Whistling Gremlins - [Aviation Gremlin]

 Whistling Gremlin - [Aviation Gremlin] - (Latin: Whooey Gremlinicus.) - aka 'wind-whister' 

• About this Gremlin: A high altitude, teeny gremlin with a big hole in its chest, it fancies itself something of a high-society musician with a fancy wire-stringed wind-instrument like body to match. Their modus operendai is to wait patiently by a aviators ear and then just as they begin to dive for a landing, the gremlins body suddenly lets off an awful "Woosh" (a whistle, like those heard during hard 9-G landings) --Tricking the poor pilots into thinking that they are moving way faster than they actually are, panic ensues and the gremlin has a good chuckle...

• History: This Gremlin was earliest illustrated in "Gremlin Americanus" [Eric Solane, Dec 1942] Americas earliest gremlinology bestiary (Though, mention of "Wind-whistling gremlins" be traced back earlier to various BRAF & RAF pilots, examples below.) – The Whistling gremlin's entry, with correspondence from a commander working at Mitchell Field, goes as follows:

"This little member of the gremlin family loves music, and is practically a wind instrument himself. He has a particular hole in his abdomen with piano wires stretched across it in such a manner that wind whistles through with a musical note. By means of this sound box , the gremlin delights in making a pilot think he is going faster than his instruments indicate which is most disconcerting during a landing. 

The Gremlins whistling noise often resembles the radio beam-signal and the whistling gremlin gets lots of fun out of fooling the instrument pilot "making like a beam." 

Dear Eric – The whistling gremlin belongs to the gremlin "haute monde" and is in class by himself. He specializes in making those weird noises which indicate tremendous air speed when actually the motor is barely turning over. He makes a simple bank seem like a 9-G dive and scares the pants off of fledglings. – Regards, Lt Col. A. A. Jacobson. Mitchell Field, Long Island."

• About the correspondence: Unfortunately its a bit difficult to pinpoint exactly which "Lieutenant Colonel Jacobson" that the above might be referring to? – (a list of the commanding officers that worked at Mitchell Field during ww2 can be found here. none seem to go by "A. A. Jacobson" ) – So, unless i'm missing someone; or unless this colonel worked there perhaps very briefly. -  its tough to pin-point his identity. – (However, I also have little reason to doubt that he wasn't a real person as most of the entries are from actual pilots or people working in adjacent fields!) – regardless of whoever they might have been; The colonel seems to be referring to a 9-G maneuver which refers to when an aircraft experiences nine times the force of Earth's gravity as it dips into a sharp dive, such a fall can be very risky and such maneuvers often caused even the most experienced or ready pilots to black out! – As said; This gremlins antics tricks novice pilots into thinking that they're moving faster than they actually are: quite frightening. - In such cases, I can understand why it might have been better to 'blame it on a gremlin'; to help calm your nerves in the moment, rather than panicking or thinking that it’s your own fault or worrying about something being broken in your craft! I imagine the pilot would take a deep breath and think to themselves; "Stick the landing, things will work out."

• Variants & Similar gremlins: Gremlins with 'holes' in their bodies are actually quite commonly depicted in early Gremlin related media and lore. Such gremlins have often been blamed for all sorts of 'audio-phenomena' everything from 'Ears Popping' to "Hearing mysterious voices on the wind." – Typically the kind which tends to happen while you are in motion at high speeds on a vehicle or plane!

Strangely; Triangle-shaped holes seem to be the more popular shape for gremlins of this type to assume in earlier depictions (Though Aeolian wind harps are a thing i'm unware of any triangular wind instruments) so perhaps I'm missing something? or maybe that was the joke? hard to say! ) – Perhaps solane gave it a harp-like depiction in reference to the Bandsman insignia? (Emblems and badges worn by musicians in military bands, most frequently depicted as a 3 or 4 stringed harp!) hard to say for certain though.

["wind whistlers" from 'Gremlins on the job' Judy Vargas [1943]]

["hairy legged gremlin" Life Magazine November 1942]

[art sticker & deep dive by samkalensky, part of my gremlinology collection! Check my shop and follow for many more]