[National Archives www.archives.gov]
[330.DVIC.27489 Source: BetacamSP (I Copy)]
[United States Air Force Training Film TF1-5375]
[ Music ]
[The United States Air Force presents]
[Survival Stresses]
[ Jet engine noise ]
[Pilot:] Mayday! Mayday!
This is Wingate 1-6.
Flameout at Angel 40.
[Operator:] Two hundred miles southwest of Greenville.
Proceeding on course to Mackland.
[Pilot:] Will attempt to air start.
[Narrator:] This is the emergency. It can happen in many ways. But one thing is certain.
How well you've learned to expect the unexpected may determine the course of events that follow.
[Pilot:] Mayday! Mayday! This is Wingate 1-6.
[Operator:] Air start efforts failed. I'm ejecting at Angel's 10.
[ Music ]
[Narrator:] This is the beginning of survival. The problem now, stay alive.
[Pilot:] The second night was the toughest. I had no feeling in my right foot.
I kept thinking they'd amputate if they ever got me back.
Every time I loosened the bandage, blood gushed out.
I thought of letting it freeze, but decided against it.
It was just one of those ideas you get at a time like that.
[ Music ]
Then at dawn of the third day the weather began to close in.
To me this meant one thing.
They wouldn't be able to continue the search. I'll admit I was scared.
It was the way I felt when I realized I'd lost my survival gear.
I fought it off somehow.And told myself to relax.
I had to go on believing they'd find me.
With my fouled-up leg I knew I couldn't find them.
Then I heard the sound of the chopper.
[ helicopter rotor blades whirring ]
At first I thought my mind was playing tricks on me.
I'd been afraid of this all along.
But it was up there all right, and heading right for me.
I tried to wave and yell.
The effort was too much for me.
I felt myself blacking out.
But they saw me.
The next thing I remember was Sergeant Kerry coming down the hoist.
[Commander:] Lieutenant Edward Stewart, Air Defense Command, flameout, ejection and 45 hours of raw survival, alone.
Forty-five hours.
Not a very long interval of time.
But, for Lieutenant Stewart, long enough to suffer shock and pain from severe injury,
long enough to know the meaning of hunger, thirst, cold, fatigue, isolation, remoteness and fear.
From a technical point of view, these are survival stresses.
From your point of view, they are obstacles you must avoid, overcome, or be prepared to withstand if you want to live.
And to complicate matters, here are a few more.
These stresses can occur in all environments to a greater or lesser degree.
The Arctic, the desert, in the tropics, and on water.
How these stresses might develop, and how they might affect you, are the big questions.
You can wait, and find the answers the hard way.
Or you could profit right now from the experience of the thousands who've faced survival, and lived.
From what they faced, and from what they learned, have come methods for recognizing, understanding, and combating survival stresses.
To pass this knowledge along to you is one purpose of our discussion.
And the other purpose is to make you think about yourself.
And for this very important reason, if you find yourself in a survival situation, the chances are you'll find yourself alone.
So let's take a look at you, the individual. A very complex creation.
[Narrator:] You are different from all others mentally and emotionally, but physically just about the same.
When your body is supplied with the essentials of life, growth and repair processes
function normally, and sufficient energy is created to enable you to perform efficiently.
But when the body is deprived of even one of the essentials, water, for example, your physical and mental capabilities decrease.
And eventually, if corrective measures are not taken, this.
[Commander:] Something to consider, isn't it?
But perhaps you're not concerned right now, because you're fairly well-off, and that where you are, life is pretty good.
So let's take you from your comfortable environment to another one, one not so comfortable, and try to make the point that way.
[Narrator:] This is the desert. No one can deny its fantastic beauty.
And no one can deny that men have died here, alone, through ignorance.
Ignorance not only of practical measures to take, but ignorance of how much stress their bodies could endure.
Sometimes they discovered this too late.
About one-fifth of the land area of the world is desert.
The odds against an emergency over desert terrain are in your favor.
But it could happen.
[ Music ]
What then will you be up against?
Mainly two things...an excess of heat, and a scarcity of water.
And without water you cannot survive for long.
For a simple explanation of this, let's take a look at you, simplified.
Your normal body temperature is 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit.
To maintain this temperature, your body has an effective and efficient cooling mechanism, the evaporation of sweat on the skin's surface.
By this process, excess heat absorbed or generated by the body is dissipated.
And you will continue to sweat as long as the need exists to hold body temperature down.
In desert areas, the amount of sweat produced can be considerable.
This is also true in humid environments where incomplete evaporation interferes with heat dissipation.
But the bulk of sweat is water,
and every bit of it must be replaced, because every bit of it is needed for normal bodily functions.
If it is not replaced, your body will go into debt for water by withdrawing water from vital parts.
When the bloodstream gives up water, the blood becomes thicker and less in volume.
The heart has to work faster to pump the thickened blood through the arteries and veins...
and as water loss continues, it becomes increasingly difficult for your body to function.
[Commander:] What you have just seen on the screen is the process of dehydration.
Understanding its effect on you is important.
But important, too, is knowing how to recognize it.
Let's investigate this further.
[Narrator:] Approximately two-thirds of the human body is water.
This level must be maintained if you are to live, work and think at peak efficiency.
When this water level begins to drop, you become thirsty and uncomfortable.
You begin to move in a kind of slow motion.
You have no appetite.
As you lose more water you get sleepy.
Your temperature goes up. You get irritable.
Eventually you become nauseous.
Dizziness, difficulty in breathing, and a tingling sensation in the arms and legs follow.
When your body has lost only 10 percent of its body weight in water, you can't move about normally.
At this point, locating a water source may be impossible.
And when water loss continues, death is inevitable.
[Commander:] Not a very happy thought, is it?
Well, let's see what you can do to keep the worst from happening.
Conserve your sweat, not your water.
Drink all you want, as long as it's available.
Stay in the shade, off the ground.
Ground temperature may be 150 degrees or higher. Even here.
Travel only at night. Move slowly. Take it easy.
Those were a few hints on water conservation.
But they represent only a fraction of the information you must know in order to survive in the desert.
Demonstrating how to locate water, how to find food, how to orient yourself in the desert,
or anyplace else, is beyond the scope of this discussion.
But you have access to this information through survival manuals, by undergoing courses in survival,
and by viewing Air Force training films.
"Sun, Sand, Survival" is one such film.
You saw a clip from it a moment ago.
Make a point to see it in its entirety.
And make a point to investigate other approved sources of information.
Army and Navy material, for example.
You might be surprised at how many misconceptions you have about survival.
Perhaps you have the impression that water is a prime requirement only in the desert.
It isn't.
In order to maintain your water balance, in any environment, you need approximately two quarts of water a day.
Yes, even here.
But this environment presents another serious threat. Cold.
Cold, intensified by wind.
The two are a deadly combination of elements, which increases the rate of cooling of the body, sometimes drastically.
Scientists have a name for it: wind-chill.
But it's more than a word of technical jargon.
It's a fact you can't ignore.
It's a fact, for example, that exposed flesh will freeze when the temperature is minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit,
and there is little or no wind.
Now, this doesn't surprise you, does it?
But wait. Let's raise the temperature to 15 degrees.
Not too uncomfortable.
You've all experienced this. But increase the wind velocity to 26 miles an hour, and the same result is produced.
Raise the temperature to 20 degrees, increase the wind to 43 miles an hour, and, again, exposed flesh will freeze.
And what about the time for these and other combinations to do the job? One hour? Two hours? Possibly.
But it could be only 30 seconds under more extreme conditions such as these.
Cold is an enemy of survival, a killer.
It has a way of slipping up on you, numbing mind and body, taking away efficiency, and most of your will, except that part which says,
"Get warm. Get warm."
"Yes, get warm and stay warm."
The most sensible idea you could have. But it takes more than an idea.
It takes know-how. Knowing how to conserve body heat.
This in turn involves an understanding of your body's heat system.
It is a complicated system. So, again, a simplification.
[Narrator:] Blood, with absorbed food and oxygen, is circulated to the different parts of the body.
Every living cell has the ability to burn food in the presence of oxygen.
In the process, energy is created.
Part of this energy is used in doing work.
But most of it is liberated as heat, at the surface of the body.
When you exercise or do work you burn up more food stored in the muscles.
This requires more oxygen. To get it, you breathe faster and faster.
More heat is then generated, and the smaller blood vessels near the skin open wider.
Circulation in the skin is increased,
and heat loss is faster.
