1.
Depth charge
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A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon. It is intended to destroy a submarine by being dropped into the nearby and detonating, subjecting the target to a powerful. Most depth charges use high explosive charges and a set to detonate the charge. Depth charges can be dropped by ships, patrol aircraft, Depth charges were developed during World War I, and were one of the first effective methods of attacking a submarine underwater. They were widely used in World War I and World War II and they remained part of the anti-submarine arsenals of many navies during the Cold War. Depth charges have now largely replaced by anti-submarine homing torpedoes. A depth charge fitted with a warhead is known as a nuclear depth bomb. These were designed to be dropped from a plane or deployed by an anti-submarine missile from a surface ship, or another submarine. All nuclear anti-submarine weapons were withdrawn from service by the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Russia and they were replaced by conventional weapons whose accuracy and range had improved greatly as ASW technology improved. The first attempt to fire charges against submerged targets was with aircraft bombs attached to lanyards which triggered them, a similar idea was a 16 lb guncotton charge in a lanyarded can. Two of these together became known as the depth charge Type A. Problems with the lanyards tangling and failing to function led to the development of a chemical pellet trigger as the Type B and these were effective at a distance of around 20 ft. A1913 Royal Navy Torpedo School report described a device intended for countermining, at Admiral John Jellicoes request, the standard Mark II mine was fitted with a hydrostatic pistol preset for 45 ft firing, to be launched from a stern platform. Weighing 1,150 lb, and effective at 100 ft, the design work was carried out by Herbert Taylor at the RN Torpedo and Mine School, HMS Vernon. The first effective depth charge, the Type D, became available in January 1916 and it was a barrel-like casing containing a high explosive. There were initially two sizes—Type D, with a 300 lb charge for fast ships, and Type D* with a 120 lb charge for ships too slow to leave the area before the more powerful charge detonated. A hydrostatic pistol actuated by water pressure at a pre-selected depth detonated the charge, initial depth settings were 40 or 80 ft. Because production could not keep up with demand, anti-submarine vessels initially carried two depth charges, to be released from a chute at the stern of the ship
2.
Fairey Battle
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The Fairey Battle was a British single-engine light bomber designed and manufactured by the Fairey Aviation Company. It was developed during the mid-1930s for the Royal Air Force as a successor to the earlier Hawker Hart. The Fairey Battle participated in combat missions during early stages of the Second World War. During the Phoney War, the type achieved the distinction of attaining the first aerial victory of an RAF aircraft in the conflict, however, by May 1940, the Battle had suffered heavy losses, frequently in excess of 50 per cent of sortied aircraft per mission. By the end of 1940, the type had been withdrawn from active combat service. For an aircraft which had been viewed to possess a level of pre-war promise. A requirement of the aircraft was to be capable of carrying 1,000 lb bombs over a distance of 1,000 miles while flying at a speed of 200 MPH. The Fairey Aviation Company were keen to produce a design to meet the demands of Specification P. 27/32, the Belgian aeronautical engineer Marcel Lobelle served as the aircrafts principal designer. One of the decisions made by Lobelle on the project was the use of the newly developed Rolls-Royce Merlin I engine. The Merlin engine was paired to a de Havilland Propellers-built three-bladed variable-pitch propeller unit. The choice of engine enabled the designing of the aircraft to possess exceptionally clean lines, the resulting design was an all-metal single-engine aircraft, which adopted a low-mounted cantilever monoplane wing and was equipped with a retractable tail wheel undercarriage. A total of four decided to formally respond to Specification P. 27/32, these being the Fairey, Hawker Aircraft, Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft. Of the submissions made, the Air Ministry selected Armstrong Whitworth, on 10 March 1936, the first Fairey prototype, K4303, equipped with a Merlin I engine capable of generating 1,030 hp, performed its maiden flight at Hayes, Middlesex. In 1936, further orders were placed for Fairey to built addition Battles to Specification P. 14/36, in June 1937, the first production Battle, K7558, conducted its maiden flight. K7558 was later used to perform a series of official handling, during these trials, it demonstrated the Battles ability to conduct missions of a 1,000 mile range while under a full bomb load. The first 136 Fairey-built Battles were powered by the Merlin I, by the end of 1937,85 Battles had been completed and a number of RAF squadrons had been reequipped, or were otherwise in the process of re-equipping, with the type. As the RAF embarked on what became a substantial pre-war expansion programme, accordingly, there was at one point a total of 2,419 aircraft were on order for the service. In June 1937, the first aircraft was completed at Hayes, however, all subsequent aircraft were manufactured at Faireys newly completed factory at Heaton Chapel, completed aircraft were promptly dispatched for testing at the companys facility adjacent to RAF Ringway, Manchester
3.
Machine gun
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A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm designed to fire bullets in quick succession from an ammunition belt or magazine, typically at a rate of 300 to 1800 rounds per minute. Note that not all fully automatic firearms are machine guns, submachine guns, rifles, assault rifles, shotguns, pistols or cannons may be capable of fully automatic fire, but are not designed for sustained fire. Many machine guns also use belt feeding and open bolt operation, unlike semi-automatic firearms, which require one trigger pull per round fired, a machine gun is designed to fire for as long as the trigger is held down. Nowadays the term is restricted to heavy weapons, able to provide continuous or frequent bursts of automatic fire for as long as ammunition lasts. Machine guns are used against personnel, aircraft and light vehicles, or to provide suppressive fire. Some machine guns have in practice sustained fire almost continuously for hours, because they become very hot, practically all machine guns fire from an open bolt, to permit air cooling from the breech between bursts. They also usually have either a barrel cooling system, slow-heating heavyweight barrel, although subdivided into light, medium, heavy or general-purpose, even the lightest machine guns tend to be substantially larger and heavier than standard infantry arms. Medium and heavy guns are either mounted on a tripod or on a vehicle, when carried on foot. Medium machine guns use full-sized rifle rounds and are designed to be used from fixed positions mounted on a tripod. 50in, the M249 automatic rifle is operated by an automatic rifleman, but its ammunition may be carried by other Soldiers within the squad or unit. The M249 machine gun is a crew-served weapon, Machine guns usually have simple iron sights, though the use of optics is becoming more common. Many heavy machine guns, such as the Browning M2.50 caliber machine gun, are enough to engage targets at great distances. During the Vietnam War, Carlos Hathcock set the record for a shot at 7382 ft with a.50 caliber heavy machine gun he had equipped with a telescopic sight. This led to the introduction of.50 caliber anti-materiel sniper rifles, selective fire rifles firing a full-power rifle cartridge from a closed bolt are called automatic rifles or battle rifles, while rifles that fire an intermediate cartridge are called assault rifles. Unlocking and removing the spent case from the chamber and ejecting it out of the weapon as bolt is moving rearward Loading the next round into the firing chamber. Usually the recoil spring tension pushes bolt back into battery and a cam strips the new round from a feeding device, cycle is repeated as long as the trigger is activated by operator. Releasing the trigger resets the trigger mechanism by engaging a sear so the weapon stops firing with bolt carrier fully at the rear, the operation is basically the same for all autoloading firearms, regardless of the means of activating these mechanisms. Most modern machine guns use gas-operated reloading, a recoil actuated machine gun uses the recoil to first unlock and then operate the action. Machine guns such as the M2 Browning and MG42, are of this type, a cam, lever or actuator demultiplicates the energy of the recoil to operate the bolt
4.
World War II
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World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945, although related conflicts began earlier. It involved the vast majority of the worlds countries—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing alliances, the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, and directly involved more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. Marked by mass deaths of civilians, including the Holocaust and the bombing of industrial and population centres. These made World War II the deadliest conflict in human history, from late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany conquered or controlled much of continental Europe, and formed the Axis alliance with Italy and Japan. Under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of August 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union partitioned and annexed territories of their European neighbours, Poland, Finland, Romania and the Baltic states. In December 1941, Japan attacked the United States and European colonies in the Pacific Ocean, and quickly conquered much of the Western Pacific. The Axis advance halted in 1942 when Japan lost the critical Battle of Midway, near Hawaii, in 1944, the Western Allies invaded German-occupied France, while the Soviet Union regained all of its territorial losses and invaded Germany and its allies. During 1944 and 1945 the Japanese suffered major reverses in mainland Asia in South Central China and Burma, while the Allies crippled the Japanese Navy, thus ended the war in Asia, cementing the total victory of the Allies. World War II altered the political alignment and social structure of the world, the United Nations was established to foster international co-operation and prevent future conflicts. The victorious great powers—the United States, the Soviet Union, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival superpowers, setting the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 46 years. Meanwhile, the influence of European great powers waned, while the decolonisation of Asia, most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery. Political integration, especially in Europe, emerged as an effort to end pre-war enmities, the start of the war in Europe is generally held to be 1 September 1939, beginning with the German invasion of Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later. The dates for the beginning of war in the Pacific include the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War on 7 July 1937, or even the Japanese invasion of Manchuria on 19 September 1931. Others follow the British historian A. J. P. Taylor, who held that the Sino-Japanese War and war in Europe and its colonies occurred simultaneously and this article uses the conventional dating. Other starting dates sometimes used for World War II include the Italian invasion of Abyssinia on 3 October 1935. The British historian Antony Beevor views the beginning of World War II as the Battles of Khalkhin Gol fought between Japan and the forces of Mongolia and the Soviet Union from May to September 1939, the exact date of the wars end is also not universally agreed upon. It was generally accepted at the time that the war ended with the armistice of 14 August 1945, rather than the formal surrender of Japan
5.
Vickers-Armstrongs
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Vickers-Armstrongs Limited was a British engineering conglomerate formed by the merger of the assets of Vickers Limited and Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Company in 1927. The majority of the company was nationalised in the 1960s and 1970s, Vickers merged with the Tyneside-based engineering company Armstrong Whitworth, founded by W. G. Armstrong, to become Vickers-Armstrongs, Ltd. Armstrong Whitworth and Vickers had developed along lines, expanding into various military sectors. Armstrong Whitworth were notable for their manufacture at Elswick and shipbuilding at a yard at High Walker on the River Tyne. 1929 saw the merger of the railway business with those of Cammell Laird to form Metropolitan Cammell Carriage and Wagon. In 1935, before rearmament began, Vickers-Armstrongs was the third-largest manufacturing employer in Britain, behind Unilever, in 1960 the aircraft interests were merged with those of Bristol, English Electric and Hunting Aircraft to form the British Aircraft Corporation. This was owned by Vickers, English Electric and Bristol, BAC in turn owned 70% of Hunting. The Supermarine operation was closed in 1963 and the Vickers brand name for aircraft was dropped by BAC in 1965, under the terms of the Aircraft and Shipbuilding Industries Act 1977 BAC was nationalised to become part of British Aerospace. The Aircraft and Shipbuilding Industries Act also led to the nationalisation of Vickers shipbuilding division as part of British Shipbuilders, Vickers Container and Packaging Machinery Division, including the Vickers Stitcher and Vickers Hardness Machine business, was bought by Fords Industrial Products, part of Barry Wehmiller in 1986. In 1991 the Vickers Hardness Machinery business was bought by the field engineers. The Vickers Stitcher was still being manufactured in India as recently as 2005, the steelmaking division became part of British Steel Corporation and the remaining interests were divested as the public company Vickers plc, whose various components were later split. The Vickers name ceased to exist in 2003 when Rolls-Royce renamed its acquisitions Vinters plc, Vickers-Armstrongs inherited the Vickers machine gun of 1912 used in World War I from Vickers Limited. An unusual machine gun also made was the Vickers Higson, Vickers produced larger weapons such as the Ordnance QF 2-pounder gun used on tanks. In 1948 Vickers bought the Australian business of Charles Ruwolt Ltd for £750,000 following Ruwolts death in 1946, during WW2 Ruwolts firm produced armaments for the Australian Government, including field artillery such as mortars and howitzer cannon. Vickers-Armstrongs was one of the most important warship manufacturers in the world and these interests were renamed as Vickers-Armstrongs Shipbuilders in 1955, changing again to Vickers Limited Shipbuilding Group in 1968. The Barrow yard was nationalised and became part of British Shipbuilders in 1977, was privatised as VSEL in 1986, the company was also known for its tank designs, starting with the widely used Vickers 6-Ton. It also produced the influential, if never actually produced, Independent A1E1 tank, one of the companys most important designs was the Valentine Infantry Tank, produced in the thousands in World War II. The military vehicle manufacturing interests were divested into Vickers plc, and would pass to Alvis Vickers, now part of BAE Systems Land
6.
Vickers K machine gun
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The high rate of fire was needed for the small period of time when the gunner would be able to fire at an attacking aircraft. The weapon was adopted for land use during World War II. The Vickers K was a development of the Vickers-Berthier light machine gun, the VB, like the Bren light machine gun, used a tilting locking breechblock. However, unlike the Bren, the VB locked its breech only at the last moment of forward travel and this enabled the development of the Vickers K also known as the Vickers Gas Operated or Vickers GO. With lighter moving parts and the VB locking design, the Vickers K had a rate of fire between 950 and 1,200 rounds per minute, faster than the German MG34. The weapon was adopted for British service as the VGO and it was test-flown with a large 300-round pan magazine, and beat the.303 Browning in reliability. However, the pan would have caused problems to accommodate. When the belt-fed Browning Mark II was selected as the standard armament for RAF aircraft. It continued to be used by the Fleet Air Arm until 1945, some were made in 7. 7mm for the Belgians before the war and at least one example survives in a European museum. The Vickers class K/Vickers G. O. machine gun is a gas operated weapon and its gas cylinder is located below the barrel, and a long stroke gas piston operates a vertically tilting bolt. Feed is from top-mounted flat pan magazines with a capacity of 100 rounds. The gun is fitted with a spade grip at the rear of receiver. In ground use, it was mounted on single or twin pintle mounts on various jeeps. Originally intended for RAF airfield defence units, these guns were remanufactured from original Vickers G. O. No.1 Mk.1 aircraft guns, a number of these ‘Vickers G. O. Land Service’ machine guns found their way to a variety of British Commando, the Land variant has the spade grip replaced with a semi bullpup short stock at the rear and a pistol grip with trigger below the receiver. A short forend or a carrying handle are added below the gas cylinder. New iron sights are provided on folding bases, a camera gun version was made for training. The body was of cast metal, the grip and trigger mechanism were realistic
7.
Gun barrel
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A gun barrel is a part of firearms and artillery pieces. The hollow interior of the barrel is called the bore, a gun barrel must be able to hold in the expanding gas produced by the propellants to ensure that optimum muzzle velocity is attained by the projectile as it is being pushed out by the expanding gas. Modern small arms barrels are made of known and tested to withstand the pressures involved. Artillery pieces are made by various techniques providing reliably sufficient strength, early firearms were muzzle-loading, with powder, and then shot loaded from the muzzle, capable of only a low rate of fire. During the 19th century effective mechanical locks were invented that sealed a breech-loading weapon against the escape of propellant gases, the early Chinese, the inventors of gunpowder, used bamboo, a naturally tubular stalk, as the first barrels in gunpowder projectile weapons. Early European guns were made of iron, usually with several strengthening bands of the metal wrapped around circular wrought iron rings. The Chinese were the first to master cast-iron cannon barrels, early cannon barrels were very thick for their caliber. Bore evacuator Bore snake Cannon Muzzle Polygonal rifling Rifling Slug barrel Smoothbore
8.
Cartridge (firearms)
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Military and commercial producers continue to pursue the goal of caseless ammunition. A cartridge without a bullet is called a blank, One that is completely inert is called a dummy. Some artillery ammunition uses the same concept as found in small arms. In other cases, the shell is separate from the propellant charge. In popular use, the bullet is often misused to refer to a complete cartridge. The cartridge case seals a firing chamber in all directions excepting the bore, a firing pin strikes the primer and ignites it. The primer compound deflagrates, it does not detonate, a jet of burning gas from the primer ignites the propellant. Gases from the burning powder pressurize and expand the case to seal it against the chamber wall and these propellant gases push on the bullet base. In response to pressure, the bullet will move in the path of least resistance which is down the bore of the barrel. After the bullet leaves the barrel, the pressure drops to atmospheric pressure. The case, which had been expanded by chamber pressure. This eases removal of the case from the chamber, brass is a commonly used case material because it is resistant to corrosion. A brass case head can be work-hardened to withstand the pressures of cartridges. The neck and body portion of a case is easily annealed to make the case ductile enough to allow reforming so that it can be reloaded many times. Steel is used in some plinking ammunition, as well as in military ammunition. Steel is less expensive than brass, but it is not feasible to reload, Military forces typically consider small arms cartridge cases to be disposable, one-time-use devices. However, case weight affects how much ammunition a soldier can carry, conversely, steel is more susceptible to contamination and damage so all such cases are varnished or otherwise sealed against the elements. One downside caused by the strength of steel in the neck of these cases is that propellant gas can blow back past the neck
9.
.303 British
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The.303 British or 7. 7×56mmR, is a. 303-inch calibre rimmed rifle cartridge first developed in Britain as a black-powder round put into service in December 1888 for the Lee–Metford rifle. In 1891 the cartridge was adapted to use smokeless powder and it was the standard British and Commonwealth military cartridge from 1889 until the 1950s when it was replaced by the 7. 62×51mm NATO. The.303 British has 3.64 ml cartridge case capacity, americans would define the shoulder angle at alpha/2 ≈17 degrees. The common rifling twist rate for this cartridge is 254 mm,5 grooves, Ø lands =7.70 millimetres, Ø grooves =7.92 millimetres, land width =2.12 millimetres and the primer type is Berdan or Boxer. Rulings the.303 British can handle up to 365.00 MPa Pmax piezo pressure, regulated countries every rifle cartridge combo has to be proofed at 125% of this maximum C. I. P. pressure to certify for sale to consumers. This means that.303 British chambered arms in C. I. P, regulated countries are currently proof tested at 456.00 MPa PE piezo pressure. The SAAMI Maximum Average Pressure for this cartridge is 49,000 psi piezo pressure, the measurement. 303-inch is the nominal size of the bore measured between the lands which follows the older black powder nomenclature. Measured between the grooves, the size of the bore is. 311-inch. Bores for many.303 military surplus rifles are found ranging from around. 309-inch up to. 318-inch. Recommended bullet diameter for standard.303 British cartridges is. 312-inch, the bolt thrust of the.303 British is relatively low compared to many other service rounds used in the early 20th century. The original.303 British service cartridge employed black powder as a propellant, and was adopted for the Lee–Metford rifle, ballistite was a stick-type smokeless powder composed of soluble nitrocellulose and nitroglycerine. Unlike Cordite, Riflelite was a powder, and contained no nitroglycerine. After extensive testing, the Committee on Explosives selected Cordite for use in the Mark II.303 British service cartridge, the initial.303 Mark I and Mk II service cartridges employed a 215-grain, round-nosed, copper-nickel full-metal-jacketed bullet with a lead core. After tests determined that the bullet had too thin a jacket when used with cordite. This led to the introduction of the Cartridge S. A. Ball.303 inch Cordite Mark III, similar hollow-point bullets were used in the Mk IV and Mk V loadings, which were put into mass production. The design of the Mk IV hollow-point bullet shifted bullet weight rearwards, improving stability, the remaining stocks were used for target practice. The concern about expanding bullets was brought up at the 1899 Hague Convention by Swiss, the British and American defense was that they should not focus on specific bullet designs, like hollow-points, but instead on rounds that caused superfluous injury. The parties in the end agreed to abstain from using expanding bullets, as a result, the Mark III and other expanding versions of the.303 were not issued during the Second Boer War
10.
Caliber
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In guns, particularly firearms, caliber or calibre is the approximate internal diameter of the barrel, or the diameter of the projectile it fires, in hundredths or sometimes thousandths of an inch. For example, a 45 caliber firearm has a diameter of.45 of an inch. Barrel diameters can also be expressed using metric dimensions, as in 9mm pistol, when the barrel diameter is given in inches, the abbreviation cal can be used. Good performance requires a bullet to closely match the diameter of a barrel to ensure a good seal. While modern cartridges and cartridge firearms are referred to by the cartridge name. Firearm calibers outside the range of 17 to 50 exist, but are rarely encountered. Larger calibers, such as.577.585.600.700, the.950 JDJ is the only known cartridge beyond 79 caliber used in a rifle. Referring to artillery, caliber is used to describe the length as multiples of the bore diameter. A 5-inch 50 calibre gun has a diameter of 5 in. The main guns of the USS Missouri are 1650 caliber, makers of early cartridge arms had to invent methods of naming the cartridges, since no established convention existed then. One of the early established cartridge arms was the Spencer repeating rifle, later various derivatives were created using the same basic cartridge, but with smaller-diameter bullets, these were named by the cartridge diameter at the base and mouth. The original No.56 became the. 56-56, and the smaller versions. 56-52. 56-50, the. 56-52, the most common of the new calibers, used a 50-cal bullet. Optionally, the weight in grains was designated, e. g. 45-70-405. Variations on these methods persist today, with new cartridges such as the.204 Ruger, metric diameters for small arms refer to cartridge dimensions and are expressed with an × between the bore diameter and the length of the cartridge case, for example,7. 62×51 NATO. This indicates that the diameter is 7. 62mm, loaded in a case 51mm long. Similarly, the 6. 5×55 Swedish cartridge has a diameter of 6.5 mm. An exception to rule is the proprietary cartridge used by U. S. maker Lazzeroni. The following table lists commonly used calibers where both metric and imperial are used as equivalents
11.
Action (firearms)
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In firearms terminology, an action is the mechanism that handles the ammunition or the method by which that mechanism works. Breech-loading weapons have actions, actions are not present on muzzleloaders. The mechanism that fires a muzzle-loader is called the lock, actions can be categorized in several ways, including single action versus double action, break action versus bolt action, and others. The term action can also short, long, and magnum if it is in reference to the length of the rifle’s receiver. The short action rifle usually can accommodate a cartridge length of 2.8 in or smaller, the long action rifle can accommodate a cartridge of 3.34 in, and the magnum action rifle can accommodate cartridges of 3.6 in, or longer in length. Manual operation is a term describing any type of firearm action that is loaded one shot at a time by the user rather than automatically. For example, break action is a form of operation using a simple hinge mechanism that is manually unlatched by the operator. These are actions wherein the breechblock lowers or drops into the receiver to open the breech, there are two principal types of dropping block, the tilting block and the falling block. In a tilting or pivoting block action, the breechblock is hinged on a pin mounted at the rear, when the lever is operated, the block tilts down and forward, exposing the chamber. The best-known pivoting block designs are the Peabody, the Peabody–Martini, the original Peabody rifles, manufactured by the Providence Tool Company, used a manually cocked side-hammer. The 1871 Martini–Henry which replaced the trapdoor Snider–Enfield was the standard British Army rifle of the later Victorian era, charles H. Ballards self-cocking tilting-block action was produced by the Marlin Firearms Company from 1875, and earned a superlative reputation among long-range Creedmoor target shooters. Surviving Marlin Ballards are today highly prized by collectors, especially those mounted in the elaborate Swiss-style Schützen stocks of the day. A falling-block action is a firearm action in which a solid metal breechblock slides vertically in grooves cut into the breech of the weapon. Examples of firearms using the falling block action are the Sharps rifle, in a rolling block action the breechblock takes the form of a part-cylinder, with a pivot pin through its axis. The operator rotates or rolls the block to open and close the breech, it is a simple, rugged, a break action is a type of firearm where the barrel are hinged and can be broken open to expose the breech. The earliest metallic-cartridge breechloaders designed for military issue began as conversions of muzzle-loading rifle-muskets. The upper rear portion of the barrel was filed or milled away, an internal angled firing pin allowed the re-use of the rifles existing side-hammer. The Allin action made by Springfield Arsenal in the US hinged forward, france countered in 1866 with its superior Chassepot rifle, also a paper-cartridge bolt action
12.
Magazine (firearms)
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A magazine is an ammunition storage and feeding device within or attached to a repeating firearm. Magazines can be removable or integral to the firearm, the magazine functions by moving the cartridges stored in the magazine into a position where they may be loaded into the chamber by the action of the firearm. The detachable magazine is often referred to as a clip, although this is technically inaccurate, magazines come in many shapes and sizes, from those of bolt-action express rifles that hold only a few rounds to drum magazines for self-loading rifles that can hold one hundred rounds or more. Various jurisdictions ban what they define as high-capacity magazines, with the increased use of semi-automatic and automatic firearms, the detachable box magazine became increasingly common. Soon after the adoption of the M1911 pistol, the magazine was settled on by the military and firearms experts. The defining difference between clips and magazines is the presence of a mechanism in a magazine, typically a spring-loaded follower. Use of the clip to refer to detachable magazines is a point of strong disagreement. The first mass-produced repeater was the Volcanic Rifle which used a bullet with the base filled with powder and primer fed into the chamber from a spring-loaded tube called a magazine. It was named after a building or room used to store ammunition, the anemic power of the Rocket Ball ammunition used in the Volcanic doomed it to limited popularity. The Henry repeating rifle is a lever-action, breech-loading, tubular magazine fed rifle, designed by Benjamin Tyler Henry in 1860, it was one of the first firearms to use self-contained metallic cartridges. The Henry was introduced in the early 1860s and produced through 1866 in the United States by the New Haven Arms Company and it was adopted in small quantities by the Union in the Civil War and favored for its greater firepower than the standard issue carbine. Many later found their way West and was famed both for its use at the Battle of the Little Bighorn, and being the basis for the iconic Winchester rifle which are made to this day. The Henry and Winchester rifles would go on to see service with a number of militaries including Turkey, switzerland and Italy adopted similar designs. The first magazine-fed firearm to achieve success was the Spencer repeating rifle. The Spencer used a magazine located in the butt of the gun instead of under the barrel. The Spencer was successful, but the rimfire ammunition did occasionally ignite in the magazine tube and it could also injure the user. The new bolt-action rifles began to favor with militaries in the 1880s and were often equipped with tubular magazines. The Mauser Model 1871 was originally a single-shot action that added a magazine in its 1884 update
13.
Light machine gun
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A light machine gun is a machine gun designed to be employed by an individual soldier, with or without an assistant, as an infantry support weapon. Light machine guns are used as squad automatic weapons. Modern light machine guns often fire smaller-caliber cartridges than medium machine guns, some LMGs, such as the Russian RPK, are modifications of existing assault rifle designs and designed to share the same ammunition. Adaptations to the original rifle generally include a magazine, a heavier barrel to resist overheating, a more robust mechanism to support sustained fire. Deployed on a tripod and used for sustained-fire it is a machine gun, if deployed with a bipod with the operator in prone position. Light machine guns are designed to be fired from the hip or on the move as a form of suppressive fire intended to pin down the enemy. Marching fire is a tactic that relies on this capability. Lighter modern LMGs have enabled them to be issued down at the fireteam level, many light machine guns were magazine-fed. Others, such as the MG34, could be fed either from a belt or from a magazine, light machine guns were first introduced in World War I to boost the firepower of advancing infantry. The following were either exclusively light machine guns, had a machine gun variant or were employed in the light machine gun role with certain adaptations. 26 Medium machine gun Heavy machine gun Squad automatic weapon General-purpose machine gun Assault rifle
14.
