A Dip Into History: The Sixth Edition Manual

The oldest copy of the manual I have to hand is the sixth. The most obvious differences with the latest edition are the red cover and the thickness - there's slightly less of it. (256 pages cf. 288 in the 10th Ed.)

The discolouration is from age, not spillage . . . seepage? The newer ones have a plastic-coated cover. Presumably wipe-clean.

The Inside Scoop

The biggest change from those days are the graphics - the majority are hand-drawn:

Apart from the visual design there is a different balance of content, and many procedures have been subsequently refined.

There are nine pages on preparing, loading and carrying stretchers, but the most surprising feature is the full page on managing a helicopter landing:

I suppose that it was expected that air-ambulances would become more commonplace, but economics have dictated otherwise.

I've not had to do that, yet.