What was a pilots daily diet?

[Chock]

I've known a few pilots who used to head to the hangars to have a whiff of the oxygen from the cockpits of the aeroplanes in an attempt to sober up early on Sunday morning, having been boozing the previous Saturday night, under the impression that it would make them feel a bit better and possibly sober them up a bit too LOL

On the subject of ex-Vietnam chopper pilots, a few of them ended up with jobs flying workers out to the oil rigs in the North Sea from Scotland in the 1970s. In those days it was not the highly regulated affair it is today with choppers that had flotation gear and everyone wearing immersion suits and having to do ditching drills etc. Often divers were flown out in little Bell 47 Sioux helicopters, which is probably not something that would be allowed today with their single engines going over the water. A friend of mine who was one of those underwater welding repair divers on those rigs tells me that he lost count of the amount of times he'd be flown out there and be sat alongside one of those crazy dudes who'd be inevitably wearing a cowboy hat and who would hold the cyclic between his knees so he had both hands free to enable him to roll a joint as they flew over the water.

Back on the subject at hand however, in the Osprey book on Jasta Boelcke, it has a quote from one of the pilots relating about the Christmas meal they had in 1917 at the squadron, which a few other people were invited to (indicating it must have been considered a pretty good one), and in that the guy says that the main dish was based on potato soup. Wine appeared to be plentiful, rather unsurprisingly for France, but the spud-based meal is indicative of the blockade on Germany starting to affect the kind of food they could get their hands on.

Al

[James A. Pratt III]

I have read accounts of aircrew going hunting when not flying to keep the mess in meat ect. MVR was a big hunter. It's mentioned in a German airman remembers. I believe in FTFC EVR does go hunting at least once.

[allannieuport]

Chaps ,

Winged Victory by V M Yeates decribes stunting in his Camel after a lot of Champage. Alcohol fueled flying.
There is a Discovery Channel episode I watched on American flyers. Chicken livers en brochete with strawberry icecream to follow was listed on the menu.
Very tasty.

Kind regads Allan

[Willi Von Klugerman]

Apparently Jasta 4 had a good inventory of grub as Ltn.Heinrich Maushake was refered to being very well fed.

[sightreader]

What was a pilots daily diet?

They lived only on FEAR and DEATH!!! YARRR!!!!

(sorry... I just couldn't resist)

[Luf-Rick]

I received the book "An Incomplete History of World War I" as a gift last Christmas, and in it the author has the following information:

"The Full Dinner Plate"

"Before food shortages began to bite and turnips took over in 1917, German soldiers were fed amply. The daily ration list at the beginning of the war alloted each German soldier twenty-six and a half ounces of bread (or biscuits); three-quarters of a pound of meat (as much as a large steak), usually sausage; three pounds of potatoes or other vegetables, usually dried; the equivalent of a pint of coffee; plus sugar and salt. The soldiers were also given two cigars, two cigarettes, or pipe tobacco. The British rations were more generous: one and a quarter pounds of fresh or salt meat, one and a quarter pounds of bread or biscuits, four ounces of bacon, three of cheese, a half pound of fresh vegetables, salt, pepper, and mustard, plus a four-ounce dollop of jam.

The British also received a "tot of rum"- at least a tablespoonful - daily. The Germans got a pint of beer, an eighth pint of whisky, or a half-pint of wine. The French were issued the equivalent of a quart of wine a day; some saved their rations for a full toot later in the week.

Under the unofficial live-and-let-live policy, firing was usually suspended during the enemy's ration distribution; as one soldier observed 'Shelling during dinner was sure to bring retaliation during your own dinner hour.'"

pg. 170

I would assume that the fliers received similar.

Luf-Rick