James M. "Mike" Dixon (Rdr)
Hey guys, hope you're having a good weekend,
After making that post, I looked for some information about the explosive charges in the IFF set. I didn't find much, but came upon this from some guy in Canada who is an IFF historian for some unknown reason. I don't think he was talking about a C-124, specifically. Anyway, here's what he says about it:
"IFF sets were obviously highly classified. Thus, many of them were wired with explosives in the event the aircrew bailed out or crash landed. Alongside the switch to turn on the unit was the IFF destruct switch to prevent its capture by the enemy. Many a pilot chose the wrong switch and blew up his IFF unit. The thud of a contained explosion and the acrid smell of burning insulation in the cockpit did not deter many pilots from destroying IFF units time and time again. Eventually, the self destruct switch was secured by a thin wire to prevent its accidental use."
By the time I had ordered a new set from supply and installed it without blowing myself up, the crew was already getting on the aircraft. I remember standing there looking out on the wing. There were oil steaks running down the wing, off the trailing edge, and dripping onto the ground. I thought to myself, 'Man, I'm glad I don't have to fly that thing all the way back to the States!'
While I was waiting on the van (November 3, I believe), they began the engine start. The guy on the ground gave the signal to crank and with some strange groans and creaks, the engine started turning. Finally, it gave out a loud pop and belched out a great puff of smoke. I was ready to start running and the fire suppression guy with the extinguisher started toward the engine, but one of the crew motioned him back and they kept on cranking. Finally, the engine caught with a roar.
I walked over to the truck thinking, 'Yep, damn glad I don't have to ride that thing back to the States!'
Mike
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