The Australian War Memorial Collection. Test site
Brass button with RAF crown and eagle motif. The back of the button unscrews to reveal a small glass faced compass with floating needle.
Worn by 417230 Flight Lieutenant Neville Wheeldon Pemberton. Pemberton was born in South Australia in February 1913 and enlisted in the Royal Australian Air Force on 31 January 1942. He served first in the United Kingdom, where this concealed compass was issued to him, but later left for service in the Pacific campaign. He ended the war with 358 Squadron and was discharged on 13 December 1945. These concealed compasses were carried as an aid to escape in the event of the wearer being shot down over enemy territory.
Escape compass concealed in a brass collar stud. The stud has a flat white painted glass base, half of the paint having been scratched off to reveal the floating compass needle inside. Concealed col
Brass collar stud with concealed compass. Originally the stud had a white painted glass face that could be scratched away to reveal the compass. This style of collar stud was used to attach the separa
Small round floating compass sealed in a yellow plastic pouch. Threaded through the top is a blue cotton tape tied with a knot. This tape is 380 mm in length. Small rotor compasses were sealed in cl
Hand made khaki belt with brass buckle and fabric belt loop. Stitched into a pocket next to the buckle is a small escape compass. The tongue of the belt contains a folded silk escape map, possibly of
Black Bakelite escape compass button with centre attachment eyelet and orientation dot-markings on reverse. A magnet is embedded in the Bakelite. This button was collected by QFX22816 Sister Sylvia
Small escape compass with a brass body and glass top. Within is a 'floating' steel disc perforated with four evenly spaced holes. North is marked with a dotted line. Escape compass relating to the s
