Winston Churchill at U.S. Maneuvers
September 1942 Radio-Craft

September 1942 Radio-Craft [Table of Contents] Wax nostalgic about and learn from the history of early electronics. See articles from Radio-Craft, published 1929 - 1953. All copyrights are hereby acknowledged.

Biographical historians spend endless hours searching old media for bits of information on their subjects. Finding useful material on more renowned personalities is not a problem, but filtering out relevant bits for a particular theme can be daunting. On the other hand, finding useful information on lesser known people can be frustrating because there is so little information readily available. Great Britain's World War II era superstar Winston Churchill undoubtedly falls into the former category. While scanning through my many vintage electronics and science magazines for interesting fodder to post on RF Cafe, I'm always on the lookout for cameo appearances like this one of Prime Minister Churchill talking on a walkie-talkie (aka "handie-talkie" at the time) in this 1942 edition of Radio-Craft. It shows him participating in a parachuting exercise at the U.S. Army's Fort Jackson training base, in South Carolina, United States of America. Ft. Jackson has been around since 1917.

Churchill at U.S. Maneuvers

Cover Feature

Prime Minister Winston Churchill holds a "walkie-talkie" portable two-way radio to his ear and listens to orders coming from jump commanders of paratroops who may be seen in the sky during maneuvers at Fort Jackson. This demonstration of America's war training was one of many witnessed by Churchill.

Posted June 6, 2020
(updated from original post on 11/26/2014)