[Milsurplus] Ya got ur BC-348 in a Martin flying boat

[Mike Morrow]

Marty wrote:

>Sed he served late '44 thru 7/45 as a 17-yr-old radio op in a PBM Mariner
>in Pacific.  The one with gull wings that looked newer than PBY but
>wasn't.  It had an ART-13 & a BC-348.

>I got a book on the PBYs that shows about all with loop DF antennas.
>Except a real late one that has a 'football.'  Oh boy, say I, a DZ
>install.  Nope, next page shows a SCR-269.

As is normal, I've got some opinions.

I've seen pictures of a good number of WWII US Navy patrol craft with the USAAF SCR-269, SCR-522, and AN/ARC-8 (ART-13, BC-348) sets.  All of these were superior military products to the USN's DZ-*, WE-233, and GO/GP/RU/RAX antiques, and it is commendable that some decision-making people in the USN took advantage of the better gear, even though it was mostly of USAAF origin.

I'm an old Navy man, but let's face it.  Generally speaking, except for the original ATC and the AN/ARC-1, most WWII US Navy airborne and ground radio gear was more appropriate for the mid-1930s than the 1940s.

Certainly the US Army's SCR-508/608/1000 gear had no serious competition from any USN design.  TBS/TBY anyone?  Or for MF/HF, who would choose a TBX over a SCR-694 (BC-1306), or MAB/DAV over SCR-536 (BC-611)?

At least the USN can take some comfort in the excellent TCS, which might have served the US Army better than their SCR-245 near equivalent, or that misbegotten Army HF set, the SCR-506.  Plus there's that effective YE/ZB homing system, and the LM-* frequency meter is a better unit than the SCR-211-* (which was too big, and lacked signal modulation).

As a side comment, I believe that Western Electric must have been the most prodigious and technologically progressive electronics producer of the war.

Mike / KK5F