In cold weather, when the normal rate of heat loss would result in excessive cooling,
the circulation of the blood through the skin is decreased by constriction of the smaller blood vessels.
This reduces the rate of heat loss, and preserves the heat for the vital organs.
[Commander:] Rather ingenious, don't you think?
But the system has a flaw in it.
And, for you, a serious one.
When nature cuts down circulation at skin surfaces to conserve heat for your vital organs,
she sacrifices other parts of the body--the hands, feet, toes, nose, ears, face, for example.
As a consequence these are the first to become frostbitten.
And, remember, this situation and danger is not confined to the Arctic.
It exists right here in the United States. Some have failed to consider this and die.
But wherever you are, no matter how cold you are, the situation is far from hopeless if you're willing to help yourself.
Here's how.
Improvise.
Use materials you have available.
Above all, conserve your body heat.
If you must exercise, or move about, avoid sweating.
Sweating increases loss of body heat.
If you sweat, or get warm, ventilate your garments.
And keep your mind on survival.
This is good advice anywhere, anytime.
When you're facing survival, the things you've always taken for granted have a way of becoming terribly important,
and sometimes out of proportion.
When you're cold, you can't think of anything but warmth.
When you're thirsty, you can't think of anything but water.
And when you're hungry, you can't think of anything but food.
But food is less important than water or shelter.
Being hungry doesn't mean that you're on the verge of starvation.
You can live for quite a while without food.
But the time might come when a little self-diagnosis will reveal these symptoms.
You feel tired and weak.
You don't think you have the strength to go on. You get cold easily.
You become annoyed, short-tempered.
And eventually you just don't care.
When you feel that way, mentally and physically you're in a precarious position.
But let's go back a bit. How can this happen?
There are three possibilities.
Illness or serious injury might prevent you from foraging for food.
You might lack the knowledge of how to live off the land.
Or you find things to eat, but you just can't stomach them.
This last is called "food aversion" or "food prejudice."
For some, it isn't easy to overcome.
But when it's a matter of life or death, you'll have to try.
You may have to try mighty hard.
This is a sequence from another Air Force training film, "Jungle Survival."
[ Music ]
Obviously, food aversion is not an obstacle here. If it was, it's been surmounted.
And this is what you'll have to do. No one can do it for you.
[ Music ]
Food resources in different environments vary.
But, remember, anything that creeps, walks, swims or flies is a possible source of food.
And if this makes a vegetarian out of you, there's always this.
[ Music ]
Learn to live off the land.
Begin right now by experimenting with new foods.
Practice eating foods which are not your favorites,
and learn to appreciate them.
Controlling hunger is one of the easier problems to solve in survival if you can adjust to discomfort,
and adapt to primitive conditions.
And to make it still easier, here are a few practical suggestions.
Procure both water and food when you can still think clearly.
Forage for food.
Save your rations for emergency.
Take stock of what you have, and plan accordingly.
Don't waste your energy.
Stop and prepare your food whenever you can.
The rest you get is beneficial.
I don't think we have to worry about him.
Knowing the effects of different stresses is essential.
But often it's not a simple matter to pinpoint the exact stress causing the trouble.
Stresses have a way of interacting, producing symptoms which are almost identical.
And to complicate your problem further, stresses, physical in nature, have very definite psychological implications.
You just can't define a stress, and say, "Here's where it begins, here's where it ends."
As a matter of fact, there's one stress for which no single definition is adequate--fatigue.
The number and variety of activities which might produce fatigue are countless.
It might even be the result of trying to avoid a situation too difficult to face.
Fatigue is cumulative.
It is evidenced by a lack of staying power, a short temper, impatience, and a tendency to magnify minor troubles.
Whether fatigue is mental or physical is debatable.
But its effects are essentially the same.
And, as far as you're concerned, it's something else you'll have to combat.
So, again, here are a few suggestions that might help.
Assess the situation.
Have a plan and follow it.
This is always the best idea.
Channel your activities in the most useful direction.
Don't overestimate your strength.
Set up a program of rest, if possible.
And, whatever you do, concentrate on the positive, not the negative.
Yes, concentrate on the positive, not the negative.
Don't let your imagination run away with you.
To accomplish this, you must be able to separate the real from the unreal.
Sounds easy enough, but often difficult to do.
Even for those with the strongest kind of emotional fiber.