British Indian Army
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The Indian Army was the principal army of India before independence from the United Kingdom in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of both British India and the Princely states, which could also have their own armies. The Indian Army was an important part of the British Empires forces, the term Indian Army appears to have been first used informally, as a collective description of the Presidency armies of the Presidencies of British India, particularly after the Indian Rebellion. The first army officially called the Indian Army was raised by the government of India in 1895, however, in 1903 the Indian Army absorbed these three armies. The Indian Army should not be confused with the Army of India which was the Indian Army itself plus the British Army in India, before 1858, the precursor units of the Indian Army were units controlled by the Company and were paid for by their profits. These operated alongside units of the British Army, funded by the British government in London. Many of these took part in the Indian Mutiny, with the aim of reinstating the Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah II at Delhi. The meaning of the term Indian Army has changed over time, The officer commanding the Army of India was the Commander-in-Chief, the title was used before the creation of a unified British Indian Army, the first holder was Major General Stringer Lawrence in 1748. By the early 1900s the Commander-in-Chief and his staff were based at GHQ India, Indian Army postings were less prestigious than British Army positions, but the pay was significantly greater so that officers could live on their salaries instead of having to have a private income. Accordingly, vacancies in the Indian Army were much sought after and generally reserved for the higher placed officer-cadets graduating from the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. British officers in the Indian Army were expected to learn to speak the Indian languages of their men, prominent British Indian Army officers included Frederick Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts, William Birdwood, 1st Baron Birdwood, Claude Auchinleck and William Slim, 1st Viscount Slim. Commissioned officers, British and Indian, held identical ranks to commissioned officers of the British Army, Kings Commissioned Indian Officers, created from the 1920s, held equal powers to British officers. Viceroys Commissioned Officers were Indians holding officer ranks and they were treated in almost all respects as commissioned officers, but had authority over Indian troops only, and were subordinate to all British Kings Commissioned Officers and KCIOs. They included Subedar Major or Risaldar-Major, equivalents to a British Major, Subedar or Risaldar equivalents to Captain, recruitment was entirely voluntary, about 1.75 million men served in the First World War, many on the Western Front and 2.5 million in the Second. Soldier ranks included Sepoys or Sowars, equivalent to a British private, British Army ranks such as gunner and sapper were used by other corps. In the aftermath of the Indian Mutiny of 1857, also known as the Sepoy Mutiny. The three Presidency armies remained separate forces, each with its own Commander-in-Chief, overall operational control was exercised by the Commander-in-Chief of the Bengal Army, who was formally the Commander-in-Chief of the East Indies. From 1861, most of the manpower was pooled in the three Presidential Staff Corps
15.
Bren light machine gun
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The Bren gun, usually called simply the Bren, was a series of light machine guns made by Britain in the 1930s and used in various roles until 1992. Although fitted with a bipod, it could also be mounted on a tripod or vehicle-mounted, the Bren was a licensed version of the Czechoslovak ZGB33 light machine gun, which in turn, was a modified version of ZB vz. 26, which British Army officials had tested during a firearms service competition in the 1930s, the later Bren featured a distinctive top-mounted curved box magazine, conical flash hider, and quick change barrel. The name Bren was derived from Brno, Moravia, the Czechoslovak city where the Zb vz.26 was originally designed, the original and main designer was Václav Holek, a gun inventor and design engineer. In the 1950s many Brens were rebarrelled to accept the 7. 62×51mm NATO cartridge and it was replaced in the British Army as the section LMG by the L7 general-purpose machine gun, a heavier belt-fed weapon. This was, in turn, supplemented in the 1980s by the L86 Light Support Weapon firing the 5. 56×45mm NATO round, the Bren is still manufactured by Indian Ordnance Factories as the Gun, Machine 7. 62mm 1B. At the close of the First World War in 1918, the British Army was equipped with two automatic weapons, the Vickers medium machine gun and the Lewis light machine gun. The Vickers was heavy and required a supply of water to keep it in operation, although the BAR was recommended, the sheer number of Lewis guns available and the difficult financial conditions meant that nothing was done. Various new models of machine gun were tested as they became available, and in 1930. This time the weapons tested included the SIG Neuhausen KE7, the Vickers-Berthier, following these trials, the British Army adopted the Czechoslovak ZB vz.26 light machine gun manufactured in Brno in 1935, although a slightly modified model, the ZB vz. 27, rather than the ZB vz.26 which had submitted for the trials. The design was modified to British requirements under new designation ZGB33, the magazine was curved in order to feed the rimmed.303 British cartridge, a change from the various rimless Mauser-design cartridges such as the 8mm Mauser round previously used by Czech designs. These modifications were categorised in various numbered designations, ZB vz,32, and finally the ZGB33, which was licensed for manufacture under the Bren name. The vented gas drove a piston which in turn actuated the breech block, each gun came with a spare barrel that could be quickly changed when the barrel became hot during sustained fire, though later guns featured a chrome-lined barrel which reduced the need for a spare. To change barrels, the catch in front of the magazine was rotated to unlock the barrel. The carrying handle above the barrel was used to grip and remove the hot barrel without burning the hands, the Bren was magazine-fed, which slowed its rate of fire and required more frequent reloading than British belt-fed machine guns such as the larger.303 Vickers machine gun. The magazines also prevented the ammunition from getting dirty, which was more of a problem with the Vickers with its 250-round canvas belts, the sights were offset to the left, to avoid the magazine on the top of the weapon. The position of the sights meant that the Bren could be fired only from the right shoulder, in the British and Commonwealth armies, the Bren was generally issued on a scale of one per rifle section, with three rifle sections in each platoon
16.
MG 34
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The Maschinengewehr 34, or MG34, is a German recoil-operated air-cooled machine gun, first tested in 1929, introduced in 1934, and issued to units in 1936. It accepts the 7. 92×57mm Mauser cartridge, and is considered the worlds first general-purpose machine gun. The versatile MG34 was arguably the most advanced machine gun in the world at the time of its deployment and its combination of exceptional mobility – being light enough to be carried by one man – and high rate of fire was unmatched. It entered service in numbers following Hitlers repudiation of the Versailles Treaty in 1936. Nonetheless, the design proved too complex for production, and was supplemented by the cheaper and simpler MG42. The MG34 was based on a 1930 Rheinmetall design, the MG30, the Swiss and Austrian militaries had both licensed and produced the MG30 from Rheinmetall shortly after patent. The MG30 design was adapted and modified by Heinrich Vollmer of Mauser Industries, Vollmer modified the feed mechanism to accept either drum magazines or belt ammunition. He also increased the rate of fire, the MG 34s double crescent trigger dictated either semiautomatic or fully automatic firing modes. In the field, the weapon could operate in offensive or defensive applications, the offensive model, with a mobile soldier, used a drum magazine that could hold either 50 or 75 rounds of ammunition. In a stationary defensive role, the gun was mounted on a bipod or tripod, belts were carried in boxes of five. Belt lengths could be linked for sustained fire, during sustained fire, barrels would have to be changed at intervals due to the heat generated by the rapid rate of fire. If the barrels were not changed properly, the weapon would misfire, changing barrels was a rapid process for the trained operator and involved disengaging a latch and swinging the receiver to the right for the insertion of a new barrel. Accordingly, stationary defensive positions required more than one operator, the MG34 was the mainstay of German Army support weapons from the time of its first issue in 1935 until 1942, when it was supplanted by the next generation Maschinengewehr 42 or MG42. For its successor, the MG42, the Germans instead used mass production techniques similar to those that created the MP40 submachine gun, however, the Germans nevertheless continued widespread production of MG 34s until the end of the war. The MG34 was used as the primary machine gun during the 1930s. The MG34 was intended to replace the MG13 and other machine guns. It was designed primarily by Heinrich Vollmer from the Mauser Werke, changes to the operating mechanism improved the rate of fire to between 800 and 900 rpm. The new gun was accepted for service almost immediately and was liked by the troops
17.
M1919 Browning machine gun
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The M1919 Browning is a.30 caliber medium machine gun that was widely used during the 20th century, especially during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. The M1919 saw service as an infantry, coaxial, mounted, aircraft. Many M1919s were rechambered for the new 7. 62×51mm NATO round, the M1919 was an air-cooled development of the standard US machine gun of World War I, the John M. Browning-designed water-cooled M1917. The emergence of machine guns in the 1950s pushed the M1919 into secondary roles in many cases. The United States Navy also converted many to 7. 62mm NATO, many NATO countries also converted their examples to 7.62, and these remained in service well into the 1990s, as well as up to the present day in some countries. A similar conversion of the M1917 also produced the larger M2 Machine Gun, using the basic operating principles and layout. The M1919 is distinguished by its size and the use of a pierced cheese-grater-like guard around the barrel used on most versions. The M1919 originally fired the.30 cal M1906 ball cartridge, a metal M1 link was later adopted, forming a disintegrating belt. The cocking handle was pulled back with the palm of the hand facing up. This advanced the first round of the belt in front of the bolt for the extractor/ejector on the bolt to grab the first cartridge, the cocking handle was pulled and released a second time. This removed the first cartridge from the belt, advanced the next round into position to be grabbed and moved the first round down into the chamber of the ready for firing. As the bolt went into battery, the extractor grabbed the next round on the belt that was advanced and was resting in the feedway waiting to be loaded. If the trigger was held down, the gun would continue to fire in full automatic, the guns original design was as a water-cooled machine gun. When it was decided to try to lighten the gun and make it air-cooled, gunners were trained to manage the barrel heat by firing in controlled bursts of three to five rounds, with a delay between bursts to delay its heating. When the gun was ready to fire, a round would be in the chamber and the bolt and barrel group would be locked together, with the locking block at the rear of the bolt. As the assembly of bolt, barrel and barrel extension recoiled to the rear of the gun upon firing, the recoiling barrel extension struck the accelerator assembly, a half-moon shaped spring-loaded piece of metal pivoting from the receiver below the bolt and behind the barrel extension. The tips of the accelerators two curving fingers engaged the bottom of the bolt and caused it to move rapidly to the rear. The extractor-ejector was a mechanism that pivoted over the front of the bolt, the rearward movement of the bolt caused the rear end of the feed lever to pull to the right, causing the feeding pawl at the other end to move left over the belt
18.
Fleet Air Arm
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The Fleet Air Arm is the branch of the British Royal Navy responsible for the operation of naval aircraft. The Fleet Air Arm currently operates the AgustaWestland Merlin, Westland Sea King, and AgustaWestland Wildcat helicopters, helicopters such as the Lynx and Westland Wasp have been deployed on smaller vessels since 1964, taking over the roles once performed by biplanes such as the Fairey Swordfish. During the Second World War, the Fleet Air Arm operated aircraft on ships as well as land-based aircraft that defended the Royal Navys shore establishments, British naval flying started in 1909, with the construction of an airship for naval duties. The Naval Wing of the RFC lasted until July 1914 when the Royal Navy reformed its air branch, under the Air Department of the Admiralty, naming it the Royal Naval Air Service. By the outbreak of the First World War, in August 1914, the RNAS had more aircraft under its control than the remaining RFC. In April 1918 the RNAS, which at this time had 67,000 officers and men,2,949 aircraft,103 airships and 126 coastal stations, merged with the RFC to form the Royal Air Force. On 1 April 1924, the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Air Force was formed, encompassing those RAF units that normally embarked on aircraft carriers, over the following months RAF Fleet Air Arm Fairey IIID reconnaissance biplanes operated off Hermes, conducting flying trials. On 24 May 1939 the Fleet Air Arm was returned to Admiralty control under the Inskip Award, at the onset of the Second World War, the Fleet Air Arm consisted of 20 squadrons with only 232 aircraft. By the end of the war the strength of the Fleet Air Arm was 59 aircraft carriers,3,700 aircraft,72,000 officers and men. During the war, the FAA operated fighters, torpedo bombers, following the Dunkirk evacuation and the commencement of the Battle of Britain, the Royal Air Force soon found itself critically short of fighter pilots. In the summer of 1940, the RAF had little more than 800 fighter pilots, with this desperate situation the RAF was forced to call upon the Admiralty for Fleet Air Arm assistance. The aircraft carrier had replaced the battleship as the Fleets capital ship, the top scoring fighter ace with 17 victories was Commander Stanley Orr, the Royal Marine ace was Ronald Cuthbert Hay with 13 victories. A number of Royal Marines served as FAA pilots during the war, after the war the FAA needed to fly jet aircraft from their carriers. The jet aircraft of the era were considerably less effective at low speeds than propeller aircraft, the FAA took on its first jet, the Sea Vampire, in the late 1940s. The Sea Vampire was the first jet credited with taking off, the Air Arm continued with high-powered prop aircraft alongside the new jets resulting in the FAA being woefully outpowered during the Korean War. Nevertheless, jets were not yet wholly superior to propeller aircraft, as jets became larger, more powerful and faster they required more space to take off and land. The US Navy simply built much larger carriers, the Royal Navy had a few large carriers built and completed after the end of the war but another solution was sought. An associated British invention, intended to more precise optical guidance to aircraft on final approaching the deck, was the Fresnel lens optical landing aid
19.
