I thought YOU had the dinghy pack!

Humour can be used to get a serious message across during training. It was hoped that the aircrews’ attention would be gained by treating a serious topic light-heartedly. A dramatic image such as this informed crews of the consequences of forgetting even one piece of equipment. The June 1943 edition of “Tee Emm”, the RAF’s humorous safety training magazine carried an article entitled, “Dinghy Drill does save Lives”, written by a sergeant who survived ditching to become a POW thanks to his dinghy:

“The thing that saved my life in July was the crew drill I had been taught in the RAF…if only young crews can have this very important duty [Dinghy Drill] pressed on them, I’m sure more lives will be saved. The crew did everything they had been taught and… I released the dinghy after I had been hit. This action was entirely automatic and could not have happened if I had not been well trained, and I leave you to imagine what the result would have been to me if there had been no dinghy…”

Date: June 1943
Collection Ref: X001-5328