Blitzed
- Thread starter michaelmaltby
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fubar57
General
Pretty sure all armed forces used stimulants to keep the troops alert, even today....
MoD bought thousands of stay awake pills in advance of war in Iraq
MoD bought thousands of stay awake pills in advance of war in Iraq
GrauGeist
Generalfeldmarschall zur Luftschiff Abteilung
I don't buy this Ohler person's story.
He alledges that the Wehrmacht was high on Pervatin, which explains their Blitzkreig successes. He also compares Pervatin to Crystal Meth which is ridiculous. I have seen people on Meth and they do not have the presence of mind like a well trained soldier - they are like a paranoid spider monkey, constantly distracted and no real train of thought.
And if saying the successes of the Wehrmacht were due to Crystal Meth, than the Red Army must have been smoking bath salts.
What it looks like to me, in reading this author's conclusions, is that the author does not have a real grasp of the German military or of Hitler's mindset.
Hitler detested tobacco, rarely ever drank alcohol and had nothing good to say about drug users. And if I'm not mistaken, drug addicts were rounded up along with the mentally handicapped and other "undesirables" and went "away" during the early days of Nazi reform.
He alledges that the Wehrmacht was high on Pervatin, which explains their Blitzkreig successes. He also compares Pervatin to Crystal Meth which is ridiculous. I have seen people on Meth and they do not have the presence of mind like a well trained soldier - they are like a paranoid spider monkey, constantly distracted and no real train of thought.
And if saying the successes of the Wehrmacht were due to Crystal Meth, than the Red Army must have been smoking bath salts.
What it looks like to me, in reading this author's conclusions, is that the author does not have a real grasp of the German military or of Hitler's mindset.
Hitler detested tobacco, rarely ever drank alcohol and had nothing good to say about drug users. And if I'm not mistaken, drug addicts were rounded up along with the mentally handicapped and other "undesirables" and went "away" during the early days of Nazi reform.
fubar57
General
Story about Dr. Thedor Morell, Hitler personal doctor and the drugs he supposedly gave him...
When Hitler took cocaine
When Hitler took cocaine
GrauGeist
Generalfeldmarschall zur Luftschiff Abteilung
The story of Hitler and his personal quak is quite an interesting story and I have always wondered why Schenk and Hitler's other physicians didn't make Morell have an "accident".
The SS (and Gestapo) were quite good at that sort of thing.
The SS (and Gestapo) were quite good at that sort of thing.
Absolutely. We were issued uppers and downers in Iraq. The reason being is that we were normally on a "day shift", but all air assaults were flown at night. To keep us alert and awake at night, we had the stimulants. They would litterally keep you up for days. Then to get us down back on to the day cycle, we had the other pills to help us sleep.
I never took them because of the known side effects.
fubar57
General
Alder....not that they ever worked for me but were you issued energy drinks, ie Red Bull, as a substitute?
No, it was available, but not issued. Just the uppers and downers.
I only used tried and tested coffee. Lots of it...
parsifal
Colonel
When at the starboard /port watch system (6hrs on, 6 hrs off), it was hard to stay alert. Uner those conditions or higher (ie action stations), unlimited quantities of "no-doze" were available. During flying ops, sailors and officers could also ask and be provided with mild sleeping tablets, mostly because of the racket of deck landings and take offs. These could sometimes be denied though, in which case it was tough bikkies.
We were using what the truckies use basically, ephedrine(sp?)
I never needed the stuff. I always been able to survive on less than 4 hours of sleep per day and the truckie stuff would be a total waste of time. ive driven 28 hours continuously, just toilet and meal stops, no problem. Left over from my days as a shift worker I think.
We were using what the truckies use basically, ephedrine(sp?)
I never needed the stuff. I always been able to survive on less than 4 hours of sleep per day and the truckie stuff would be a total waste of time. ive driven 28 hours continuously, just toilet and meal stops, no problem. Left over from my days as a shift worker I think.
Benzedrine was available and widely used by all RAF Commands during WW2.
Extract from N0.609 Squadron ORB, revealing some of the beneficial effects
"Pilots are not long back at Gravesend before they are ordered off again on Circus 96, Biggin this time acting as Target Support Wing to Hampden's raiding Marquise. 609 flies about in the St Omer area, and though many 109s are seen in formations up to 12, none are contacted except by *****, leading Yellow Section. After diving on some 109s, he is turning to rejoin his Section when 2 aircraft, which he takes to be Spits, are seen behind. One begins firing at him, but as the deflection is not nearly enough, ***** merely tightens his turn. Suddenly his A.S.I. blows out, and it seems another A/C has been firing from above. Half-rolling and diving, he crosses Boulogne beach at 2,000 feet, and his engine begins to fail. Flames then appear beneath the engine cowling. Calling 'M'Aidez', he struggles up to 2,000 feet and bales out in the middle of the Channel. After about an hour he is picked up by a naval launch - none too soon, as it is getting late, with visibility reduced by haze. Officers who pick him up at Dover the same evening, find him in excellent form, thanks partly to having consumed a Benzedrine tablet in his dinghy."
