Blood chit

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A blood chit is a notice carried by military personnel and addressed to

any civilians who may come across an armed-services member such
as a shot-down pilot in difficulties. As well as identifying the force to
which the bearer belongs as friendly, the notice displays a message
requesting that the service member be rendered every assistance.

Contents
1 Etymology
2 History
2.1 United States Armed Forces
2.2 British Armed Forces
2.3 Norwegian Armed Forces
3 Notes
4 References
A "blood chit" issued to the American
5 External links
Volunteer Group Flying Tigers. The
Chinese characters read: "This foreign
person has come to China to help in the
Etymology war effort. Soldiers and civilians, one
and all, should rescue and protect him".
(R.E. Baldwin Collection)
Alternative names are escape and identification flags (Chinese:
; pinyin: rnw zhngmng sh). Chit (also 'chitty') is a British
English term for a small document, note or pass; it is an Anglo-Indian
word dating from the late 18th century, derived from the Hindi citthi.[1]

History
The idea of blood chit originates from 1793 when French balloonist
Jean-Pierre Blanchard demonstrated his hot air balloon in the United
States. Because he could not control the direction of the balloon, no one
knew where he would land. Because Blanchard did not speak English,
George Washington gave him a letter that said that all U.S. citizens
were obliged to assist him to return to Philadelphia.

In World War I, British Royal Flying Corps pilots in India and

Mesopotamia carried a "goolie chit" printed in four local languages that
promised a reward to anyone who would bring an unharmed British
aviator back to British lines. The British officer John Masters recorded A blood chit used by UN pilots during
in his autobiography that Pathan women in the North-West Frontier the Korean war. (Australian War
Province (19011955) of British India (now modern day Pakistan) Memorial)
during the Anglo-Afghan Wars would behead and castrate non Muslim
soldiers who were captured, like British and Sikhs.[2]
Blood chit
In the Second Sino-Japanese War prior to World War II,
foreign volunteer pilots of Flying Tigers carried notices Chinese name
printed in Chinese that informed the locals that this foreign Chinese
pilot was fighting for China and they were obliged to help Literal meaning Identification document
them.[3] A text from one such blood chit translates as
follows: Transcriptions
 Standard Mandarin
I am an American airman. My plane is
Hanyu Pinyin rnw zhngmng sh
destroyed. I cannot speak your language. I am an
enemy of the Japanese. Please give me food and Japanese name
take me to the nearest Allied military post. Kanji
You will be rewarded. Transcriptions
Romanization jinbutsu shmei-sho
On the UN chit from the Korean war, it is written in
Japanese that cooperators will be rewarded and should help for his own 'benefit'.

United States Armed For ces

When the U.S. officially entered World War II in December 1941, flight crew survival kits included blood chits
printed in 50 different languages that sported an American flag and promised a reward for a safe return of a
pilot. The kit might also include gifts like gold coins, maps or sewing needles. Many U.S. flight crews that flew
over Asia had their "blood chit" sewn to the back of their flight jackets. Some units added the blood chit to the
crew's flight suits while other units gave the blood chit out only for specific flights. Currently, blood chits are a
product of the Joint Personnel Recovery Agency. They are a small sheet of Tyvek materialwith an American
flag and a statement in several languages indicating that the U.S. will reward anyone assisting the bearer to
safety. They represent a written promise or obligation of the US Government.

While serving in the Global War on Terrorism, many U.S. service members were issued "blood chips" that
looked similar to bearer bonds and guaranteed $500,000 for "aid and safe return". They were issued before
missions for select ground, and convoy personnel, and placed inside a soldiers ballistic vest prior to missions.

British Armed For ces

Examples of blood chits issued to British RAF personnel in India in the 1940s are printed on thin sheets of silk
cloth measuring 20 by 11 inches (about 50 x 30 cm); they have the Union flag printed at the top left, and the
following text in English and French alongside it:

Dear Friend,
I am an Allied fighter. I did not come here to do any harm to you who are my friends. I only want
to do harm to the Japanese and chase them away from this country as quickly as possible.
If you will assist me, my Government will sufficiently reward you when the Japanese are driven
away.

The main area of the document is printed in three columns with the same text in 15 Asian languages, including
Malay, Burmese, Tamil, Thai and Bengali.

Norwegian Armed For ces

Norwegian commandos (spesialjegere) had chitsduring the current War in Afghanistan"in silk, sown on
the inside of the uniform belt.[4]

Notes
1. "Chit source" (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/chit). Retrieved 22 February 2012.
2. John Masters (June 13, 2002). Bugles and a Tiger (http://www.amazon.com/Bugles-Tiger-Gurkhas-Milita
ry-Paperbacks/dp/0304361569/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276361279&sr=1-1). Cassell
 Military (June 13, 2002). p. 190. ISBN 0-304-36156-9. Retrieved 5 April 2011.
3. Rossi, Dick (1980s). "A Flying Tigers Story" (http://www.flyingtigersavg.22web.org/tiger2.htm). The
Flying Tigers - American Volunteer Group - Chinese Air Force.
4. Satte lsepenger p norske spesialsoldater (http://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/artikkel.php?artid=10126
309)

References
Rossi, J.R. "AVG American Volunteer Group - Flying Tigers".

External links
The Flying Tigers blood chit
Blood Chits of the CBI Theater
Personnel Recovery in the Department of Defense
Photo of US Afghanistan Blood Chit
Chivers, C.J. (29 March 2012). "A Short History of Blood Chits: Greetings From the Lost, Seeking
Help". The New York Times. Retrieved 12 September 2016.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Blood_chit&oldid=791714359"

This page was last edited on 22 July 2017, at 01:13.

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