Synchronization gear
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The idea presupposes a fixed armament directed by aiming the aircraft in which it is fitted at the target, rather than aiming the gun independently. However, the first practical gear to enter service was that fitted to the Eindecker monoplane fighters. The success of the Eindecker led to numerous gun synchronization devices, from 1918 to the mid-1930s the standard armament for a fighter aircraft remained two synchronized rifle calibre machine guns, firing forward through the propeller. During the late 1930s, however, the role of the fighter was increasingly seen as the destruction of large, all-metal bombers. There were in fact some advantages in dispensing with centrally mounted guns altogether, nevertheless, the conclusive redundancy of synchronization gears did not finally come until the introduction of jet propulsion and the absence of a propeller for guns to be synchronized with. From the beginnings of practical flight possible military uses for aircraft were considered, thus aerial combat was by no means entirely unanticipated, and the machine gun was from the first seen as the most likely weapon to be used. It is likely that an aircraft which is capable of shooting at a machine will have the advantage. The most suitable weapon is a light, air-cooled machine-gun, the idea of coupling the firing mechanism to the propellers rotation is an affectation. The objection is the same as to any gun position which is fixed along the axis of the aircraft. Under certain circumstances this is highly undesirable, a mechanism to enable an automatic weapon to fire between the blades of a whirling propeller is usually called an interrupter or synchronizer gear. Both these terms are more or less misleading, at least in so far as explaining what happens when the gear functions. The term interrupter implies that the gear pauses, or interrupts the fire of the gun at the point where one of the blades of the passes in front of its muzzle. The difficulty is that even the relatively slowly revolving propellers of First World War aircraft typically turned twice or even three times for each shot a contemporary machine gun could fire. A two-bladed propeller would therefore obstruct the gun six times every firing cycle of the gun, a four-bladed one twelve times. Another way of putting this is that a gun would have been blocked more than forty times every second. And yet, synchronization, in the sense of the word. Even if it were feasible to pick a point on an aircraft engines tachometer at which a machine guns cyclic rate would permit it to fire through the propeller – this would be very limiting. In practice it was found that it was necessary for the gun to be fired in semi-automatic mode, at each revolution of the propeller a firing impulse was transmitted to the gun, which effectively pulled the trigger, to fire a single shot
20.
RAF Regiment
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The Royal Air Force Regiment is part of the Royal Air Force and functions as a specialist airfield defence corps founded by Royal Warrant in 1942. The RAF Regiment is trained in CBRN defence, and equipped with advanced vehicles, RAF Regiment instructors are responsible for training all Royal Air Force personnel in basic force protection such as first aid, weapon handling and CBRN skills. The regiment and its members are known within the RAF as The Regiment, RAF Regiment squadrons use aggressive defence tactics whereby they actively seek out infiltrators in a large area surrounding airfields. These were equipped with Rolls-Royce armoured cars and were successful in ground combat operations throughout the Middle East in the 1920s and 1930s. The RAF Regiment came into existence, in name, on 1 February 1942, from the start it had 66,000 personnel drawn from the former Defence Squadrons No. s 701-850. The new regiment was made up of both squadrons and light anti-aircraft squadrons, the latter originally armed with Hispano 20mm cannon. Its role was to seize, secure and defend airfields to enable air operations to take place, several parachute squadrons were formed to assist in the seizing of airfields and No. 284 Field Squadron was the first RAF unit to arrive in West Berlin in 1945 to secure RAF Gatow. During the Second World War, with its first headquarters established at RAF Belton Park, Grantham, Squadrons usually consisted of a headquarters flight, three rifle flights, an air defence flight, and an armoured car flight. The flights were grouped together into wings as needed and it also operated six armoured car squadrons to provide an area response capability to several RAF stations. They proved to be of high quality. This was overcome by holding defensive boxes mainly or entirely supplied by air, the defence of forward airfields close to the main army concentrations was vital to this strategy. A training school and depot for the RAF Regiment was established at Secunderabad in October 1942 to retrain former ground defence airmen and it had an assault course considered tougher than anything the army had in India. Six field squadrons and seventy AA flights were initially formed containing 160 officers and 4,000 other ranks, until mid-1944 the AA flights were equipped only with light machine guns, then with Hispano 20 mm cannon for the rest of the war. Regiment units defended airfields and forward mobile radar units in Arakan in the Allied offensive in late 1942, during the Battle of Imphal all supplies and reinforcements had to be flown in between 29 March and 22 June 1944 with RAF Regiment units providing vital airfield defence. Units of 1307 Wing were flown into the captured and strategically vital Meiktila airfield on 1 March 1945. As one of the RAF Regiments proudest battle honours this three week battle destroyed the Japanese hold on northern Burma, on 26 November 1944, a Me 262A-2a Sturmvogel of III/KG51 based at Hopsten/Rheine near Osnabruck was the first confirmed ground-to-air kill of a jet combat aircraft. The 262 was shot down by a 40/L60 40mm Bofors gun of B.11 Detachment of 2875 Squadron RAF Regiment at the RAF forward airfield of Helmond, near Eindhoven
21.
Special Air Service
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The Special Air Service is a special forces unit of the British Army. The SAS was founded in 1941 as a regiment, and later reconstituted as a corps in 1950, the unit undertakes a number of roles including covert reconnaissance, counter-terrorism, direct action and hostage rescue. The Special Air Service traces its origins to 1941 and the Second World War and it was reformed as part of the Territorial Army in 1947, named the 21st Special Air Service Regiment. It was conceived as a force to operate behind enemy lines in the North African Campaign. Its first mission, in November 1941, was a drop in support of the Operation Crusader offensive. Due to German resistance and adverse conditions, the mission was a disaster,22 men. Its second mission was a major success, transported by the Long Range Desert Group, it attacked three airfields in Libya, destroying 60 aircraft with the loss of 2 men and 3 Willys MB. In September 1942, it was renamed 1st SAS, consisting at that time of four British squadrons, one Free French, one Greek, in January 1943, Colonel Stirling was captured in Tunisia and Paddy Mayne replaced him as commander. In April 1943, the 1st SAS was reorganised into the Special Raiding Squadron under Maynes command and the Special Boat Squadron was placed under the command of George Jellicoe. The Special Raiding Squadron fought in Sicily and Italy along with the 2nd SAS, the Special Boat Squadron fought in the Aegean Islands and Dodecanese until the end of the war. In 1944 the SAS Brigade was formed from the British 1st and 2nd SAS, the French 3rd and 4th SAS and the Belgian 5th SAS. It was tasked with parachute operations behind the German lines in France and carried out supporting the Allied advance through Belgium, the Netherlands. As a result of Hitlers issuing of the Commando Order on 18 October 1942, in July 1944, following Operation Bulbasket,34 captured SAS commandos were summarily executed by the Germans. In October 1944, in the aftermath of Operation Loyton another 31 captured SAS commandos were summarily executed by the Germans, at the end of the war the British Government saw no further need for the force and disbanded it on 8 October 1945. The following year it was decided there was a need for a long-term deep-penetration commando unit, ultimately, the Artists Rifles, raised in 1860 and headquartered at Dukes Road, Euston, took on the SAS mantle as 21st SAS Regiment on 1 January 1947. In 1950, a 21 SAS squadron was raised to fight in the Korean War, after three months of training in Britain, it was informed that the squadron would no longer be required in Korea and so it instead volunteered to fight in the Malayan Emergency. Upon arrival in Malaya, it came under the command of Mike Calvert who was forming a new unit called the Malayan Scouts, the Rhodesians returned home after three years service and were replaced by a New Zealand squadron. By this time the need for a regular army SAS regiment had been recognised, in 1959 the third regiment, the 23rd SAS Regiment, was formed by renaming the Reserve Reconnaissance Unit, which had succeeded MI9 and whose members were experts in escape and evasion
22.
Handley Page Hampden
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The Handley Page HP.52 Hampden was a British twin-engine medium bomber of the Royal Air Force. It was one of a trio of then-large twin-engine bombers procured for the RAF, the newest of the three medium bombers, the Hampden, was often referred to by aircrews as the Flying Suitcase because of its cramped crew conditions. While the Hampden was powered by Bristol Pegasus radial engines, a variant known as the Handley Page Hereford instead featured in-line Napier Daggers. In 1932, the Air Ministry issued Specification B. 9/32 seeking a day bomber as higher performance than any preceding bomber aircraft. The design team, led by G. R, during early 1936, the first prototype, designated as the HP.52 and given the serial number K4240, was completed. L7271 later received a pair of Dagger engines and was accordingly re-designated as the HP.53, on 1 July 1937, another prototype, L4032, was produced to serve as the production-standard prototype, on 24 June 1938, the third prototype conducted its maiden flight. Handley Page elected to name their new aircraft after John Hampden, L4032 and L4033, which was the second production-standard Hampden to be produced, would be later assigned to the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment at RAF Martlesham Heath, Suffolk. By late 1938, the manufacturing plans for the Hampden had been formalised. Designated P.5 by the RSAF, it was operated by the service through to November 1945, on 22 February 1940, the first Preston-built Hampden, P2062, conducted its maiden flight. English Electric would go onto manufacture a total of 770 Hampdens, more than any other company, in July 1940, Handley-Page terminated its own production line for the Hampden upon the completions of its 500th aircraft. On 9 August 1940, the first Canadian-built Hampden, P5298, made its first flight, by October 1940, the Hampden Mk I had a crew of four, pilot, navigator/bomb aimer, radio operator and rear gunner. Conceived as a fast, manoeuvrable, fighting bomber, the Hampden had a fixed.303 in Browning machine gun in the forward fuselage, the layout was similar to the all-guns-forward cockpits introduced about the same time in the Luftwaffes own medium bombers, notably the Dornier Do 17. The Hampden used a flush-rivetted stressed skin design, which was reinforced with a mixture of bent, the structure employed an all-metal monocoque design. A split-assembly construction technique was employed, sections were prefabricated and then joined together, to enable rapid, the fuselage was in three major sections – front, centre and rear - that were built using jigs. The centre and rear sections were made of two halves, which meant that the sections could be fitted out in part under better working conditions prior to assembly. All possible assembly work was performed at the prior to installation upon each aircraft. In a similar fashion to the fuselage, the wings were made up of three units, centre section, port outer wing and starboard outer wing, which were in turn subdivided. Each section was built up around a main spar, leading edge section
23.
Gun turret
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A gun turret is a location from which weapons can be fired that affords protection, visibility, and some cone of fire. Rotating gun turrets have the protection, the weapon, and its crew rotate, when this meaning of the word turret started being used at the beginning of the 1860s, turrets were normally cylindrical. Barbettes were an alternative to turrets, with a barbette the protection was fixed, in the 1890s, armoured hoods were added to barbettes, these rotated with the platform. By the early 20th Century, these hoods were known as turrets, modern warships have gun-mountings described as turrets, though the protection on them is limited to protection from the weather. They may be manned or remotely controlled and are most often protected to some degree, the protection provided by the turret may be against battle damage, the weather conditions, general environment in which the weapon or its crew will be operating. A small turret, or sub-turret set on top of a one, is called a cupola. The term cupola is used for a rotating turret that carries a sighting device rather than weaponry. Before the development of large-calibre, long-range guns in the mid-19th century, firepower was provided by a large number of guns, each of which could traverse only in a limited arc. Additionally casemate mounts had to be recessed into the side of a vessel to afford a wide arc of fire, designs for a rotating gun turret date back to the late 18th century. The Lady Nancy proved a success and Coles patenting his rotating turret design after the war. Coless aim was to create a ship with the greatest possible all round arc of fire, the Admiralty accepted the principle of the turret gun as a useful innovation, and incorporated it into other new designs. Coles submitted a design for a ship having ten domed turrets each housing two large guns, the design was rejected as impractical, although the Admiralty remained interested in turret ships and instructed its own designers to create better designs. Coles enlisted the support of Prince Albert, who wrote to the first Lord of the Admiralty, in January 1862, the Admiralty agreed to construct a ship, the HMS Prince Albert which had four turrets and a low freeboard, intended only for coastal defence. While Coles designed the turrets the ship was the responsibility of the chief Constructor Isaac Watts, another ship using Coles turret designs, HMS Royal Sovereign, was completed in August 1864. Its existing broadside guns were replaced with four turrets on a flat deck, early ships like the Royal Sovereign had little sea-keeping qualities being limited to coastal waters. Sir Edward James Reed, went on to design and build HMS Monarch, laid down in 1866 and completed in June 1869, it carried two turrets, although the inclusion of a forecastle and poop prevented the turret guns firing fore and aft. The gun turret was independently invented by the Swedish inventor John Ericsson in America, Ericsson designed the USS Monitor in 1861, its most prominent feature being a large cylindrical gun turret mounted amidships above the low-freeboard upper hull, also called the raft. This extended well past the sides of the lower, more traditionally shaped hull, a small armoured pilot house was fitted on the upper deck towards the bow, however, its position prevented Monitor from firing her guns straight forward
24.
Bristol Blenheim
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The Bristol Blenheim is a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the first two years of the Second World War. It was originally developed as the civil-orientated Type 142 in response to Lord Rothermeres challenge to produce the fastest commercial aircraft in Europe. First flying in April 1935, the Air Ministry was quickly impressed by its performance, on 10 March 1937, deliveries of the newly named Blenheim commenced to RAF squadrons. The Blenheim was one of the first British aircraft to feature an all-metal stressed-skin construction, retractable landing gear, flaps, a more capable bomber derivative, the Beaufort, was also developed, being both larger and heavier than the Blenheim. A Canadian-built variant named the Bolingbroke was used as a patrol aircraft. The Mark IV variant was equally unsuccessful in its daylight bombing role, the Blenheim was also used by a wide range of overseas operators, as well being produced under licence in Finland and Yugoslavia. By this point, proposed use of the Aquila engine had been shelved in favour of the supercharger-equipped, deeming it suitable for the issued challenge, the design of Type 135 was further adapted to produce the Type 142 in order to meet the requirements outlined by Rothermere. On 12 April 1935, the Type 142, which had given the name Britain First, conducted its maiden flight from Filton Aerodrome. Flight tests soon proved that the aircraft was in fact faster than any fighter in service with the Royal Air Force at the time, Rothermere presented the aircraft to the nation for a formal evaluation at a potential bomber. By June 1935, the Air Ministry had become interested in the due to its high performance. On 9 July 1935, a conference was held by Bristol at the ministrys request into the question of converting the Type 142 into a suitable medium bomber. Based upon talks from the conference, the Air Ministry quickly formalised Specification B. 28/35 for prototypes of a bomber version, the Type 142M. Other modifications included the addition of a position and a Browning machine gun gun in the nose along with provisions for a semi-retractable gun turret in the dorsal position. In September 1935, a contract for 150 aircraft was placed. The Air Ministry had chosen to order the type directly from the board, having been urgently sought as one piece of a wider. The first aircraft built of this model, K7033, served as the only prototype, on 25 June 1936. The service name for the aircraft became Blenheim Mk I after the battle during the War of the Spanish Succession. On 10 March 1937, production deliveries to the RAF formally started,114 Squadron became the first squadron to receive the Blenheim
25.
