Arisaka, Carbine of Japanese troops

Japanese Army began the search for a new small caliber magazine rifle in 1894, with intention to replace obsolete Murata rifles. For this purpose Imperial Army created the commission, led by Colonel Nariake Arisaka. First design, known as Type 30 rifle (30th Year of Emperor Meiji, or 1897 A.D.), showed some deficiencies during the Russo-Japanese war of 1905, and the updated design appeared in 1905-1906 as the Type 38 rifle, generally known as Arisaka type 38. This rifle, chambered for relatively mild 6.5x50SR ammunition, was manufactured in several versions, including long rifle and carbine variants. More than 3 millions of Type 38 rifles were manufactured by various Government arsenals. The Arisaka Type 38 rifle was heavily influenced by contemporary Mauser designs, but also had some unique features.

After serious battle experience in China, Japanese Army decided to step up in caliber and power, and introduced the 7.7x58mm ammunition. The 7.7x58 cartridge was based on the British .303 round (7.7x57R), with the rim removed. New rifle was based on the Type 38 design, and was designated as Type 99 (this is another Japanese nomenclature, actually meaning that the rifle was adopted on year 2099 from the creation of the world). In 1940 Japanese Army adopted the short pattern of the Type 99 rifle, which replaced both long infantry rifle and carbine. More than three and a half millions of Type 99 rifles were manufactured in Japan between 1938 and 1945. There were some further developments, for example, several sniper rifles, fitted with 2.5X or 4X scopes, as well as several take-down rifles, intended for paratroopers. First takedown rifles were made in small numbers from standard Type 99 rifles and featured interrupted screw joint between the barrel and the receiver. This system proved to be too weak, and in 1942 Type 02 paratrooper take-down rifle has been introduced, with simple and rigid cross wedge lock. This rifle, chambered in 7.7x58, has been adopted in mid-1943.

Arisaka Type 38 and, especially, Type 99 rifles are generally quoted as very strong rifles, but this refers only to the rifles, made before the late stages of the World war 2. Late-war rifles, sometimes known as Substitute Type 99, or "last ditch" Type 99 rifles, were often made from low grade steel, with no heat treatment and no finish. Many of these rifles were simply dangerous for shooters to fire.

Arisaka Type 38 rifle is a manually operated, rotating bolt design. Mauser-type bolt has two frontal lugs, and non-rotating Mauser-type claw extractor. Mauser-type integral magazine held five rounds, and was loaded using either stripper clips or loose rounds. One specific feature of Arisaka rifles was the sliding bolt cover, which protected the receiver openings from harsh pacific climate.

7.7mm Arisaka Type 02 paratroop takedown rifle. Note the steel-reinforced joint area ahead of the receiver

	Type 38 long rifle	Type 99 short rifle	Type 02 paratroop rifle
Caliber	6.5x50SR	7.7x58	7.7x58
Overall length	1275 mm	1150 mm	1150 mm
Barrel length	800 mm	656 mm	620 mm
Weight	4.12 kg	3.8 kg	4.05 kg
Magazine capacity	5 rounds	5 rounds	5 rounds

Battle of Stalingrad, Turning point in the Eastern Front

The Battle of Stalingrad was a battle of World War II between Nazi Germany and its allies and the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad in southwestern Russia. The battle took place between 17 July 1942 and 2 February 1943.^[1]

It is often cited as one of the turning points of the war. The battle was the bloodiest in modern history, with combined casualties estimated at nearly two million. The battle involved more participants than any other in history, and was marked by brutality and disregard for military and civilian casualties by both sides. The German offensive to take Stalingrad, the battle inside the city, and the Soviet counter-offensive which eventually trapped and destroyed the German 6th Army and other Axis forces around the city, was the first large-scale German land defeat of World War II.^[8][9] Soviet and Russian studies identify ten campaigns, strategic and operational level operations.

Importance of Stalingrad

The capture of Stalingrad was important to Hitler for two primary reasons. First, it was a major industrial city on the Volga River – a vital transport route between the Caspian Sea and northern Russia. As a result, the German capture of the city would effectively sever the transportation of resources and goods to the north. Second, its capture would secure the left flank of the German armies as they advanced into the oil-rich Caucasus region – with the strategic goal of cutting off fuel to Stalin's war machine. The fact that the city bore the name of the leader of the USSR, Joseph Stalin, would make its capture an ideological and propaganda coup.

The Soviets realized this and, though they were under tremendous constraints of time and resources, ordered that masses should swarm the city. ^[11] At this stage of the war, the Red Army was less capable of highly mobile operations than the German Army; however, the prospect of combat inside a large urban area, which would be dominated by hand-held small arms rather than armored and mechanized tactics, minimized the Red Army's disadvantages. Even though the German Forces in the city were under very crude conditions they held the city until all hope of re-enforcement and resupply was lost. At that point, Field Marshal Paulus surrendered what was left of the German 6th Army, disobeying Hitler's orders to hold out to the last man.

