My grandfather was a waist gunner on a B-17 named Junior in the 385th Bomber Squadron during WWII. No one in the family ever paid much attention to his stint in the Army, so most of his memories were forgotten and put away. I decided that I would honor his history by setting up a gunner display of what he wore.
Through the help of several people on this board, I have aquired almost all of the equipment that I needed and here it is as I put it together.
This first picture is of the blue bunny suit
I got the leathers on and the Mae West, the boots were tough as the zippers on the trousers were stuck and it was hard getting the material over the top of the boot
Here is the gunner harness in place
Through the help of several people on this board, I have aquired almost all of the equipment that I needed and here it is as I put it together.
This first picture is of the blue bunny suit
I got the leathers on and the Mae West, the boots were tough as the zippers on the trousers were stuck and it was hard getting the material over the top of the boot
Here is the gunner harness in place
This is the addition of the flak vest
The addition of the oxygen mask, gogles and leather flight helmet.
The addition of the flak helmet, cod piece to the armor, and the bail out chute
The addition of the oxygen mask, gogles and leather flight helmet.
The addition of the flak helmet, cod piece to the armor, and the bail out chute
