In 1943, the Royal Canadian Navy introduced this pattern of life vest, which largely replaced the inflatable life belt.

The life vest's design incorporated improvements learned through bitter experience. A collar (top) kept an unconscious wearer's head out of the water, while a small blinking red light, missing from this vest, helped rescuers locate survivors. A hook and line attached to the vest allowed survivors to attach themselves to floating objects like life rafts. A groin pad (bottom) helped reduce injuries caused by explosions of depth charges.

Life Vest
CWM 19730289-005