Legacy

[edit] Casualties

Various scholars^[who?] have estimated the Axis suffered 850,000 casualties (killed, disabled, captured) among all branches of the German armed forces and its allies, many of them POWs who died in Soviet captivity between 1943 and 1955. 400,000 Germans, 120,000 Romanians, 120,000 Hungarians, and 120,000 Italians were killed, wounded or captured.^[17]:p? Of the 91,000 German POW's taken at Stalingrad 27,000 died within weeks^[41] and only 5,000 returned to Germany in 1955. The remainder of the POWs died in Soviet captivity.^{[2]:430[42][43]} According to Russian sources, the Axis lost 1.5 million killed, wounded or captured in the whole Stalingrad area^[44][45]. 50,000 ex-Soviets Hiwis (local volunteers incorporated into the German forces in supporting capacities) were killed or captured by the Red Army. According to archival figures, the Red Army suffered a total of 1,129,619 total casualties;^[45] 478,741 men killed or missing and 650,878 wounded. These numbers are for the whole Stalingrad Area; in the city itself 750,000 were killed, captured, or wounded. The Soviet authorities executed approximately 13,500 Soviet soldiers during the battle, equivalent to an entire division.^[2]:166 Also, more than 40,000 Soviet civilians died in Stalingrad and its suburbs during a single week of aerial bombing as the German Fourth Panzer and Sixth armies approached the city; the total number of civilians killed in the regions outside the city is unknown. In all, the battle resulted in an estimated total of 1.7 million to 2 million Axis and Soviet casualties.

[edit] The scope of the battle

The aftermath of the Battle of Stalingrad

At different times, the Germans had held up to 90% of the city, yet the Soviet forces fought on fiercely. At the end of the battle, the Soviet armies had encircled and besieged the Sixth Army. Some elements of the German Fourth Panzer Army also suffered casualties in operations around Stalingrad during the Soviet counter-offensive.

German mobility had been a significant factor in the Wehrmacht's earlier victories. Before Stalingrad, the Soviets had been able to amass their forces in sufficient numbers to achieve victory only around Moscow. Stalingrad, which had limited military value and had already been stripped of its assets, could have been bypassed and invested by Sixth Army in its drive to the Caucasus with Army Group A. Instead, Hitler chose to sacrifice many of his most experienced troops in vicious street fighting among urban rubble, which favoured the defenders and gave the Soviet Union time to amass and concentrate its forces for its pincer movement. Some Germans felt Hitler had sacrificed one of his largest and finest armies for prestige. Sixth Army was reconstituted in time for the Battle of Kursk, but was made up mostly of conscripts, and was never the force it had once been.^[17]:386

A significant factor in Germany's failure at Stalingrad was Hitler's pursuit of too many simultaneous objectives. To the South of Stalingrad, Army Group A was committed to capturing oilfields in the Caucasus and in particular at Baku in Azerbaijan. These oil fields were the original objective of the 1942 campaign, and were seen as vital to winning the war. Capture of the oilfields may have been achievable if Army Group B were also committed to them rather than to Stalingrad. As a result, Baku was never in serious threat from the Germans. If Hitler had cancelled the Caucasus campaign, he could have used Army Group A to bolster Army Group B's flanks around Stalingrad and perhaps to aid in fighting within the city. Clearly Hitler's ambitions were well beyond German means.^[32]

Besides being a turning point in the war, Stalingrad revealed the discipline and determination of both the German Wehrmacht and the Soviet Red Army. The Soviets first defended Stalingrad against a fierce German onslaught. So great were Soviet losses that at times, the life expectancy of a newly arrived soldier was less than a day,^{[2][page needed]} and the life expectancy of a Soviet officer was three days. Their sacrifice is immortalized by one of General Rodimtsev's soldiers, about to die, who scratched on the wall of the main railway station – which changed hands 15 times during the battle – “Rodimtsev’s Guardsmen fought and died here for their Motherland.”

The 85-meter-tall statue of Mother Motherland crowns the Mamayev Kurgan.

For the heroism of the Soviet defenders of Stalingrad, the city was awarded the title Hero City in 1945. Twenty-four years after the battle, in October 1967,^[46] a colossal monument, Mother Motherland, was erected on Mamayev Kurgan, the hill overlooking the city. The statue forms part of a War memorial complex which includes ruined walls deliberately left the way they were after the battle. The Grain Silo, as well as Pavlov's House, the apartment building whose defenders eventually held out for two months until they were relieved, can still be visited. Even today, one may find bones and rusty metal splinters on Mamayev Kurgan, symbols of both the human suffering during the battle and the successful yet costly resistance.

