The Brabant village Oisterwijk and Operation Market Garden
Fire extinguisher from the C-47B
This fire extinguisher was found in the back of the aircraft and was most presumably attached in the front compartment or the cockpit. Since the fire extinguisher was already used after it was found it can be concluded the crew most likely put out a fire in the rear of the aircraft after it was hit by enemy ground fire. Though it is not completely safe to keep a fire extinguisher in your collection dating from that period over all these years it’s still a very nice relic. The C-47 had both CO2 and carbon tetrachloride fire extinguishers onboard. A carbon dioxide fire extinguisher was harmless after it was used, carbon tet. on the other hand, was if used to put out a fire will release phosgene gas. Phosgene was a hazardous substance already in use during the first world war as a lethal weapon. It prevented blood to take in oxygen and therefore could be very lethal.
