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Forrest M. Bird: Pioneer Anesthesiologist and Aviator
Forrest M. Bird: Pioneer Anesthesiologist and Aviator Bradley E. Smith M.D. PII: DOI: Reference:
S2352-4529(16)30046-9 doi: 10.1016/j.janh.2016.03.018 JANH 84
To appear in:
Journal of Anesthesia History
Received date: Accepted date:
17 March 2016 30 March 2016
Please cite this article as: , Forrest M. Bird: Pioneer Anesthesiologist and Aviator, Journal of Anesthesia History (2016), doi: 10.1016/j.janh.2016.03.018
This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.
ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Forrest M. Bird: Pioneer Anesthesiologist and Aviator
T
Bradley E. Smith, M.D. Emeritus Professor of Anesthesiology Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
AC
CE
PT
ED
MA
NU
SC
RI P
Forrest Bird became a member of the National Inventor’s Hall of Fame in 1995. He received numerous awards, including the Presidential Citizens Medal from Pres. George W. Bush (2008), the National Medal of Technology and Innovation from Pres. Barack Obama (2009), and the Charles and Ann Lindbergh Award (2012). 1,2 Most physicians practicing in the 1970s and 1980s were familiar with the Bird adult and infant ventilators that revolutionized adult and infant critical care throughout the world. 3 Bird’s nonmedical discoveries and inventions have been hailed by some as more revolutionary and enduring than his medical devices. At the age of 14 (1935) Bird was a licensed pilot. Because of his flying experience, Bird flew the newest and least proven types of planes after he enlisted in the Army Air Corps in 1941. Soon after D-Day, he was flying bombing missions over Normandy and for a time was Gen. George Patton’s personal pilot. Bird retired from the Army Air Corps as a full colonel.4 Bird developed the first successful oxygen delivery device for use above 30,000 feet and the world’s first “anti-g” suit for Allied fighter pilots. He designed wings for early intercontinental passenger jets and worked closely with the helicopter genius Igor Sikorsky. Sikorsky approved Bird’s project to add two additional engines to Bird’s own Sikorsky designed WWII 2-engine PBY-2 Catalina amphibious patrol plane. Forrest Bird held U.S. Helicopter License #7 and flew his three personal helicopters into his nineties. 4,5 Fidel Castro demanded delivery of Bird ventilators to Cuba as part of the negotiations for release of the Bay of Pigs prisoners; Bird did so at the direction of Robert F. Kennedy. 6 Bird assisted Jacques Cousteau and modified a human ventilator for use by E.L. Nagel who delivered the first anesthetic for a dolphin in John Lilly’s laboratory. 5,7 In his later years, Forrest Bird flew around the world teaching resuscitation and respiratory care to health care providers. Bird and his third wife, Pamela, built an amazing museum of restored, flyable aircraft in Sagle, Idaho. Pamela tragically perished in an aircraft accident only a few weeks after Forrest’s death. 2,4 References: 1. New York Times 8/4/2015, p. B15. 2. www.sandpointonline.com/sandpointmag 3. Kirby RR, et al: Anesth Analg 1971;50:533-37. 4. www.uidaho.edu//…/forrest_bird_obituary.ashxUniversity of Idaho 5. Personal communication from FMB 9/22/1983. 6. http://www.desertsun.com/story/news/2015/07/10/history-‐column-‐dr-‐forrest-‐bird/29994403/ 7. Nagel EL, et al Science 18 Dec 1964;146(3651):1591-93.
S2352-4529(16)30046-9 doi: 10.1016/j.janh.2016.03.018 JANH 84
To appear in:
Journal of Anesthesia History
Received date: Accepted date:
17 March 2016 30 March 2016
Please cite this article as: , Forrest M. Bird: Pioneer Anesthesiologist and Aviator, Journal of Anesthesia History (2016), doi: 10.1016/j.janh.2016.03.018
This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.
ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Forrest M. Bird: Pioneer Anesthesiologist and Aviator
T
Bradley E. Smith, M.D. Emeritus Professor of Anesthesiology Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
AC
CE
PT
ED
MA
NU
SC
RI P
Forrest Bird became a member of the National Inventor’s Hall of Fame in 1995. He received numerous awards, including the Presidential Citizens Medal from Pres. George W. Bush (2008), the National Medal of Technology and Innovation from Pres. Barack Obama (2009), and the Charles and Ann Lindbergh Award (2012). 1,2 Most physicians practicing in the 1970s and 1980s were familiar with the Bird adult and infant ventilators that revolutionized adult and infant critical care throughout the world. 3 Bird’s nonmedical discoveries and inventions have been hailed by some as more revolutionary and enduring than his medical devices. At the age of 14 (1935) Bird was a licensed pilot. Because of his flying experience, Bird flew the newest and least proven types of planes after he enlisted in the Army Air Corps in 1941. Soon after D-Day, he was flying bombing missions over Normandy and for a time was Gen. George Patton’s personal pilot. Bird retired from the Army Air Corps as a full colonel.4 Bird developed the first successful oxygen delivery device for use above 30,000 feet and the world’s first “anti-g” suit for Allied fighter pilots. He designed wings for early intercontinental passenger jets and worked closely with the helicopter genius Igor Sikorsky. Sikorsky approved Bird’s project to add two additional engines to Bird’s own Sikorsky designed WWII 2-engine PBY-2 Catalina amphibious patrol plane. Forrest Bird held U.S. Helicopter License #7 and flew his three personal helicopters into his nineties. 4,5 Fidel Castro demanded delivery of Bird ventilators to Cuba as part of the negotiations for release of the Bay of Pigs prisoners; Bird did so at the direction of Robert F. Kennedy. 6 Bird assisted Jacques Cousteau and modified a human ventilator for use by E.L. Nagel who delivered the first anesthetic for a dolphin in John Lilly’s laboratory. 5,7 In his later years, Forrest Bird flew around the world teaching resuscitation and respiratory care to health care providers. Bird and his third wife, Pamela, built an amazing museum of restored, flyable aircraft in Sagle, Idaho. Pamela tragically perished in an aircraft accident only a few weeks after Forrest’s death. 2,4 References: 1. New York Times 8/4/2015, p. B15. 2. www.sandpointonline.com/sandpointmag 3. Kirby RR, et al: Anesth Analg 1971;50:533-37. 4. www.uidaho.edu//…/forrest_bird_obituary.ashxUniversity of Idaho 5. Personal communication from FMB 9/22/1983. 6. http://www.desertsun.com/story/news/2015/07/10/history-‐column-‐dr-‐forrest-‐bird/29994403/ 7. Nagel EL, et al Science 18 Dec 1964;146(3651):1591-93.