On the other side, the German Army showed remarkable discipline after being surrounded. It was the first time that it had operated under adverse conditions on such a scale. During the latter part of the siege, short of food and clothing, many German soldiers starved or froze to death.^{[2][page needed]} Yet, discipline was maintained until the very end, when resistance no longer served any useful purpose. Friedrich Paulus obeyed Hitler's orders, against many of Hitler's top generals' counsel and advice, including that of von Manstein, and did not attempt to break out of the city. German ammunition, supplies, and food became all too scarce.

Paulus knew that the airlift had failed and that Stalingrad was lost. He asked for permission to surrender to save the life of his troops, but Hitler refused and instead promoted him to the rank of Generalfeldmarschall. No German officer of this rank had ever surrendered, and the implication was clear. If Paulus surrendered, he would shame himself and would become the highest ranking German officer ever to be captured. Hitler believed that Paulus would either fight to the last man or commit suicide. Choosing to live, Paulus surrendered, commenting that, "I have no intention of shooting myself for that Austrian corporal".

(Wikipedia)

P47 Juggernaut, USAAF Freaky Fighter Bomber

The Republic P-47 was the successor of a line of airplanes derived from the Seversky P-35, the XP-41, P-43 Lancer and XP-44 Rocket. The P-47 design team headed by Alexander Kartveli, Republic Aircraft Corporations's chief engineer, originally presented a design that was to be powered by a 1,150 hp Allison V-1710-39 engine with an armament of only two 0.50 inch machine guns.¹ A contract was awarded by the USAAC in November 1939, and for an even lighter XP-47A, but as intelligence was coming back from the war in Europe, it was becoming apparent that the performance goals of the XP-47 program were already inadequate. The USAAC issued new requirements which included:

1. Airspeed of 400 mph at 25,000 feet.
2. Armament of six .50 caliber machine guns, preferably eight.
3. Armor plating to protect the pilot.
4. Self sealing fuel tanks.
5. A minimum of 315 gallons of fuel.

The USAAC notified Kartveli that the XP-47A and the XP-44 Rocket contracts were canceled, since P-43/XP-44 airframe was to small to meet the new requirements. (The XP-44 Rocket was based on the P-43 Lancer airframe with a radial engine and never made it past the mock-up stage.) Kartveli then quickly prepared a rough sketch of a new XP-47B prototype, but it was a daring concept. He planned to use the new 2,000 hp Pratt & Whitney Double Wasp XR-2800-21, eighteen cylinder, two-row radial engine, which was the largest and most powerful aircraft engine ever developed in the United States.² The new design would incorporate eight 0.50 inch machine guns, additional ammunition, increased fuel capacity and armor protection for the pilot. (The final fuel load was slightly under the capacity required, but this was overlooked as the aircraft met performance specifications.) Additionally the airplane would include an efficient super-charging duct system that would offer the least interrupted airflow. Kartveli therefore adopted the unorthodox method of designing this feature first, and then building up the fuselage around it. Despite the fact that the supercharger was in the tail and the engine was in the nose, the arrangement worked quite well—providing a system that was durable and less susceptible to battle damage.

The conventional three-bladed propeller could not efficiently utilize the power of the new engine, and a four-bladed propeller was adopted. Although this propeller was an admirable solution to the power gearing of the engine, there remained the problem of providing sufficient ground clearance for its 12-foot (3.66 m) diameter. If a conventional undercarriage were to be employed, its suspension would have been too far outboard to permit the wing installation of the guns, and ammunition requested by the USAAF. Therefore, Kartveli had to design a telescopic landing gear which was nine inches shorter retracted, than when extended. Numerous other problems were to be faced in absorbing the loads and stresses which would be imposed when a battery of eight 0.5-in. guns, (a phenomenal heavy armament for that time) were fired simultaneously, and in providing the necessary tankage for the quantities of fuel stipulated to make the machine the first true single-engined strategic fighter.

The P-47D-15-RE Thunderbolt on top, was the first version to have underwing pylons to use droppable fuel tanks. Below is a P-47D-1 with white bands on the nose and tail to distinguish it from the Focke-Wulf Fw 190A.

