6 May 2024 Garand Picture of the Day

[Mark in Rochester]

23rd Infantry Division man 75mm Pack Howitzer M1 during battle for Hill 260 on Bougainville

[SkyKid]

My Father in Law earned a Silver Star and Purple Heart for action on Bougainville on 12 March 1944

[Surpmil]

Ear plugs were on issue or is that just the typical "cotton wool"?

They've been there for a bit by the platform built and dugout(?) behind.

Fuse-setter on the right?

[Flying10uk]

or is that just the typical "cotton wool"?

Was any form of ear protection common in WW2? I remember a WW2 gunner, long since passed, telling me that he didn't use any and he had very poor hearing later in life as a result.

[Mark in Rochester]

Was any form of ear protection common in WW2? I remember a WW2 gunner, long since passed, telling me that he didn't use any and he had very poor hearing later in life as a result.

Original U.S. WWII Era Artillery M.S.A. Ear Defenders

Can't say if they were common but they had them


The military led the charge in developing hearing protection, notably with the Mallock-Armstrong earplugs used in WWI and the V-51R earplugs used in WWII. Improvements in comfort were introduced with the development of glass-down plugs in the late 1950s and foam earplugs in the 1970s.1

[RCS]

I remember finding jars with wax ear plugs that were intended for loud artillery.

From the above photo, it would appear some of the men have ear plugs

[Bob Seijas]

I recall one year a new LT made the mistake of standing between two M48 tanks on the firing line using his binoculars to see what they hit. They both fired at once and the blast deflectors forced most of the blast right at him... DEAF.

[Surpmil]

Was any form of ear protection common in WW2? I remember a WW2 gunner, long since passed, telling me that he didn't use any and he had very poor hearing later in life as a result.

Not in the RA or RFA to judge by the deaf former members of those branches I encountered earlier in life.