How did American soldiers use napalm without harming themselves?

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I know napalm usage was quite common in wartime between WW2 and Vietnam, and I’m also very aware of just how damaging the substance was to the people affected. Internal damage, skin essentially melting, burning underwater (cue Phil Swift), etc. My question is, how were soldiers able to, for lack of a better word, safely use napalm without harming themselves as well as their targets?

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Anonymous 0 Comments

With bombs, mostly.

Napalm was primarily used for fireboming a large area. 

Where it did see use in close range you’re mostly talking about flamethrowers, personal or vehicle mounted, which use a mixture with more gasoline to thin it out a bit more and make it readily sprayable. In which case….stay behind the spray. 

Friendly fire was a big issue in Vietnam.

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