Cheers
Steve
Extract from N0.609 Squadron ORB, revealing some of the beneficial effects
"Pilots are not long back at Gravesend before they are ordered off again on Circus 96, Biggin this time acting as Target Support Wing to Hampden's raiding Marquise. 609 flies about in the St Omer area, and though many 109s are seen in formations up to 12, none are contacted except by *****, leading Yellow Section. After diving on some 109s, he is turning to rejoin his Section when 2 aircraft, which he takes to be Spits, are seen behind. One begins firing at him, but as the deflection is not nearly enough, ***** merely tightens his turn. Suddenly his A.S.I. blows out, and it seems another A/C has been firing from above. Half-rolling and diving, he crosses Boulogne beach at 2,000 feet, and his engine begins to fail. Flames then appear beneath the engine cowling. Calling 'M'Aidez', he struggles up to 2,000 feet and bales out in the middle of the Channel. After about an hour he is picked up by a naval launch - none too soon, as it is getting late, with visibility reduced by haze. Officers who pick him up at Dover the same evening, find him in excellent form, thanks partly to having consumed a Benzedrine tablet in his dinghy."
Cheers
Steve
- Thread starter
- #12
michaelmaltby
Colonel
".... the greatest experiment in amphetamine-based enhancement came in World War II. In 1939 the Blitzkrieg'ssuccess was attributed partly to the use of Pervitin—methamphetamine—among German soldiers. By mid-1940 the British and American militaries had begun their own respective chemical investigations. Both eventually settled on Benzedrine to combat fatigue and boost morale. The drug proved especially popular among pilots and air crews, who often had to fly long, grueling bombing raids late into the night. By 1943 a package of Benzedrine pills had its place in the emergency kit of every American bomber. Two years later a survey of European-theater fighter pilots who frequently flew long missions showed that around 15 percent frequently used Benzedrine.
SKF's advertising dutifully reported its new use among the country's fighting force. "For men in combat, when the going gets tough," one ad began, Benzedrine Sulfate tablets would save lives through "sustaining their mental efficiency by overcoming the symptoms of fatigue." Here, too, the evidence had proven inconclusive: the pills had slight to no effect on cognitive capabilities, but the "feel-good" effect often made users overestimate their own capabilities. At the same time, the nervous-system stimulation kept soldiers awake past the point of exhaustion, though often with dubious consequences, including hallucinations and paranoia, well-known effects of sleep deprivation and amphetamine use.
Methamphetamine produced similar results; ironically, the accompanying recklessness, along with worries about addiction, quickly led the Germans to discourage its use in the field. American and British forces, however, used amphetamine throughout the war for its effects on mood and morale: it kept up the "fighting spirit." The British later concluded the subjective boost wasn't worth the potentially lethal side effects, but the American military continues to use amphetamine to this day, including in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan."
Fast Times: The Life, Death, and Rebirth of Amphetamine | Chemical Heritage Foundation
SKF's advertising dutifully reported its new use among the country's fighting force. "For men in combat, when the going gets tough," one ad began, Benzedrine Sulfate tablets would save lives through "sustaining their mental efficiency by overcoming the symptoms of fatigue." Here, too, the evidence had proven inconclusive: the pills had slight to no effect on cognitive capabilities, but the "feel-good" effect often made users overestimate their own capabilities. At the same time, the nervous-system stimulation kept soldiers awake past the point of exhaustion, though often with dubious consequences, including hallucinations and paranoia, well-known effects of sleep deprivation and amphetamine use.
Methamphetamine produced similar results; ironically, the accompanying recklessness, along with worries about addiction, quickly led the Germans to discourage its use in the field. American and British forces, however, used amphetamine throughout the war for its effects on mood and morale: it kept up the "fighting spirit." The British later concluded the subjective boost wasn't worth the potentially lethal side effects, but the American military continues to use amphetamine to this day, including in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan."
Fast Times: The Life, Death, and Rebirth of Amphetamine | Chemical Heritage Foundation
FLYBOYJ
"THE GREAT GAZOO"
Coffee to stay awake and Melatonin to sleep when I was on deployment