[Routine Order] SQN ROUTINE ORDER No. 4/44. contd. PAGE TWO.

Saturday, 8 January 1944 Other

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SQN ROUTINE ORDER No. 4/44. contd. PAGE TWO.
22. DANGEROUS AND UNKNOWN OBJECTS, ENEMY EXPLOSIVES AND BOOBY TRAPS.
* Many warnings have been issued drawing attention to the extreme
danger of handling or touching objects found lying about, apparently
abandoned or lost.
* In a recent case, seven S.A.A.F. personnel were killed and three injured.
They were all members of a bathing party and during the bathe a cone-shaped
object was found at the water's edge. The object was handled, picked up
and thrown down on the sand, hit with a stick and finally put on the lorry
in which the party returned from the bathe. On the journey back from the
bathe, the object exploded, resulting in the casualties referred to above.
In this case, the object was a German explosive sweep cutter, and it has been
presumed that one of the party eventually pushed the firing mechanism in and
caused it, causing it to explode.
* All ranks are again warned against booby traps. Almost any article
can be made into one. The following are examples:-
(a) An abandoned J.U.52 was found fitted with thirteen electrical
contacts to detonate an explosive charge. Contacts were made by handling
the control column, sitting in the pilot's seat, handling a cord strung in
the interior etc., etc., Another aircraft had bombs to operate when the
cabin door was opened.
(b) An airman had a foot blown off when trying to start an abandoned
motor-cycle which had a grenade attached to the kick-starter.
(c) An abandoned suitcase was left with a bomb in it, to operate when the
lid was opened. with a bomb
(d) A car was found/to operate when the door was opened.
(e) Booby traps have been found in the form of fountain pens, boxes,
thermos flasks and oil cans.
* From the above, it will be evident that the only method of safe-
guarding life and limb is to regard everything with suspicion and to touch
nothing belonging to the enemy or of unusual appearance unless necessary and
then not before careful scrutiny. Whenever practicable, a bomb disposal
squad should be notified of any suspected trap, otherwise a warning should be
placed or the trap rendered useless while remaining at a safe distance.
* German 2 Kg. Anti-Personnel (Butterfly) Bomb : This bomb will
now explode when it is handled or even slightly disturbed; its lethal range
is twenty-five yards and it may cause injuries up to one hundred and fifty
yards; this danger cannot be too strongly emphasized, and compliance with
this order is essential to reduce the ever-growing number of fatal casualties.
(G.R.O. Ser. 76. para. 1. dated 8.1.44.)
23. DISCIPLINE - PUBLIC AND PRIVATE VEHICLES.
* Personnel are forbidden to ride or travel on any part of the
outside of trains, trams, buses, W.D. or other public or private or service
vehicles, either by standing or sitting on the footboards or bumpers or other
external parts of such vehicles.
* Personnel are further forbidden to board or alight from any such
vehicles when it is in motion, and are to board and alight from any public
vehicle only at points permitted by traffic regulations.
* Disciplinary action will be taken in every case of infringement
of these orders. (G.R.O. Ser. 76. para. 8. dated 8.1.44).
24. DISCIPLINE - SALUTING.
* When two or more ranks are walking out and pass an Officer or
Officers, all the other ranks will salute.
* A salute made to two or more Officers in a street or other public
place out-of-doors, will be returned by all the officers saluted. In barracks,
clubs or on parade the salute will be returned by the senior officer only.
* When two or more S.A.A.F. officers meet an Allied officer or officers,
all S.A.A.F. officers will either salute or acknowledge the salute of the
Allied officers, as the case may be. The rank of the S.A.A.F. officer or
Allied officer is immaterial.
* Saluting dates back from the time of armour, the salute represent-
ing the motion of a Knight raising the visor of his helmet with the open hand
to the front, showing that, though armed, it contained no missile.
page 3.

Transcriber's Notes

Transcriber's Notes:
* Explosive Sweep Cutter Accident: The tragedy described in Paragraph 2, where "seven S.A.A.F. personnel were killed and three injured," refers to a specific and devastating incident. An "explosive sweep cutter" was a device used by minesweepers (ships) to cut the cables of naval mines. When washed ashore, they looked like curious mechanical debris. The soldiers, likely on a rare recreation trip to the Adriatic coast (near Campomarino or Termoli), mistook it for a souvenir. The "firing mechanism" was likely a hydrostatic or tension trigger that they inadvertently activated. This incident underscores the lethal danger of battlefield curiosities.
* Booby Traps (JU-52 & Motorcycles): The Germans were masters of booby-trapping during their retreat up the Italian peninsula.
* JU-52: The warning about the abandoned Junkers Ju 52 transport plane ("thirteen electrical contacts") highlights the sophistication of these traps. Pilots sitting in the cockpit or opening doors could trigger explosives hidden in the airframe.
* Motorcycles: Rigging a grenade to a kick-starter was a common anti-personnel tactic, specifically targeting Allied soldiers looking for joyrides or transport.
* SD-2 "Butterfly Bomb": Paragraph 5 explicitly warns about the German 2 Kg. Anti-Personnel (Butterfly) Bomb (Sprengbombe Dickwandig 2 kg or SD-2). These cluster bomblets had wings that opened in flight. They were notorious for failing to detonate on impact, turning into de facto landmines that would explode if "handled or even slightly disturbed." They were often painted field grey or yellow and were fascinating but deadly to soldiers who found them.
* Saluting Etiquette (Knights & Visors): Paragraph 24 includes a surprisingly poetic explanation of the origin of the salute: "representing the motion of a Knight raising the visor of his helmet... showing that, though armed, it contained no missile." This educational note was likely included to remind conscripted or volunteer troops that the salute was a tradition of mutual respect, not just subservience, improving discipline.
* W.D. Vehicles: Abbreviation for War Department vehicles.
* G.R.O.: Abbreviation for General Routine Orders.

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Verification: Target File Verification: The document is Page Three of "SQUADRON ROUTINE ORDERS No. 4/44" (continued from the previous file). While the page header does not contain a specific date column, the text contains internal dates such as "Monday, 24th January, 1944" for the Dental Parade and "Sunday 23. 1. '44" for the Church Service.