Armstrong Whitworth Whitley
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The Armstrong Whitworth A. W.38 Whitley was one of three British twin-engined front line medium bomber types that were in service with the Royal Air Force at the outbreak of the Second World War. In 1937, the Whitley formally entered into RAF squadron service and its front line service included maritime reconnaissance with Coastal Command and the second line roles of glider-tug, trainer and transport aircraft. The type was also procured by British Overseas Airways Corporation as a freighter aircraft. The aircraft was named after Whitley, a suburb of Coventry, in July 1934, the Air Ministry issued Specification B. 3/34, seeking a heavy night bomber/troop transport to replace the Handley Page Heyford biplane bomber. The design of the AW.38 was in fact a development of the Armstrong Whitworth AW.23 bomber-transport design that had lost to the Bristol Bombay for the earlier Specification C. 26/31. Lloyd selected the Armstrong Siddeley Tiger IX radial engine to power the Whitley, as Lloyd was unfamiliar with the use of flaps on a large heavy monoplane, they were initially omitted from the design. To compensate, the wings were set at a high angle of incidence to confer good take-off. The Whitley holds the distinction of having been the first aircraft to serve with the RAF to utilise a semi-monocoque fuselage, which was built using a slab-sided structure to ease production. During 1935 and 1936, various contracts were placed for the type, on 17 March 1936, the first prototype Whitley Mk I, K4586, conducted its maiden flight from Baginton Aerodrome, piloted by Armstrong Whitworth Chief Test Pilot Alan Campbell-Orde. K4586 was powered by a pair of 795 hp Tiger IX engines, the second prototype, K4587, was furnished with a pair of more powerful medium-supercharged Tiger XI engines. The prototypes differed little from the production standard aircraft, a total of 34 production Whitley Mk I were completed. After the first 34 aircraft had completed, the engines were replaced with the more reliable two-speed-supercharged Tiger VIIIs. K7243, the 27th production Whitley, is believed to have served as a prototype following modifications, the resulting aircraft was designated as the Whitley Mk II. A total of 46 production aircraft were completed to the Whitley Mk II standard. One Whitley Mk II, K7243, was used as a test bed for the 1,200 hp 21-cylinder radial Armstrong Siddeley Deerhound engine, on 6 January 1939, another Whitley Mk I, K7208, was modified to operate with a higher gross weight. K7211, the 29th production Whitley, served as the prototype for an advanced variant of the aircraft. The ventral turret was hydraulically-powered but proved to be hard to operate and added considerable drag, other changes included increased dihedreal of the outer wing panels, superior navigational provisions, and the installation of new bomb racks. A total of 80 Whitley Mk III aircraft were manufactured, three Whitley Mk I aircraft, K7208, K7209, and K7211, were initially re-engined to serve as prototypes
26.
Royal Navy
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The Royal Navy is the United Kingdoms naval warfare force. Although warships were used by the English kings from the medieval period. The modern Royal Navy traces its origins to the early 16th century, from the middle decades of the 17th century and through the 18th century, the Royal Navy vied with the Dutch Navy and later with the French Navy for maritime supremacy. From the mid 18th century it was the worlds most powerful navy until surpassed by the United States Navy during the Second World War. The Royal Navy played a key part in establishing the British Empire as the world power during the 19th. Due to this historical prominence, it is common, even among non-Britons, following World War I, the Royal Navy was significantly reduced in size, although at the onset of the Second World War it was still the worlds largest. By the end of the war, however, the United States Navy had emerged as the worlds largest, during the Cold War, the Royal Navy transformed into a primarily anti-submarine force, hunting for Soviet submarines, mostly active in the GIUK gap. The Royal Navy is part of Her Majestys Naval Service, which includes the Royal Marines. The professional head of the Naval Service is the First Sea Lord, the Defence Council delegates management of the Naval Service to the Admiralty Board, chaired by the Secretary of State for Defence. The strength of the fleet of the Kingdom of England was an important element in the power in the 10th century. English naval power declined as a result of the Norman conquest. Medieval fleets, in England as elsewhere, were almost entirely composed of merchant ships enlisted into service in time of war. Englands naval organisation was haphazard and the mobilisation of fleets when war broke out was slow, early in the war French plans for an invasion of England failed when Edward III of England destroyed the French fleet in the Battle of Sluys in 1340. Major fighting was confined to French soil and Englands naval capabilities sufficed to transport armies and supplies safely to their continental destinations. Such raids halted finally only with the occupation of northern France by Henry V. Henry VII deserves a large share of credit in the establishment of a standing navy and he embarked on a program of building ships larger than heretofore. He also invested in dockyards, and commissioned the oldest surviving dry dock in 1495 at Portsmouth, a standing Navy Royal, with its own secretariat, dockyards and a permanent core of purpose-built warships, emerged during the reign of Henry VIII. Under Elizabeth I England became involved in a war with Spain, the new regimes introduction of Navigation Acts, providing that all merchant shipping to and from England or her colonies should be carried out by English ships, led to war with the Dutch Republic. In the early stages of this First Anglo-Dutch War, the superiority of the large, heavily armed English ships was offset by superior Dutch tactical organisation and the fighting was inconclusive
27.
Fairey Swordfish
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The Fairey Swordfish was a biplane torpedo bomber designed by the Fairey Aviation Company. It was initially operated primarily as an attack aircraft, during its later years. The type was in service throughout the entirety of the Second World War. By the end of the war, the Swordfish held the distinction of having caused the destruction of a tonnage of Axis shipping than any other Allied aircraft. The Swordfish remained in service until V-E Day, having outlived multiple aircraft that had been intended to replace it in service. Receiving the internal designation of T. S. R, I, standing for Torpedo-Spotter-Reconnaissance I, the proposed design adopted a biplane configuration and a single 645 hp Bristol Pegasus IIM radial engine as its powerplant. The company chose to pursue development of the project as a self-financed private venture while both customers and applicable requirements for the type were sought. I was in parallel to Faireys activities upon Air Ministry Specification S, Fairey promptly informed the Air Ministry of their work on the Greek order, whose interest had eventually waned, and proposed its solution to the requirements for a spotter-reconnaissance plane. In 1934, the Air Ministry issued the more advanced Specification S. 15/33, on 21 March 1933, the prototype T. S. R. I, F1875, conducted its maiden flight from Great West Aerodrome, Heathrow, on 11 September 1933, F1875 was lost during a series of spinning tests in which it became unable to recover, the pilot survived the incident. On 17 April 1934, the prototype T. S. R II, K4190, performed its maiden flight, following successful water-handling trials, K4190 conducted a series of aircraft catapult and recovery tests aboard the battlecruiser HMS Repulse. K4190 was later restored to its wheeled undercarriage prior to an evaluation process by the Aeroplane. All three pre-production aircraft were powered by the Pegasus IIIM3 engine, but adopted a three-bladed Fairey-Reed propeller in place of the two-bladed counterpart used on the earlier prototype, on 31 December 1935, the first pre-production Swordfish, K5660, made its maiden flight. In early 1936, a production contract for 68 Swordfish aircraft was received, designated at the Swordfish I. Manufactured at Faireys factory in Hayes, West London, the first production aircraft was completed in early 1936, less than a year later, the first Blackburn-built Swordfish conducted its first flight. During 1941, Blackburns Sherburn factory assumed primary responsibility for the fuselage, along with final assembly, like many other wartime aircraft, efforts were made to disperse production and to employ the use of shadow factories to minimise the damage caused by Luftwaffe bombing raids. Major sub-assemblies for the Swordfish were produced by a total of four based in neighbouring Leeds. The Swordfish II carried ASV Mk. II radar and featured metal undersurfaces to the wings to allow the carriage of 3 rockets
28.
Fairey Albacore
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It had a three-man crew and was designed for spotting and reconnaissance as well as level bombing, dive bombing and as a torpedo bomber. The Albacore, popularly known as the Applecore, was conceived as a replacement for the ageing Fairey Swordfish, the Albacore served with the Swordfish and was retired before it, being replaced by the Fairey Barracuda and Grumman Avenger monoplane torpedo bombers. The Albacore prototypes were built to meet Specification S. 41/36 for a three-seat TSR for the FAA to replace the Swordfish. the Albacore had a more powerful engine than the Swordfish and was more aerodynamically refined. It offered the crew an enclosed and heated cockpit and the Albacore also had an automatic liferaft ejection system that triggered in the event of the aircraft ditching, the first of two prototypes flew on 12 December 1938 and production of the first batch of 98 aircraft began in 1939. Early Albacores were fitted with the Bristol Taurus II engine and those built later received the more powerful Taurus XII, an Albacore fitted with the Taurus II engine and carrying a torpedo weighed 11,100 lb. A total of 800 Albacores were built, including two prototypes which were all built at Faireys Hayes Factory and test flown at what is now London Heathrow Airport. HMS Formidables 826 and 829 Squadrons were the first to operate the Albacore from a carrier, initially, the Albacore suffered from reliability problems with the Taurus engine, although these were later solved, so that the failure rate was no worse than the Pegasus equipped Swordfish. The Albacore remained less popular than the Swordfish, as it was less manoeuvrable, eventually, there were 15 first-line FAA squadrons equipped with the Albacore which operated widely in the Mediterranean. Albacores played a prominent role in the raid on Kirkenes. Albacores participated with success in the Battle of Cape Matapan. On 9 March 1942,12 Albacores from HMS Victorious were launched to attack the German Bismarck-class battleship Tirpitz at sea near Narvik. Based on information from one of six radar equipped aircraft already airborne, Albacores from 817 and 832 Squadrons launched torpedoes and some also attacked with their machine guns. One attack came within 30 ft of success at the bow but the FAAs only torpedo attack on the Tirpitz at sea failed, in 1943, the Albacore was progressively replaced in Fleet Air Arm service by the Barracuda. The last FAA Albacore squadron, No.841 Squadron, which had used for shore based attacks against shipping in the Channel for the whole of its career with the Albacore. The Royal Air Force deployed some Albacores, No.36 Squadron based at Singapore acquired five to supplement its Vickers Vildebeests at RAF Seletar in December 1941, the remnants of the squadron was captured by the Japanese in March 1942. In 1943, No.415 Squadron RCAF was equipped with Albacores before the Flight operating them was transferred and reformed as 119 Squadron at RAF Manston in July 1944, the squadron deployed later to Belgium. Their Albacores were disposed of in early 1945 in favour of ASV-radar equipped Swordfish Mk. IIIs that the squadron kept until the end of the war in May, the Aden Communication Flight used 17 Albacores between the middle of 1944 and August 1946. Some of these were delivered by sea on the SS Empire Arun in December 1945, the Royal Canadian Air Force took over the Albacores and used them during the Normandy invasion, for a similar role until July 1944
29.
Fairey Barracuda
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It was introduced as a replacement for the Fairey Swordfish and Fairey Albacore biplanes. It is notable for its role in attacking the German battleship Tirpitz, the Barracuda resulted from Air Ministry Specification S. 24/37 issued in 1937 for a monoplane torpedo bomber to meet Operational Requirement OR.35. Of the six submissions, the designs of Fairey Aviation and Supermarine were selected, the first Fairey prototype flew on 7 December 1940. The Supermarine Type 322 first flew in 1943 but with the Barracuda already in production it did not progress further, the Barracuda was a shoulder-wing cantilever monoplane with an oval, all-metal fuselage. It had a landing gear and non-retracting tailwheel. The hydraulically-operated main landing gear struts were of an L shape and retracted into a recess in the side of the fuselage, a flush arrestor hook was fitted ahead of the tail wheel. The crew of three were in tandem under a glazed canopy. The pilot had a canopy and the other two crew members canopy was hinged. The two rear-crew had alternate locations in the fuselage, with the navigator having bay windows below the wings for downward visibility, the wings had large Fairey-Youngman flaps that doubled as dive brakes. Originally fitted with a tail, flight tests suggested stability would be improved by mounting the stabiliser higher, similar to a T-tail. For carrier stowage, the folded back horizontally at the roots. The Barracuda was originally intended to use the Rolls-Royce Exe X block, sleeve valve engine, but production of this powerplant was abandoned, the prototypes eventually flew with the lower-powered 12-cylinder Vee type Rolls-Royce Merlin 30 engine and a three-bladed de Havilland propeller. Only 30 Mk Is were built, and used only for trials, the Mk II carried metric wavelength ASV II radar, with the Yagi-Uda antennae carried above the wings. 852 Mk IIIs were eventually produced, a total of 2,607 of all marks of Barracuda were built. The Barracuda Mk IV never left the board, the next and final variant was the Barracuda Mk V. The increased power and torque of the Griffon required various aerodynamic changes, the vertical stabiliser was enlarged and the wing span was increased with the tips clipped. The Mk V, converted from a Mk II, did not take to the air until 16 November 1944, early Merlin 30-powered Mk 1 Barracudas were underpowered and suffered from a poor rate of climb. Once airborne, however, the type proved easy to fly.5 minutes, with a climb rate of 925 fpm at 8,400 ft
30.
