T H E  N E A T L I N E
		A Newsletter of the Texas Map Society           Vol. IV No 1 Summer 2001

Where Do I Go From Here?
By Lewis Buttery

Mindanao, Phillipine IslandsL Nov-Mar published in Washington, D.C. by the N.A.C.I. Hydrographic Office in 1944.  The land masses seen as lighter shades are the "shadows" from the maps printed on the reverse side of the cloths. Courtesy of Lewis Buttery, Lampasas, Texas.

During World War II, the need for navigational aids by downed aviators varied widely depending on their part of the world. Those in the Pacific likely landed in the vast ocean waters and needed a chart to help them reach the nearest land; usually a small island, reef, or atoll.

Such a chart indicates the probable direction and force of the prevailing wind as well as the usual direction and velocity of the ocean current. These natural forces changed radically according to the season of the year so a separate chart is needed for the two five-month periods, May to September, and November to March, during which the conditions shown are expected to prevail.

A compass rose, with magnetic variation, land elevation in feet and a grid of latitude and longitude lines are shown. The scale is about 45.0 miles per inch (1:2, 850, 000). Sheet size varies from 12 x 15 inches covering an area 8 degrees to 10 degrees to 16"x12" inches covering 9 degrees x 8 degrees. A Mercator projection is used so that a constant compass heading can be plotted as a straight line.

The charts described above were prepared by the Navy Hydrographic Office in Washington, printed in color on silk cloth, with a second chart on the reverse side, folded compactly and placed in a waterproof packet. The packet usually contained 8 to 10 silk charts, not only of expected operational areas, but also one or more of adjacent areas to confuse the enemy about future plans if the charts were captured.

These were part of the survival kit attached to the aviator’s parachute along with a 1-man inflatable life raft. The kit also contained fishing tackle, dye markers, shark repellant, a metal signaling mirror, a compass and a large waterproof "oil cloth" chart of the Pacific Ocean that could be used as a sun shade, rain water catchment or sail as well as a navigational chart.

By contrast, down aviators near or on a large landmass were rarely out of sight of land except on trans-ocean ferry or cargo flights. The main exception to this occurred late in the war with the bombing missions flown from Tinian Island, near Saipan, to southern Japan by Army B-29s. Even then, a large number of U.S. submarines, under the control of small Navy patrol craft, called "Bird Dogs," were stationed along the route. They rescued downed aviators from the frigid waters of the North Pacific where the average survival time for a man in the water was 20 minutes.

The overwhelming majority of flights in Europe, South America, Africa and Asia were by Army aviators over land. Their main concern upon abandoning the aircraft, usually by parachute, was to avoid the enemy and reach friendly territory, usually afoot. They employed tactics known today as "escape and evasion."

The cloth survival charts used by the Army differed only slightly for their paper counterparts ordinarily used for navigation. Produced by the Army Map Service in St. Louis, they used a scale of 15.78 miles per inch (1:1, 000, 000) on a Lambert Conformal Conic Projection. Typically, they are 24 x 18 inches covering 5 degrees x 4 degrees or only about one-third of the distance and one-eight of the area per unit measure of that of the Navy charts.

The Army silk charts show land elevations by contour at 1,000 foot intervals, hypsometrically tinted, roads, towns, railroads, boundaries and isogonic lines not usually shown on Navy survival charts. The Army charts do, however, show the ocean current and prevailing wind information for open bodies of water such as straits, bays and island seas.

Thus, as with any map or chart, the design characteristics are determined by the intended use; in this case getting home alive.

Detail from AAF Cloth Chart-Phillipine Series: No. C-42,Samar Island published in Washington, D. C. by the Aeronautical Chart Service, 1944. The land masses seen as lighter shades are the "shadows" from the maps printed on the reverse side of the cloths. Courtesy of Lewis Buttery, Lampasas, Texas.

*Lewis Buttery, a founding member of the Texas Map Society, served in the U. S. Navy during World War II as a Gunnery and Aerological Officer, and later as Executive Officer aboard the USS PCE 880, one of the "Bird Dogs." The maps described by the author were produced by the United States in 1942 after seeing how successful the British had been with them. For further information see a web site devoted to the history and identification of the maps at http://www.silkmaps.com.– editor.

The Texas Map Society
For information please contact
Kit Goodwin at goodwin@uta.edu
Last Updated 06/21/02