How to Survive in the Jungle 1944 Army Training Film

VIDEO HERE  (1 hour)

This World War 2-era military training film – originally titled as "Land and Live in the Jungle" – was produced by the US Army Air Forces in 1944. It dramatizes the survival of the crew of a downed military aircraft in the jungle. The film was intended to educate flight crews about the basic principles of survival in jungle terrain, but also to boost the morale of airmen who might have to make a forced landing in the Pacific campaign.

Plot:

Five crewmen from a stricken B-25 bomber parachute into a dense tropical jungle, many miles from their nearest base. Four of the crew land together and get just about everything right. Rather than fighting the jungle, they learn to make use of its many resources. On the other hand, the pilot, Captain Harrison, is separated from the others, panics and does just about everything wrong – and pays a heavy price for his ignorance.

From their examples, here's just some of what you'll learn: how to use your parachute for everything from making a hammock to catching fish, how to avoid large predators and snakes, how to treat scrapes and wounds to avoid jungle rot, plants and fruits to use and avoid for food and water, what fish and animals are safe to eat. The film also shows how to use Halazone & Atabrine tablets to purify water and fight malaria, how to set traps and snares to catch small animals and birds, how to deal with and prevent insect bites, how to get rid of leeches. There is also information about how to prepare food in the jungle, how to build temporary shelters and long term camps, how to build and use a river raft, how to deal with crocodiles, how to use signal mirrors and fires to aid search planes, how to deal with the local natives and a whole lot more.