Air Sea Rescue Logbook Project: Analysis and Mapping of Rescue Missions and Reported Aircraft Losses from World War II, Europe

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "Paper / Report Submission (General Sessions)" , at the 2022 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

During World War II, British Air Sea Rescue Military Craft Units (ASRMCU) conducted rescue missions of downed aircraft and aircrew, including American aircraft and aircrew, in Europe-Mediterranean waters. Each ASRMCU recorded rescue missions and reported crashes using logbooks. The purpose of the Air Sea Rescue Logbook project is to transcribe, analyze, and visualize information about these rescue missions and reported losses using Excel and GIS. During this project, GIS programming tools were developed to increase productivity and to easily analyze and prioritize losses that may be considered for potential investigation in the future by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA). The resulting spreadsheets, GIS layers, tools, maps, and video are designed to efficiently assist DPAA with planning underwater investigations and analyzing fieldwork findings.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• SHA 2022 General Sessions   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2022

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology