POTD: Rupert to the Rescue! Rupert the British Parachute Decoy
Sam.S 04.21.21
Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! I had never heard of Rupert till I saw him scouring the internet. It made me think of when the US attempted and succeeded in fooling the enemy in WWII by having inflatable tanks and machines of war placed in fake staging areas. Rupert was another fantastic idea put to the test. Check out the history below thanks to Rock Island Auction Company:
“Developed in the late 1930s/early 1940s, the parachute decoy was designed as a diversion and misdirection tool, to create the appearance of an airdrop where none was planned, or to make an actual airdrop look like a bigger, wider affair to mislead the defenders. Both the Americans and British had their own designs, the Americans the early cast metal “Oscar” decoys and the self-inflating rubber “PD Pack” models, while Britain had “Rupert”. Reportedly designed in Britain and made in America by a manufacturer who was never told the true purpose, “Rupert” is a stuffed burlap doll about 31 inches tall with an appropriately scaled parachute attached to the back.”
Lot 1521: “Rupert” Pattern British Parachute Decoy [Photograph found in Premier Firearms Auction #82, Rock Island Auction Company]. (n.d.). Retrieved April 18, 2021, from https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/82/1521/rupert-pattern-british-parachute-decoy
