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Post by Dave Homewood on Oct 30, 2017 13:02:22 GMT 12
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Post by camtech on Oct 30, 2017 14:48:52 GMT 12
Dave, I would think they are non-RNZAF types. Footwear of one is quite different.
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Post by Dave Homewood on Oct 30, 2017 17:38:21 GMT 12
Yes I noticed the Roman sandals!  |
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Post by davidd on Oct 30, 2017 19:00:30 GMT 12
Americans would not normally be servicing RNZAF aircraft, as this was the RNZAF's job, and particularly during last months of war by which time US personnel were being withdrawn from the South Pacific, so almost certainly RNZAF personnel in photos. Rather odd looking caps, although at least two types of American fatigue hats were worn fairly often by RNZAF personnel, can be seen in hundreds of photographs. Both types were made of an olive green HBT material (Herring Bone Twill). One was a simple, round hat with a complete circular brim, other was a peaked cap, both were pretty casual and took on a style of their own. These were also worn by RNZAF aircrew on occasions, and there is an official photograph of an RNZAF Corsair pilot late in the war (Bougainville I think) wearing the peaked cap, with a throat mike and large earphones held in place by a spring steel head band over top of hat. As these aircraft were generally used as low altitude dive bombers and for strafing only at this late stage of the war, the unpopular (hot and sweaty) oxygen mask could be dispensed with entirely with this arrangement. There was also a locally (NZ) made peaked cap for aircrew at this stage, but I have never (knowingly) seen a photograph of this type, nor is there an example in the RNZAF Museum collection. However there are examples (I think) of at least one of the American-type fatigue caps, the round-brim type. Even senior officers were photographed wearing these types of headwear, with RNZAF badges affixed.
David D
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Post by Dave Homewood on Oct 30, 2017 19:38:16 GMT 12
Well if even you have not seen them before David, then that makes these hats even more interesting. The most common hat seen worn by servicing personnel is the soft peaked cap hat looks pretty comfy and probably doubled as a rag for wiping hands I expect. Like these:    The above crops come from Air Force Museum of New Zealand official photos circa 1944-45. The photo below comes from the late Jim Ross's collection, and is from 1943.  You only occasionally see the pith helmet, which were issued before they left NZ. And you do see the baseball caps but I am not sire if they are aircrew only. But I've never seen those rigid peaked caps with badges anywhere before in the Pacific, or at home. They look like 1920's style caps. Very odd. |
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Post by Dave Homewood on Oct 30, 2017 20:17:51 GMT 12
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Post by Dave Homewood on Oct 30, 2017 20:33:14 GMT 12
David wrote: "One was a simple, round hat with a complete circular brim" I am thinking you mean this hat seen on the left?  From the late Bill Edhouse's collection but probably an official photo, which I have cropped. |
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Post by camtech on Oct 30, 2017 21:07:05 GMT 12
That aircraft, NZ3527, appears to be in an almost polished aluminium finish. The third aircraft also appears to have been stripped of camouflage. Can't quite read a serial. |
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Post by Dave Homewood on Oct 30, 2017 21:15:18 GMT 12
Here's another of the brimmed hats, cropped from a photo in Alex Brisbane's collection, from his No. 10 SU tour which began in Oct 1943.  And I found this in Basil Fraser's photos, and noted the hat on the chat in the centre has holes for a cap badge too. No. 2SU at Bougainville in 1945.  |
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Post by davidd on Oct 31, 2017 8:53:14 GMT 12
