We've all heard and read that J-3s and L-4s originally had better performance than they seem to possess today. It's usually attributed to aircraft weight creep over the years. Another factor might be the weights of pilots in general in the 1930s & 40s. I found this on the web:
"Data compiled for millions of (US) inductees (during WWII) shows the following to be the actual measurements of the "average" newcomer to the Army as he appears at the clothing counter of a reception center: 5' 8" tall; 144 pounds in weight; 33 ¼" chest measurement; 31" waist measurement. From the tariff tables showing the frequency of size issues it is found that the sizes most frequently issued are a 7 to 7½ hat, number 9 gloves, a 15 shirt with a 33" sleeve, a 36 regular jacket, a pair of trousers with a 32" waist and a 32" leg length, size 11 socks, and size 9-D shoes. These figures may be taken to indicate the size of the "average American young man."
These soldiers were smaller in stature than today largely because they had grown up during the Great Depression. Most showed the lingering effects of malnutrition. Similar records were kept during the American Revolutionary War and the Civil War. Those records show that the average size and stature of inductees in those periods was very close to what it is for males today. Those young men had most likely eaten well while growing up on farms.
Pilots were smaller in the 1940s, and the aircraft were new. We shouldn't be too surprised today when we stuff a passenger and our overfed selves into a slightly heavy, slightly mis rigged Cub that has a tired A-65 engine and find that the aircraft doesn't perform well.
"Data compiled for millions of (US) inductees (during WWII) shows the following to be the actual measurements of the "average" newcomer to the Army as he appears at the clothing counter of a reception center: 5' 8" tall; 144 pounds in weight; 33 ¼" chest measurement; 31" waist measurement. From the tariff tables showing the frequency of size issues it is found that the sizes most frequently issued are a 7 to 7½ hat, number 9 gloves, a 15 shirt with a 33" sleeve, a 36 regular jacket, a pair of trousers with a 32" waist and a 32" leg length, size 11 socks, and size 9-D shoes. These figures may be taken to indicate the size of the "average American young man."
These soldiers were smaller in stature than today largely because they had grown up during the Great Depression. Most showed the lingering effects of malnutrition. Similar records were kept during the American Revolutionary War and the Civil War. Those records show that the average size and stature of inductees in those periods was very close to what it is for males today. Those young men had most likely eaten well while growing up on farms.
Pilots were smaller in the 1940s, and the aircraft were new. We shouldn't be too surprised today when we stuff a passenger and our overfed selves into a slightly heavy, slightly mis rigged Cub that has a tired A-65 engine and find that the aircraft doesn't perform well.
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