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Equipment
Helmet, Service Respirator and Brassard
After relinquishing their Special Constable status when war broke out, each member of the Observer Corps were allowed to keep their tin hat, their Service Respirator and their Police Brassard (armband). The Armband was especially useful when travelling to and from the Observer Post as it helped to identify them as someone who was an Observer and employed in War Service - and hence making them less likely to be challenged by an over zealous member of the Home Guard.
Field Glasses and Binoculars
A single pair of Navy Field Glasses were provided for each post (or at least should have been!) . Any extra binoculars were provided by the observers themselves - either their own or they were borrowed from relatives or friends.
Post Instrument
The Post Instrument was an essential piece of equipment used by the Observer Corps to allow them to accurately track an aircraft's position relative to the ground.
It was used by adjusting the vertical positioner to the judged height of the aircraft, then the horizontal slider was moved so the aircraft was in the crosshairs. The position indicator would then point to a grid on the map. This would give the current position of the aeroplane.
Field Telephone
The Field telephone was used to send the required information (height, number and position of aircraft, direction etc.) up the chain of command to the Observer Corps regional filtering stations.
This information would be sent on up to the Sector Controllers and onto Fighter HQ. Once all the information had been gathered and filtered it was then sent onto Fighter Stations who would dispatch RAF fighter aircraft
Stove
A coke stove was provided to try to make life a little more comfortable - it helped to stave off the cold days and nights, plus it had the added advantage of allowing hot food to be cooked and an endless supply of tea!
Aircraft Identification
To help with aircraft identification, plane spotter magazines were sometimes turned into identification boards as ready made identification charts were rather hard to come by early on.
Kodak Haze Screen
The Kodak Haze Screen was used to help block or enhance poor light conditions. The observer would look through the yellow filter if the conditions were misty, the centre for bright sunlight and the red filter if it was hazy over water.
Poison Gas Indicator
Gas sensitive paper was inserted into a tin with holes in and would be monitored throughout the shift. If the paper changed colour it would indicate the use of poisonous gas dropped by the enemy and allow respirators to be donned quickly.
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