812 Naval Air Squadron
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812 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the British Royal Navys Fleet Air Arm, which was active between 1933 and 1956, and saw service in World War II and the Korean War. The squadron was first formed on 3 April 1933 aboard HMS Glorious, then part of the Mediterranean Fleet, originally equipped with the Blackburn Ripon, these were replaced with the Blackburn Baffin in 1934, and the Fairey Swordfish in 1936. Apart from a visit to the UK to take part in the 1937 Coronation Review at Spithead. In March 1941 the squadron left Coastal Command to take part in Malta convoy protection duties aboard HMS Argus, in July, aboard HMS Furious, they participated in the attack on Petsamo. Further Malta convoy duties followed aboard Furious, transferring to HMS Ark Royal in September, after the Ark Royal was torpedoed and sunk on 13 November, the squadron regrouped at Gibraltar. While based at RNAS North Front, the received new aircraft equipped with ASV radar, enabling them to sink the U-boat U-451 on the night of 21 December 1941. The squadron returned to the UK in April 1942 aboard USS Wasp, on 18 December 1942, it was amalgamated into 811 Squadron. No.812 Squadron was reformed on 1 June 1944 at RNAS Stretton, returning to the Mediterranean,13 CAG were based at HMS Falcon at Hal Far, Malta, and flew exercises over Sicily. After the German surrender on 8 May 1945, the group were assigned to serve with the British Pacific Fleet. The group sailed for Australia aboard Vengeance, and were based at HMS Nabswick at Jervis Bay from 22 July 1945, where they trained for the planned invasion of Japan. In March 1946 Vengeance and her squadrons returned to the UK, via Ceylon, and arrived at RNAS Lee-on-Solent on 12 August 1946, where 812 Squadron was disbanded. The squadron was reformed again on 1 October 1946 at RNAS Eglinton in Derry, Northern Ireland, in February 1947,14 CAG sailed aboard HMS Theseus on a lengthy Far Eastern cruise, eventually returning in December. In August 1948 the group sailed for the Mediterranean aboard HMS Ocean, the group was transferred to HMS Glory in November 1949, and participated in several cruises and exercises, with landings being made on USS Midway in October. In March 1951 Glory sailed for Korea, where 812 Squadron flew 852 sorties over the six months. After two months based in Australia, Glory returned to Korean operations, where the squadron flew another 689 sorties, in May 1952 the squadron transferred its aircraft to Ocean, and the crews sailed home in Theseus. In June 1952, the squadron was re-equipped with the Firefly AS.6 at RNAS Anthorn, and in September sailed aboard HMS Eagle for exercises, in January 1953 the squadron joined Theseus for a cruise, returning to Eagle in June for exercises off northern Scotland. It was disbanded at Eglinton on 20 October 1953, the squadron was reformed for a third time at Eglinton on 7 November 1955 as an anti-submarine squadron, flying the Fairey Gannet. In April 1956 it sailed to the Mediterranean in Eagle, taking part in visits and exercises before flying home from Malta, and was disbanded on arrival at Lee-on-Solent on 13 December 1956
31.
Long Range Desert Group
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The Long Range Desert Group was a reconnaissance and raiding unit of the British Army during the Second World War. Originally called the Long Range Patrol, the unit was founded in Egypt in June 1940 by Major Ralph A. Bagnold, Bagnold was assisted by Captain Patrick Clayton and Captain William Shaw. The LRDG never numbered more than 350 men, all of whom were volunteers, because the LRDG were experts in desert navigation they were sometimes assigned to guide other units, including the Special Air Service and secret agents across the desert. During the Desert Campaign between December 1940 and April 1943, the vehicles of the LRDG operated constantly behind the Axis lines, missing a total of only 15 days during the entire period. Possibly their most notable action was during Operation Caravan, an attack on the town of Barce and its associated airfield. After the end of the war in Europe, the leaders of the LRDG made a request to the War Office for the unit to be transferred to the Far East to conduct operations against the Japanese Empire, the request was declined and the LRDG was disbanded in August 1945. Before the war, Major Ralph Bagnold learned how to maintain and operate vehicles, how to navigate, Wavell assisted in equipping the force. The unit, initially known as the No.1 Long Range Patrol Unit, was founded on 3 July 1940, Bagnold wanted men who were energetic, innovative, self-reliant, physically and mentally tough, and able to live and fight in seclusion in the Libyan desert. Bagnold felt that New Zealand farmers would possess these attributes and was given permission to approach the 2nd New Zealand Division for volunteers, over half the division volunteered. Two officers and 85 other ranks including 18 administrative and technical personnel were selected, coming mostly from the Divisional Cavalry Regiment. Once the men had been recruited, they started training in survival techniques and desert driving and navigation. The LRP could initially only three units, known as patrols, but a doubling of strength allowed the addition of a new Heavy Section. In November 1940, the name of the LRP was changed to the Long Range Desert Group, the British volunteers, who came mostly from the Brigade of Guards and Yeomanry regiments, were incorporated into their own patrols. The original patrol unit consisted of two officers and 28 other ranks, equipped with a Canadian Military Pattern Ford 15 Imperial hundredweight truck and 10 Chevrolet 30 cwt trucks. In March 1941 new types of trucks were issued and the units were split into half-patrols of one officer. Each patrol incorporated a medical orderly, a navigator, a radio operator, the Long Range Patrol comprised a 15-man headquarters with Bagnold in command. There were three sub-units, R Patrol commanded by Captain Donald Gavin Steele, T Patrol commanded by Captain Patrick Clayton, T and W Patrols were combat units while R Patrol was intended to be a support unit. In November 1940, the LRP was reorganised and re-designated the Long Range Desert Group and it was expanded to six Patrols, T, W and R Patrols were joined by G, S and Y Patrols
32.
Vickers machine gun
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The Vickers machine gun or Vickers gun is a name primarily used to refer to the water-cooled.303 British machine gun produced by Vickers Limited, originally for the British Army. The machine gun typically required a six to eight-man team to operate, one fired, one fed the ammunition and it was in service from before the First World War until the 1960s, with air-cooled versions of it on many Allied World War I fighter aircraft. The weapon had a reputation for solidity and reliability. Using 100 barrels, they fired a million rounds without a failure and it was this absolute foolproof reliability which endeared the Vickers to every British soldier who ever fired one. The Vickers machine gun was based on the successful Maxim gun of the late 19th century, a muzzle booster was also added. The British Army formally adopted the Vickers gun as its machine gun on 26 November 1912. There were still great shortages when the First World War began, Vickers was, in fact, threatened with prosecution for war profiteering, due to the exorbitant price it was demanding for each gun. As a result, the price was slashed, as the war progressed, and numbers increased, it became the British Armys primary machine gun, and served on all fronts during the conflict. After the First World War, the Machine Gun Corps was disbanded, however, the Vickers remained in service with the British Army until 30 March 1968. Its last operational use was in the Radfan during the Aden Emergency and its successor in UK service is the L7 GPMG. In 1913, a Vickers machine gun was mounted on the experimental Vickers E. F. B.1 biplane, which was probably the worlds first purpose-built combat aeroplane. However, by the time the version, the Vickers F. B.5, had entered service the following year. During World War I, the Vickers gun became a weapon on British and French military aircraft. Although heavier than the Lewis, its closed bolt firing cycle made it easier to synchronize to allow it to fire through aircraft propellers. The belt feed was enclosed right up to the guns feed-way to inhibit effects from wind, steel disintegrating-link ammunition belts were perfected in the UK by William de Courcy Prideaux in mid-war and became standard for aircraft guns thereafter. The famous Sopwith Camel and the SPAD XIII types used twin synchronized Vickers, as did most British and French fighters between 1918 and the mid-1930s. Several sets of louvred slots were cut into the jacket to aid air cooling. The Gloster Gladiator was the last RAF fighter to be armed with the Vickers, the Fairey Swordfish continued to be fitted with the weapon until production ended in August 1944
33.
Reconnaissance Corps
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The Reconnaissance Corps, or simply Recce Corps, was a corps of the British Army, formed during the Second World War whose units provided the mobile spearhead of infantry divisions. It was formed from infantry brigade reconnaissance groups on 14 January 1941, all the brigade reconnaissance groups of each infantry corps were formed into reconnaissance battalions, each usually bearing the number of its relevant division. For example, the 43rd Battalion, Reconnaissance Corps was the reconnaissance battalion of the 43rd Division. Initially, coming from infantry units, reconnaissance units used the designations of battalions, companies. However, from 6 June 1942, the Corps changed to the descriptions of regiments, squadrons. The Corps became part of the Royal Armoured Corps in 1944, with the end of the war, this number of reconnaissance units was not needed and the Reconnaissance Corps was disbanded in August 1946. Reconnaissance duties reverted to regular armoured units of the RAC, the Reconnaissance Corps was charged with gathering vital tactical information in battle for infantry divisions, probing ahead and screening the flanks of main advances. The training centre was established at Winchester in February 1941, until the home of the Corps moved to Catterick in Yorkshire. Many failed and were sent to infantry battalions, but those who succeeded enjoyed the kudos of belonging to an elite unit and were determined to prove their own worth. Before beginning training with his unit, each man undertook a course with technical units. Most recce men became efficient in two of these roles e. g. driver and operator, Reconnaissance regiments were organised into a headquarters squadron and three reconnaissance squadrons. Each recce squadron comprised three troops and an assault troop. Scout troops were equipped with Bren Gun Carriers and light reconnaissance cars, the assault troops were composed of lorried infantry and were called up when enemy resistance needed to be overcome. Later in the war, more efficient and well-armed armoured cars such as the Humber Armoured Car, Daimler Armoured Car, the following units served in the Recce Corps, 1st Reconnaissance Regiment formed January 1941 in the 1st Division from the Hampshire Regiment. 2nd Reconnaissance Regiment formed April 1941 in the 2nd Division, mainly from the 6th Battalion, Loyal Regiment, 3rd Reconnaissance Regiment formed April 1941 in the 3rd Division, from the 8th Battalion, Royal Northumberland Fusiliers. 4th Reconnaissance Regiment formed January 1941 mainly from the companies of the 10th, 11th and 12th Brigades of the 4th Division. 5th Reconnaissance Regiment formed February 1941 in the 5th Division from the 3rd Battalion, 18th Reconnaissance Battalion formed in the 18th Division from the 5th Battalion, Loyal Regiment, surrendered at Singapore 1942. 44th Reconnaissance Regiment formed January 1941 in the 44th Division from the 7th Battalion, Queens Own Royal West Kent Regiment, transferred to 56th Division in 1943, but retained number
34.
1st Airborne Division (United Kingdom)
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The 1st Airborne Division was an airborne infantry division of the British Army during the Second World War. The divisions first two missions–Operation Biting, a landing in France, and Operation Freshman, a glider mission in Norway–were both raids. The first, Operation Ladbroke, carried out by infantry of the 1st Airlanding Brigade. The 1st Airborne Division then took part in a mostly diversionary amphibious landing, codenamed Operation Slapstick, in December, most of the 1st Airborne Division returned to England, and began training and preparing for the Allied invasion of Normandy. It was not involved in the Normandy landings in June 1944, in September 1944 the 1st Airborne took part in Operation Market Garden. The division, with the Polish 1st Parachute Brigade temporarily attached, landed 60 miles behind German lines, to capture crossings on the River Rhine, and fought in the Battle of Arnhem. After failing to achieve its objectives, the division was surrounded and took heavy casualties. The remnants of the 1st Airborne Division was returned to England soon after, the division never fully recovered from their losses at Arnhem and the 4th Parachute Brigade was disbanded. Just after the end of the war in Europe, the formation took part in Operation Doomsday in Norway in May 1945. They were tasked with the disarmament and repatriation of the German occupation army, the 1st Airborne Division then returned to England and was disbanded in November 1945. As a result, on 22 June 1940, No.2 Commando assumed parachute duties, on 21 June 1940 the Central Landing Establishment was formed at Ringway airfield near Manchester. Although tasked primarily with training parachute troops, it was directed to investigate the use of gliders to transport troops into battle. At the same time, the Ministry of Aircraft Production contracted General Aircraft Ltd to design, the result was the General Aircraft Hotspur, which was capable of transporting eight soldiers and was used for both assault and training purposes. The 2nd and 3rd Parachute Battalions were formed from volunteers, between the ages of twenty-two and thirty-two, who were serving in infantry units. Only ten men from any one unit were allowed to volunteer, the brigade comprised four battalions, the 1st Border Regiment, 2nd South Staffordshire Regiment, 2nd Oxford and Bucks Light Infantry, and the 1st Royal Ulster Rifles. The men who were unsuitable for airborne forces were replaced by volunteers from other units, by the end of the year Brownings command had become the headquarters of 1st Airborne Division. Browning expressed his opinion that the force must not be sacrificed in penny packets, permission was finally granted in July 1942, and the 2nd Parachute Brigade, commanded by Brigadier Ernest Down, was formed. The 3rd Parachute Brigade was formed in November 1942 and assigned to the 1st Airborne Division, in April 1943, the commander of the 1st Airlanding Brigade, Hopkinson, was promoted to major general and given command of the division
35.
