meaning of Crew Binges

Teddy's crew, along with most other crews in the military during the war, would go on drinking binges when they had a night off. The reckless abandon with which they drank and fooled around with women indicated their worry that they might not live past their next mission. Also, the men were under great stress during the war, as they carried a heavy burden of executing important missions that killed thousands of people over time. Binging on alcohol, a substance that would change one's state of mind, was a way they forgot for a little while the destruction they were causing.