Dave, ALL the soft caps/hats shown being worn in these photographs are of the two standard US Navy/Marine Corps types, which were manufactured in the millions, and could be seen being worn by servicemen of all nations wherever the Americans acted as the main supply chain for such incidentals as working clothing. You can also see sunglasses being worn by some personnel, almost certainly American supplied. The "Pith helmets" being worn are also American supplied in these cases, and were certainly not to be compared with the true "British" pith helmet (sola topi, or topee, various spellings existed, these words being, of course, Indian, where these helmets were actually made) which were so-named because they were actually manufactured from the pith of the Sola tree of Asia. However these were pretty obvious to the observer in that they were usually flat topped (with a central zinc ventilator), and had quite a steeply angled brim, with the lower edges rolled under. These helmets were supplied to the NZ Govt in early days of the war for issue to personnel being shipped to Fiji and Tonga, but I think personnel shipped to Singapore from late 1940 onwards may have been issued with such helmets on arrival in the theatre - there are good shots showing RNZAF personnel wearing these in Fiji, as well as in Singapoe, Burma, etc, including those of 488 Sqdn, and the Aerodrome Construction squadron. The American type shown in your photographs were moulded from a type of papier mache, including the integral "puggaree", which in the Army (on real pith helmets) carried a proper coloured cloth puggaree which identified the Corps of the wearer (infantry, mounted rifles, artillery, engineer, etc.), but the Americans seem to have retained this symbolic feature simply as a nod to its origins. It was lighter and simpler than the Indian type, and functioned in the same way, with a light internal head band to keep the actual hat proud of the head so as to allow air to circulate more or less freely, similar in many ways to steel protective helmets, but for a different reason. Despite their specialised nature, none of these dedicated tropical helmets were very popular in service, and by the end of the war they were in steep decline, with softer types of hats being far preferred. Incidentally the moulded American type was also produced in Canada under some sort of licencing arrangement. Occasionally these helmets were also loosely referred to as the Worsley helmet (after a former Chief of the General Staff), but these were of a more rakish and flamboyant style, not perpetuated in the WW2 variant.
David D
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Post by davidd on Oct 31, 2017 8:57:48 GMT 12
Incidentally, the photo of the airmen in the rubber boat on a beach, with the wrecked Japanese "Pete" floatplane at the rear, was taken at Rekata Bay, probably in dying days of the war, although small Allied intelligence parties had visited these wrecks considerable earlier than this.
David D
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Post by Dave Homewood on Oct 31, 2017 10:12:03 GMT 12
Yep that selection of photos was to show those who may not be aware the types of hats normally seen in photos. It's interesting that the groundcrew guys usually seems to wear these USMC hats as work hats, but when they had formal photos taken such as squadron group photos they'd usually revert back to all wearing their RNZAF Field Service caps.
I have never seen a badge worn on those USMC style work hats yet that chap in the last shot has holes provided for a badge.
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Post by 30sqnatc on Oct 14, 2019 20:38:55 GMT 12
Looking back through old threads this evening. While the thread is about hats look at the rear body of this C8 which does not have the standard GS body. It is RNZAF aa it has roundel on cab front panel in front of the driver. ndhadeliver.natlib.govt.nz/delivery/DeliveryManagerServlet?dps_pid=IE12111502&dps_custom_att_1=emuIt has a round rear mudguard which is generally associated with utility and workshop van bodies yet it has a standard rear walled cab. A mystery. I will ask on Canadian CMP vehicle group. Paul |
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Post by 30sqnatc on Oct 14, 2019 23:13:49 GMT 12
Well that was quick reply on other group. It has been identified as being a Chevrolet V8A HUP or smiler body that has been cut down. HUP = Heavy Utility Personnel. Other HU bodies are wireless and workshop. They all featured a full length enclosed body straight off the cab roof and sides.
I can only assume the original body suffered damage not reparable in the islands. The mysteries of RNZAF MT.
Paul
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Post by tbf25o4 on Oct 15, 2019 7:24:25 GMT 12
David, Immediately following cessation of hostilities, No.6 Squadron made several trips with a selection of air and ground crew personnel to Reketa Bay to "survey" the destroyed Japanese aircraft, and
to visit other Japanese installations
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Post by Dave Homewood on Oct 15, 2019 10:21:50 GMT 12
Yes and that photo was No. 6 Squadron men so probably from when Paul states.
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