Operation Market Garden
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Operation Market Garden was an unsuccessful Allied military operation, fought in the Netherlands and Germany in the Second World War. Field Marshal Montgomerys strategic goal was to encircle the heart of German industry, the northern end of the pincer would circumvent the northern end of the Siegfried Line giving easier access into Germany. The aim of Operation Market Garden was to establish the end of a pincer ready to project deeper into Germany. Allied forces would project north from Belgium,60 miles through the Netherlands, across the Rhine, the operation made massed use of airborne forces, whose tactical objectives were to secure the bridges and allow a rapid advance by armored ground units to consolidate north of Arnhem. The operation required the seizure of the bridges across the Maas, several bridges between Eindhoven and Nijmegen were captured at the beginning of the operation. Lieutenant-General Brian Horrocks XXX Corps ground force advance was delayed by the failure of the airborne units to secure bridges at Son. German forces demolished the bridge over the Wilhelmina Canal at Son before being secured by the 101st Airborne Division, the 82nd Airborne Divisions failure to capture the main road bridge over the river Waal at Nijmegen before 20 September also delayed the advance of XXX Corps. At the furthest point of the operation at Arnhem, the British 1st Airborne Division encountered initial strong resistance. The delays in capturing the bridges at Son and Nijmegen gave time for German forces, including the 9th and 10th SS panzer divisions who were present at time, to organize. In the ensuing battle, only a small force managed to capture the end of the Arnhem road bridge and after the ground forces failed to relieve them. The remainder of the 1st Airborne Division were trapped in a small pocket west of the bridge, the Allies had failed to cross the Rhine and the river remained a barrier to their advance into Germany until offensives at Remagen, Oppenheim, Rees and Wesel in March 1945. The failure of Market Garden to form a foothold over the Rhine ended Allied expectations of finishing the war by Christmas 1944. After major defeats in Normandy in the summer of 1944, remnants of German forces withdrew across the Low Countries and eastern France towards the German border by the end of August. To the south, the U. S. 12th Army Group under Lieutenant General Omar Bradley was nearing the German border and had ordered to orient on the Aachen gap with Lieutenant General Courtney Hodges U. S. First Army, in support of Montgomerys advance on the Ruhr, Third Army, under Lieutenant General George S. Patton, moved eastward towards the Saar. At the same time, the U. S. 6th Army Group under General Jacob L. Devers was advancing towards Germany after their landings in southern France. The Overlord plan had foreseen this, calling for the exploitation of ports in Brittany to move the supply points forward as the armies moved, Eisenhower persisted with his plans to capture these ports, but some argued that the capture of Le Havre and Antwerp made this unnecessary. Although over-the-beach supply operations outperformed expectations, September saw deteriorating weather and rising seas, deep-water ports were therefore required, Cherbourg was useful, but far from the front
36.
British Commandos
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Their operations ranged from small groups of men landing from the sea or by parachute, to a brigade of assault troops spearheading the Allied invasions of Europe and Asia. After the war most Commando units were disbanded, leaving only the Royal Marines 3 Commando Brigade, the modern Royal Marine Commandos, Parachute Regiment, Special Air Service and Special Boat Service trace their origins to the Commandos. The British Commandos were a formation of the British Armed Forces organized for service in June 1940. One staff officer, Lieutenant Colonel Dudley Clarke, had already submitted such a proposal to General Sir John Dill, Dill, aware of Churchills intentions, approved Clarkes proposal and on 23 June 1940, the first Commando raid took place. The Special Service Brigade was quickly expanded to 12 units which became known as Commandos, each Commando had a lieutenant colonel as the commanding officer and numbered around 450 men. Technically these men were only on secondment to the Commandos, they retained their own cap badges. The Commando force came under the control of the Combined Operations Headquarters. The man initially selected as the commander of Combined Operations was Admiral Roger Keyes, a veteran of the Gallipoli Campaign, Keyes resigned in October 1941 and was replaced by Vice Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten. Major-General Robert Laycock was the last Commander of Combined Operations, he took over from Mountbatten in October 1943, the Commando units formed in the United Kingdom were, No. At the same there were four Commando units formed in the Middle East. 51, No,52, and the Middle East Commando, the No.10 Commando was formed from volunteers from the occupied territories and enemy aliens. It was the largest Commando unit formed, and contained troops from France, Belgium, Poland, Norway, the Netherlands, and No.3 Troop. The No.3 Troop consisted of enemy aliens, it was known as the English, Jewish. Most of the troop had German, Austrian, or Eastern European backgrounds, some Commandos were designated for different tasks from the start. No.2 Commando was always intended to be a parachute unit, in June 1940 they began parachute training and were re-designated the 11th Special Air Service Battalion, which eventually became the 1st Parachute Battalion. After their re-designation a new No.2 Commando was formed, other Commandos were grouped together in a larger formation known as Layforce and sent to the Middle East. The Special Air Service and the Special Boat Squadron were formed from the survivors of Layforce, the men of No.14 Commando were specially trained for operations in the Arctic Circle and specialised in using small boats and canoes to attack shipping. The joint service unit No.30 Commando was formed for intelligence gathering and its members were trained in the recognition of enemy documents, search techniques, safe cracking, prisoner handling, photography, and escape techniques
37.
Squad automatic weapon
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A squad automatic weapon is a weapon used to give infantry squads or sections a portable source of automatic firepower. Weapons used in this role are often selective fire rifles, usually fitted with a bipod, Squad automatic weapons usually fire the same cartridge as the assault rifles or battle rifles carried by other members of the unit. This reduces logistical requirements by making it necessary to supply one type of ammunition to a unit. One of the first weapons used in this role was the Madsen machine gun, the standard machine guns of this era were of the Maxim type. Another pioneering weapon in this role was the Browning Automatic Rifle, introduced late in World War I, it remained in front-line service into the Vietnam War. Intended originally as a rifle capable of delivering suppressing walking fire in the advance. During its long service in the US military, it was pivotal in the evolution of U. S. fireteam tactics and doctrine that continues to the present day. Squad automatic weapons are modified assault rifles or battle rifles that may have increased capacity and heavier barrels to withstand continued fire. In the case of assault rifles, such as the H&K G36 or Steyr AUG. However, the Austrian Army, though issuing the Steyr AUG rifle, instead, the 7. 62mm caliber MG74, a derivative of WW2-era German MG42, is issued. The most common squad automatic weapons in use today are derived from two basic patterns, the Kalashnikov-based RPK or the purpose-designed FN Minimi, in United States usage, the M249 light machine gun is commonly referred to as the Squad Automatic Weapon. Two of the weapons in the competition were the FN SCAR HAMR, the weapon chosen to replace the M249 was the HK416, later designated the M27 IAR. The M249 SAW is still in use as an automatic weapon by the US Army. The Netherlands Marine Corps is the part of the Dutch military to use the LOAWNLD as their squad automatic weapon. All other branches use the FN Minimi for this role, medium machine gun Heavy machine gun Crew-served weapon Heavy weapons platoon
38.
Normandy landings
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The Normandy landings were the landing operations on Tuesday,6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. The largest seaborne invasion in history, the operation began the liberation of German-occupied northwestern Europe from Nazi control, planning for the operation began in 1943. Adolf Hitler placed German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in command of German forces, the amphibious landings were preceded by extensive aerial and naval bombardment and an airborne assault—the landing of 24,000 American, British, and Canadian airborne troops shortly after midnight. Allied infantry and armoured divisions began landing on the coast of France at 06,30, the target 50-mile stretch of the Normandy coast was divided into five sectors, Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword. Strong winds blew the landing craft east of their positions, particularly at Utah. Casualties were heaviest at Omaha, with its high cliffs, at Gold, Juno, and Sword, several fortified towns were cleared in house-to-house fighting, and two major gun emplacements at Gold were disabled, using specialised tanks. The Allies failed to any of their goals on the first day. Carentan, St. Lô, and Bayeux remained in German hands, and Caen, German casualties on D-Day have been estimated at 4,000 to 9,000 men. Allied casualties were at least 10,000, with 4,414 confirmed dead, museums, memorials, and war cemeteries in the area now host many visitors each year. Between 27 May and 4 June 1940, over 338,000 troops of the British Expeditionary Force, after the German Army invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941, the Soviet leader Joseph Stalin began pressing his allies for the creation of a second front in western Europe. In late May 1942 the Soviet Union and the United States made a joint announcement that a. full understanding was reached with regard to the urgent tasks of creating a front in Europe in 1942. Instead of a return to France, the Western Allies staged offensives in the Mediterranean Theatre of Operations. By mid-1943 the campaign in North Africa had been won, the Allies then launched the invasion of Sicily in July 1943, and subsequently invaded Italy in September the same year. By then, Soviet forces were on the offensive and had won a victory at the Battle of Stalingrad. The decision to undertake a cross-channel invasion within the year was taken at the Trident Conference in Washington in May 1943. Initial planning was constrained by the number of landing craft, most of which were already committed in the Mediterranean. At the Tehran Conference in November 1943, Roosevelt and Churchill promised Stalin that they would open the second front in May 1944. Four sites were considered for the landings, Brittany, the Cotentin Peninsula, Normandy, as Brittany and Cotentin are peninsulas, it would have been possible for the Germans to cut off the Allied advance at a relatively narrow isthmus, so these sites were rejected
39.
Coastal Forces of the Royal Navy
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Coastal Forces was a division of the Royal Navy instially established during World War I and then again in World War II under the command of Rear-Admiral Coastal Forces. The Royal Navy had previously operated flotillas of small torpedo- and depth-charge-armed craft during World War I and they operated as often in action against the enemy coast as in defence of British coastal areas. During World War II, the first Coastal Forces headquarters was set up at HMS Vernon in 1940 under Rear Admiral Piers Kekewich, Royal Navy Coastal Forces craft operated mainly in the English Channel and North Sea waters, especially in the build up to the Normandy invasion of 1944. They were also used in the Mediterranean and off Norwegian coastline and they raided St. Nazaire and Dieppe. They were used to attack German convoys and their S-boat escorts, carry out raids and landings. The coastal craft were manned by various Allied nationalities including Dutch, Norwegian, Canadian, Australian, a number of Captain-class frigates were configured to operate as Coastal Forces Control Frigates. By 1944 Coastal Forces numbered 3,000 officers and 22,000 ratings, altogether there were 2,000 British Coastal Forces craft. Affectionately known as the Royal Navys Little Ships, they fought over 900 actions and sank around 400 enemy vessels and they fired 1,169 torpedoes, shot down 32 enemy aircraft and carried out many mine laying operations. 170 of the Little Ships were sunk or otherwise destroyed, after World War II, the Royal Navy redesignated all its motor torpedo boats and motor gun boats as fast patrol boats. The Brave-class fast patrol boats were the last craft to be built for the Coastal Forces, and these could typically maintain 40 knots and were armed with two torpedo tubes. They were built mainly by the British Power Boat Company, Vospers, in 1940 a modified craft, the Motor Gun Boat, was introduced. These were armed with such as the 0.5 in Vickers machine gun,2 pounder pom pom. It was also apparent that larger craft were needed as the capability of the short boats was too restricted by sea conditions. Fairmile designed a series of larger craft, up to 120 feet long. The Fairmile A Type and B Type were motor launches and the C Type was a gun boat. In 1943 the Fairmile D Type appeared and it was a motor torpedo boat – nicknamed the Dog Boat – and was designed as a counter to the German S-boat. It could be fitted as either a gun or a boat, so the designation MGB disappeared. It was a sea boat and could maintain 30 knots at full load
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Lewis gun
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The Lewis gun is a First World War-era light machine gun of US design that was perfected and mass-produced in the United Kingdom, and widely used by British and British Empire troops during the war. With its distinctive barrel cooling shroud and top-mounted pan magazine, the Lewis served to the end of the Korean War and it was also widely used as an aircraft machine gun, almost always with the cooling shroud removed, during both world wars. The Lewis gun was invented by U. S. Army colonel Isaac Newton Lewis in 1911, Lewis became frustrated with trying to persuade the U. S. Army to adopt his design, so, retired from the army. He left the United States in 1913 and went to Belgium, Lewis had been working closely with British arms manufacturer the Birmingham Small Arms Company Limited in an effort to overcome some of the production difficulties of the weapon. Lewis and his moved to England before 1914, away from possible seizure in the event of a German invasion. The Belgian army acquired only a handful of his guns and they were not on general issue in the Belgian Army, and were used only in a few forays by motor vehicles, south of Antwerp, against the flank of the invading German Army. The onset of the First World War increased demand for the Lewis gun, the design was officially approved for service on 15 October 1915 under the designation Gun, Lewis. 303-cal. No Lewis guns were produced in Belgium during the war, all manufacture was carried out by BSA in England, Savage did make Lewis guns in.303 British calibre, though. The Model 1916 and Model 1917 were exported to Canada and the United Kingdom, the Savage Model 1917 was generally produced in. 30-06 caliber. A number of guns were supplied to the UK under lend-lease during the Second World War. The Lewis gun was gas operated, a portion of the expanding propellant gas was tapped off from the barrel, driving a piston to the rear against a spring. The piston was fitted with a vertical post at its rear which rode in a helical cam track in the bolt and this allowed the three locking lugs at the rear of the bolt to engage in recesses in the guns body to lock it into place. The post also carried a fixed firing pin, which protruded through an aperture in the front of the bolt, only the Royal Navy retained the tube on their deck-mounted AA-configuration Lewis guns. The Lewis gun used a pan magazine holding 47 or 97 rounds, pan magazines hold the rounds, bullet-noses inwards toward the center, in a radial fan. Unlike the more common drum magazines, which hold the rounds parallel to the axis and are fed by spring tension, the Lewis magazine was driven by a cam on top of the bolt which operated a pawl mechanism via a lever. The operating rod had a toothed underside, which engaged with a cog which wound the spring, when the gun fired, the bolt recoiled and the cog was turned, tightening the spring until the resistance of the spring had reached the recoil force of the bolt assembly. At that moment, as the gas pressure in the fell, the spring unwound, turning the cog. As with a spring, the Lewis gun recoil spring had an adjustment device to alter the recoil resistance for variations in temperature
41.
