[Rarebooks] FS: WWII Ball-turret-Gunner instructions

[Bob Petrilla]

Army Air Corps. BASE POWER TURRET SCHOOL: INSTRUCTIONS FOR ENTERING AND
LEAVING BALL TURRET ... IN-FLIGHT OPERATIONS ... BENCH BORESIGHTING,
INSTALLATION AND HARMONIZATION OF SPERRY COMPUTING SIGHT ... GENERAL
OPERATION INFORMATION OF LOWER BALL TURRET ... INSTALLATION OF GUN
ACCESSORIES ... POSITION SYSTEM OF FIRING. Rapid City, South Dakota: Rapid
City Army Air Base, 4 February 1944. First Edition. 7pp + 6pp, mimeographed
on buff paper stock; a bit faint but quite legible. Sergeant's name and
serial number at top of first page. The second paper includes drawings of
aircraft and diagrams of pursuit. 13" x 8" + 10.5" x 8" Good +. Stapled at
top.
The Sperry ball turret, meant for ventral defense needs on aircraft, was
used on both the B-17 Flying Fortress and the B-24 Liberator. The ball
turret was very small in order to reduce drag, and was typically operated
by the shortest man of the crew. To enter the turret, the turret was moved
until the guns were pointed straight down. The gunner placed his feet in
the heel rests and then crouched down into a fetal position. He would then
put on a safety strap, close and lock the turret door. The gunner sat in
the turret with his back and head against the rear wall, his hips at the
bottom, and his legs held in mid-air by two footrests on the front wall.
This left him positioned with his eyes roughly level with the pair of
Browning M2 .50 caliber machine guns [adapted from a Wikipedia entry].
$45.00

Usual trade terms, postpaid in US



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