Fleming puts on the electrically heated flying shoes, which are plugged into the suit. S/Sgt Fleming dons a Mae West jacket over his flying coveralls, in case he has to bale out over the water. One of the last stages in dressing for a mission is putting on the electronically heated gloves. Here S/Sgt plugs the gloves in the electronically heated flying suit. The last stage of dressing for a bombing mission is the parachute. Here S/Sgt Fleming buckles the parachute over the Mae West jacket. S/Sgt William W. Fleming is now fully clothed for a bombing mission and ready to enter the door of his Boeing B-17. |