Motor Torpedo Boat
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Motor Torpedo Boat was the name given to fast torpedo boats by the Royal Navy and the Royal Canadian Navy. The motor in the designation, referring to the use of petrol engines, was to distinguish them from the majority of other naval craft that used steam turbines or reciprocating steam engines. The capitalised term is used for the Royal Navy boats. During the Second World War, the US Navy boats were called by their hull classification symbol of PT. German motor torpedo boats of the Second World War were called S-boote by the Kriegsmarine, Italian MTBs of this period were known as Motoscafo Armato Silurante. French MTBs were known as vedettes lance torpilles, soviet MTBs were known as торпедные катеры. After the end of the War in 1945, a number of the Royal Navys MTBs were stripped and the empty hulls sold for use as houseboats. MTBs were designed for speed, operating at night, low speed ambush and manoeuvrability on the water. With no significant armour, the boats relied upon surprise and their agility at high speed to avoid being hit by gunfire from bigger ships, the British and Italian navies started developing such vessels in the early 20th century, shortly before the beginning of the First World War. Italian MAS boats were small, at 20-30 tons displacement. MAS15 was the motor torpedo boat in history to sink a battleship. British torpedo boats of the First World War were small at only around 15 tons and were known as Coastal Motor Boats, in the Second World War, British MTBs were operated by Coastal Forces. A similar size boat with a different role in the Second World War was the BPB63 ft High Speed Launch used by the RAF, the last MTBs in the Royal Navy were the two Brave-class fast patrol boats of 1958 which were capable of 50 knots. Many boats were built with a MTB designation but varied substantially, a 55 footer capable of 40 knots was shown in 1930. The Vosper private boat was designed by Commander Peter Du Cane CBE and she was completed and launched in 1937. She was bought by the Admiralty and taken into service with the Royal Navy as MTB102. Length,68 ft Beam,19 ft 9 in Draft,3 ft 9 in, armament, Two 21 in torpedo tubes MTB102 was the fastest wartime British naval vessel in service. She was at Dunkirk for the evacuation and carried Winston Churchill and they were based on the British Power Boat rescue craft and were originally designed for the Royal Air Force but reduced to 60 ft in length
42.
Motor Launch
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For other types of launch see Launch A motor launch is a small military vessel in British navy service. It was designed for defence and submarine chasing or for armed high speed air-sea rescue. Although small by standards, it was larger than the preceding Coastal Motor Boats of 40 and 55 ft length. The first motor launches entered service in the First World War and these were 580 80-foot-long vessels built by the US Elco company for the Admiralty, receiving the designations ML-1 to ML-580. They served between 1916 and the end of the war with the Royal Navy defending the British coast from German submarines, after the Armistice of 11 November 1918 a flotilla of 12 RN Motor Launches traveled down the Rhine performing duty as the Rhine Patrol Flotilla. Post-war, many motor launches were taken on as pleasure boats, a number of them are on the National Register of Historic Vessels. Gardiner, Robert, Conways all the fighting ships 1906–1921 Conway Maritime Press,1985. Gardiner, Robert and Chesneau, Roger, Conways all the fighting ships 1922-1946. UK National Register of Historic Vessels Naval Museum of Manitoba Juno Beach website A Short History of HMS St Christopher, Royal Navy Coastal Forces training base, mainly for MLs Stoker Harold Siddall Royal Navy, his service in ML.1030 and capture in Crete 1941
43.
MG 81 machine gun
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The MG81 was a German belt fed 7.92 mm machine gun, used in flexible installations in World War II Luftwaffe aircraft, replacing the older drum magazine-fed MG15. The MG81 was developed by Mauser as a derivative of their successful MG34 infantry machine gun, development focus was to reduce production cost and time and to optimize for use in aircraft. Developed in 1938/1939, it was in production from 1940 to 1945, a special twin-mount MG 81Z was introduced in 1942. It paired up two of the weapons on one mount to provide more firepower with a maximum rate of fire of 3200 rounds/minute without requiring much more space than a standard machine gun. The MG 81Z was found in many installations in Luftwaffe combat aircraft. Designated R19 as a factory designed field conversion/upgrade kit, it allowed the pilot of the Do 217 to shoot at pursuers, another application was the Gießkanne, an externally mounted pod with three gun pairs, making a total of six guns and their ammunition. Able to fire 9000 rounds per minute, this was attached to Junkers Ju 87 or Ju 88 in an underwing mount and used to strafe ground targets. MG81 Weight,6.5 kg Length,915 mm Muzzle velocity,705 m/s,760 m/s,785 m/s or 790 m/s, depending on ammo type Rate of fire, 1400–1600 rpm MG 81Z Weight,12. ru Luftwaffe39-45
44.
ShKAS machine gun
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The ShKAS is a 7.62 mm calibre machine gun widely used by Soviet aircraft in the 1930s and during World War II. It was designed by Boris Shpitalniy and Irinarkh Komaritsky and entered production in 1934, ShKAS was used in the majority of Soviet fighters and bombers and served as the basis for the ShVAK cannon. ShKAS is a gas-operated revolver-type machine gun, it has a chamber in which the pin strikes the primer. A key element of the ShKAS high rate of fire is the drum that holds ten rounds and provides a very smooth. Another element is the lightweight recoiling portion of the gun, weighing only 921 grams, the feed, somewhat resembling a grooved revolver cylinder, is an integral part of the gun, and the cartridges remain axial throughout the entire operation. The cylindrical feed cage is rotated by an arm that engages a slot in the gas piston, the freed cartridges are then presented at the bottom of the receiver for chambering by final rotation. This circular type of feed holds ten rounds, several phases are required to completely delink a round and roll it up into position for being shoved into the chamber. A small folding handle held on the top side is used to rotate the drum when filling with cartridges. Camming the round out of the belt with this type of feeder causes practically no drag when the weapon is fired at high speed. It has belt pull enough to care of practically any length belt desired. The Russian Air Force nicknamed this circular arrangement the bird-cage feed and it is an adaptation of a system first used by the Polish designer, Gabriel Szakats. This was done by changing the position of the holes in the gas regulator, the smaller the orifice used, the more moderate is the rate of fire obtained. Initial production consisted of cable-charged wing-mounted and turret-mounted ShKAS with a synchronized version entering service in 1936. e, the intended role was marked with the letters T for flexible, K for wing, and S synchronized. The flexible version was mounted in a Soviet copy of the Scarff ring. The 1937 model had higher maximum rate of fire of 2,000 rounds per minute. The amount of ammunition carried was 750 rounds for the fixed models and 1,000 to 1,500 for the flexible. A one-second burst from four ShKAS in Polikarpov I-153 or Polikarpov I-16 placed 120 bullets within 15 angular mils at 400 meters giving a density of 5 bullets per square meter of the sky. This was significantly higher than contemporary aircraft from other nations, especially considering that four guns, with 650 rounds of ammunition each, Soviet machine-gun technician Viktor M. Sinaisky recalled, The ShKAS machine gun had a high rate of fire but it also had 48 ways of jamming
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International Standard Book Number
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The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an e-book, a paperback and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, the method of assigning an ISBN is nation-based and varies from country to country, often depending on how large the publishing industry is within a country. The initial ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering created in 1966, the 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108. Occasionally, a book may appear without a printed ISBN if it is printed privately or the author does not follow the usual ISBN procedure, however, this can be rectified later. Another identifier, the International Standard Serial Number, identifies periodical publications such as magazines, the ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 in the United Kingdom by David Whitaker and in 1968 in the US by Emery Koltay. The 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108, the United Kingdom continued to use the 9-digit SBN code until 1974. The ISO on-line facility only refers back to 1978, an SBN may be converted to an ISBN by prefixing the digit 0. For example, the edition of Mr. J. G. Reeder Returns, published by Hodder in 1965, has SBN340013818 -340 indicating the publisher,01381 their serial number. This can be converted to ISBN 0-340-01381-8, the check digit does not need to be re-calculated, since 1 January 2007, ISBNs have contained 13 digits, a format that is compatible with Bookland European Article Number EAN-13s. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an ebook, a paperback, and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, a 13-digit ISBN can be separated into its parts, and when this is done it is customary to separate the parts with hyphens or spaces. Separating the parts of a 10-digit ISBN is also done with either hyphens or spaces, figuring out how to correctly separate a given ISBN number is complicated, because most of the parts do not use a fixed number of digits. ISBN issuance is country-specific, in that ISBNs are issued by the ISBN registration agency that is responsible for country or territory regardless of the publication language. Some ISBN registration agencies are based in national libraries or within ministries of culture, in other cases, the ISBN registration service is provided by organisations such as bibliographic data providers that are not government funded. In Canada, ISBNs are issued at no cost with the purpose of encouraging Canadian culture. In the United Kingdom, United States, and some countries, where the service is provided by non-government-funded organisations. Australia, ISBNs are issued by the library services agency Thorpe-Bowker
46.
Eric Brown (pilot)
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Captain Eric Melrose Winkle Brown, CBE, DSC, AFC, Hon FRAeS, RN was a British Royal Navy officer and test pilot who flew 487 different types of aircraft, more than anyone else in history. He was also the pilot in the history of the Royal Navy. He also flew almost every category of Royal Navy and RAF aircraft, glider, fighter, bomber, airliner, amphibian, flying boat, during World War II, he also flew many types of captured German aircraft, including new jets and rocket planes. He was a pioneer of jet technology into the post-war era, Brown was born in Leith, near Edinburgh, Scotland. In 1936, Browns father took him to see the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, Hermann Göring had recently announced the existence of the Luftwaffe, so Brown and his father met and were invited to join social gatherings by members of the newly disclosed organisation. It was here that Eric Brown first met Ernst Udet, a former World War I fighter ace, who was fascinated to make the acquaintance of a former RFC pilot, and Eric, his son. Brown soon discovered in himself and Udet a shared love of flying, Brown eagerly accepted the Germans offer and after his arrival at the appointed airfield at Halle, he was soon flying in a two-seat Bücker Jungmann. Brown recalled the incident nearly 80 years later on the BBC radio programme Desert Island Discs, You talk about aerobatics – we did every one I think and I was hanging on to my tummy. But he said to me, youll make a fighter pilot – do me two favours, learn to speak German fluently and learn to fly. In 1937, Brown left the Royal High School and entered the University of Edinburgh, while there he joined the universitys air unit and received his first formal flying instruction. In February 1938 he returned to Germany under the sponsorship of the Foreign Office, having been invited to attend the 1938 Automobile Exhibition by Udet and he there saw the demonstration of the Focke-Wulf Fw 61 helicopter flown by Hanna Reitsch before a small crowd inside the Deutschlandhalle. During this visit he met and got to know Reitsch, whom he had briefly met in 1936. Upon opening the door he was met by a woman with the announcement that our countries are at war, soon after, Brown was arrested by the SS. However, after three days incarceration, they merely escorted Brown in his MG Magnette sports car to the Swiss border, saying they were allowing him to keep the car because they had no spares for it. During his service on board the Audacity he shot down two Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor maritime patrol aircraft, using head-on attacks to exploit the blind spot in their defensive armament, the Audacity was torpedoed and sunk on 21 December 1941 by U-751, commanded by Gerhard Bigalk. The first rescue ship left because of warnings of a nearby U-boat and he was the only one of 24 to survive, the rest succumbed to hypothermia. The loss of life was such that 802 Squadron was disbanded until February 1942, following the loss of Audacity, Brown resumed operational flying, being seconded to Royal Canadian Air Force squadrons flying escort operations to USAAF B-17s over France. His job was to them in deck-landing techniques, though on airfields
47.
Commonwealth of Nations
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The Commonwealth of Nations, also known as simply the Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of 52 member states that are mostly former territories of the British Empire. The Commonwealth dates back to the century with the decolonisation of the British Empire through increased self-governance of its territories. It was formally constituted by the London Declaration in 1949, which established the states as free. The symbol of free association is Queen Elizabeth II who is the Head of the Commonwealth. The Queen is also the monarch of 16 members of the Commonwealth, the other Commonwealth members have different heads of state,31 members are republics and five are monarchies with a different monarch. Member states have no obligation to one another. Instead, they are united by language, history, culture and their values of democracy, free speech, human rights. These values are enshrined in the Commonwealth Charter and promoted by the quadrennial Commonwealth Games, the Commonwealth covers more than 29,958,050 km2, 20% of the worlds land area, and spans all six inhabited continents. She declared, So, it marks the beginning of that free association of independent states which is now known as the Commonwealth of Nations. As long ago as 1884, however, Lord Rosebery, while visiting Australia, had described the changing British Empire—as some of its colonies became more independent—as a Commonwealth of Nations. Conferences of British and colonial prime ministers occurred periodically from the first one in 1887, the Commonwealth developed from the imperial conferences. Newfoundland never did, as on 16 February 1934, with the consent of its parliament, Newfoundland later joined Canada as its 10th province in 1949. Australia and New Zealand ratified the Statute in 1942 and 1947 respectively, after World War II ended, the British Empire was gradually dismantled. Most of its components have become independent countries, whether Commonwealth realms or republics, there remain the 14 British overseas territories still held by the United Kingdom. In April 1949, following the London Declaration, the word British was dropped from the title of the Commonwealth to reflect its changing nature, burma and Aden are the only states that were British colonies at the time of the war not to have joined the Commonwealth upon independence. Hoped for success was reinforced by such achievements as climbing Mount Everest in 1953, breaking the four minute mile in 1954, however, the humiliation of the Suez Crisis of 1956 badly hurt morale of Britain and the Commonwealth as a whole. More broadly, there was the loss of a role of the British Empire. That role was no longer militarily or financially feasible, as Britains withdrawal from Greece in 1947 painfully demonstrated, Britain itself was now just one part of the NATO military alliance in which the Commonwealth had no role apart from Canada