Even for those in the best physical condition.
A good physical condition, and emotional stability, are two of the best advantages you can have.
But sometimes the challenge is too great.
In a matter of minutes this pilot passed through two major crises.
First, the aircraft emergency leading to the survival situation.
Second, the survival situation itself.
Then a third crisis was superimposed--injury upon ejection.
Now he could do only two things: try to keep his face out of the water, and hope that help comes.
And it's going to take all the stamina and guts he's got.
That pilot's desperate problem was complicated, as yours might be, by injury.
Suffering injury is unfortunate enough.
But whether the injury is minor or severe, shock is bound to accompany it.
Sometimes it's the most serious consequence of the injury.
It can also be a serious aftermath of the emergency experience itself, without any injury being present.
This makes spending a moment on the subject of shock worthwhile.
Let's take a look then at shock, its symptoms and treatment.
You must be familiar with both.
These are some of the signs.
Pulse, weak and rapid. Respiration, rapid. Skin, pale, cold, and moist.
And if the patient is conscious, he may feel faint or dizzy, and he may be frightened, restless or anxious.
Now, what do you do about it?
Let's take a look.
If the patient is injured, don't wait for symptoms to develop.
Make him comfortable. Conserve his body heat.
But don't overdo it.
Don't give him fluids if he's unconscious, or if he's injured internally.
Him? That's the other fellow.
The fellow you're going to help.
But what about you? You alone?
How can you help yourself?
If you have an injury, you can expect shock.
Therefore, try to anticipate it.
If you're able, do for yourself what you would do for others.
Now, here's something else.
The word "shock" is used in another way, to describe the mental state of a victim immediately following an accident.
Apathy and irrational behavior are common.
You can expect this to happen.
But even when you're alone, you have a good chance of shaking it.
Your training is a ready cure.
A man well-indoctrinated in emergency procedures will usually be guided by them, even when dazed.
Training imparts knowledge.
Knowledge is the most effective antidote for the ills, real and imaginary, inflicted on the survivor.
And this includes one of the most common, fear.
Fear is a natural response to danger and nothing to be ashamed of.
Everyone who faces an emergency which threatens any of his important needs experiences fear.
In a survival emergency, you may be constantly threatened with the loss of water, food, shelter, companionship.
Yes, even of life itself.
Your fear will greatly influence your behavior. And your behavior, your chances of survival.
You must recognize it, live with it, and if possible, use it to your advantage.
Recognizing fear in yourself shouldn't be too difficult.
You've met it before, and you've overcome it.
But as you face survival, fear, isolation, remoteness, loneliness, and the other psychological stresses, are greatly magnified.
Coping with them requires a greater effort.
But you can do it.
This man did for 20 long days.
How was he able to do it alone?
Because he was endowed with some kind of supreme wisdom?
Because he had courage far beyond that allotted to the ordinary human being?
No.
He had only the resources you have. But he used them to his advantage.
He was afraid, and he admitted it.
He accepted his lot, and he tried to improve it.
He kept busy. He foraged for food to maintain his physical condition.
[Music]
And when he wasn't looking for food, he kept his mind alert by doing mathematical problems,
and by singing all the songs he could remember.
In order to conserve his energy, he exercised only lightly.
But he exercised regularly.
He was in an alien environment,
and he was afraid, but he didn't let fear take away his will to live.
[Music]
He recognized the real dangers, and he took practical measures to eliminate them.
And, he hacked it.
[ Music ]
That was a sequence from the Air Force training film "Deep Sea Survival."
It doesn't tell you everything you must know.
No film can.
It was designed primarily to make you think.
And, as I said, that was the purpose of this discussion.
To make you think about these things, and how they might affect you.
How much do you know right now about survival, and its physiological and psychological stresses?
Let's hope you know more than this fellow.
[Music]
But what is his affliction? Fear? Panic?
No. He was suffering from thirst and dehydration.
Then he sneaked drinks of sea water at night, compounding his problem.
The result? Mental deterioration.
[ Music ]
Mental deterioration.
If he had taken the trouble to find out, he would have known that it might kill him.
Don't let ignorance of survival stresses be your mistake.
It's the biggest one you can make.
[Music]
[The End, United States Air Force Air Photographic and Charting Service (MATS)]
[End of Recording]
[Screen dark]