The P-47B entered USAAF service in November 1942, becoming officially operational with the Eighth Air Force stationed in the UK on April 8,1943. However, the P-47B's range was not adequate for escort duties, and its maneuverability at low and medium altitude was poor. Since it was almost twice as heavy as it's opponents it exhibited a poor rate of climb, but had other advantages that more than compensated where it was lacking. In spite of its early shortcomings, the P-47 at least showed promise as a measure of real protection for Allied bombers, which had previously suffered very heavy losses. When, in January 1943, the USAAF's 56th Fighter Group arrived in the United Kingdom with its massive Republic P-47 Thunderbolts, RAF Spitfire fighter pilots banteringly suggested that their American colleagues would be able to take evasive action, when attacked by undoing their harnesses and dodging about the fuselages of their huge mounts. Although the Thunderbolt was certainly big, making it the largest and heaviest WWII single engined single-seat fighter ever built, its sheer size was not to prove detrimental to the Thunderbolt's subsequent operational career. The first tasks of the Thunderbolt were high-altitude escort duties and fighter sweeps, in which the new aircraft acquitted itself well, despite the inexperience of its pilots. It was soon discovered that the heavy Thunderbolt could out-dive any Luftwaffe fighter, or for that matter, any Allied fighter, providing a decisive method of breaking off combat when necessary, but at low and medium altitudes it could not match the rate of climb or maneuverability of German fighters. It's one main shortcoming was that of insufficient range to permit deep penetration into Germany, but means were already being sought to add to the P-47B's 305 US gallons of internal fuel. At the time of the Thunderbolt's European debut, radial-engined single-seat fighters were a rarity, the only other such fighter operational in Europe being the Focke-Wulf Fw 190A. To prevent confusion between the two fighters of the opposing sides, the engine cowlings of the Thunderbolts were painted white, and white bands were painted around the vertical and horizontal tail surfaces—an appropriate comment on recognition standards appertaining at that time, as it would seem impossible to mistake the sleek and beautifully-contoured German fighter for the portly Thunderbolt.

By mid-1943 improved P-47Cs were becoming available, with external fuel tanks to increase range and a longer fuselage to improve maneuverability. The P-47D was the major production version of which 12,602 were produced. Early P-47Ds looked very much similar to the P-47C, but there were 21 variants of this model. 354 P-47Gs were built by Curtiss in Buffalo, and 130 P-47Ms were built with a 2,500 hp engine, giving a maximum speed of 473 mph (761 km/h). The P-47M version was used for anti V1 Flying Bomb duties. The final model, the P-47N, had extended wings and an additional 100 US gallons of fuel. It was developed too late to see much action in Europe and was primarily used in the Pacific theater. The fastest model was the XP-47J, which did not go into production. On August 4, 1944, this plane reached a level speed of 504 mph. Production plans were shelved in favor of another P-47 development, the Republic XP-72. P-47s flew more than 546,000 combat sorties between March 1943 and August 1945, destroying 11,874 enemy aircraft, some 9,000 locomotives, and about 6,000 armored vehicles and tanks. Only 0.7 per cent of the fighters of this type dispatched against the enemy were lost in combat. As a testament to the survivability of the P-47, it should be noted that the top ten aces who flew the P-47, returned home safely. Before the war was over, a total of 15,579 Thunderbolts were built, about two-thirds of which reached operational squadrons overseas. (www.aviation-history.com) Data of US Ace Pilots ETO (www.acepilots.com) Name Kills Medals Unit Plane Francis "Gabby" Gabreski 28.0 DSC 56FG P-47 Robert S. Johnson 27.0 DSC 56FG P-47 David C. Schilling 22.5 DSC 56FG P-47 Fred J. Christensen 21.5 DSC 56FG P-47 Walker M. 'Bud' Mahurin 20.8 SS 56FG P-47 Duane W. Beeson 19.3 DSC 4FG P-47 Glenn E. Duncan 19.0 DFC 353FG P-47 Walter C. Beckham 18.0 - 353FG P-47 Col. Hubert 'Hub' Zemke 17.8 - 56FG P-47 Don Blakeslee 15.5 DFC 4FG P-51

The final version, the P-47N, was built primarily for use against the Japanese in the Pacific theater. Shown is a XP-47N fitted with a bubble canopy.

Val, Japanese Hellbird

On December 7,1941, the Japanese Imperial Navy launched 353 aircraft from six carriers,¹ in a surprise attack, against United States military installations on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. The aircraft included Mitsubishi A6M2s (Zero), Nakajima B5Ns (Kate) and Aichi D3As. The Aichi D3A led the first wave of attacks and was the first Japanese aircraft to drop bombs on American targets.² 129 Aichi D3A aircraft were used as part of the Japanese task force that attacked Pearl Harbor.³ Despite its obsolescence, the D3A took part in all major Japanese carrier operations in the first ten months of the war after the attack on Pearl harbor. Before the attack on Pearl Harbor, they saw only limited action from land bases in China and Indo-China. During the campaign in the Indian Ocean, D3As placed more than 82 per cent of their bombs on target during attacks on the cruisers, HMS Cornwall and HMS Dorsetshire and the carrier HMS Hermes in April 1942.⁴

Inspired by the Heinkel He 70, the D3A was designed to supersede the D1A2, Navy Type 96 Carrier Bomber. The Navy ordered two prototypes with the first prototype being completed in December, 1937. The first prototype was the Nakajima D3N1, powered by the 730-hp Nakajima Hakari 1 radial engine but showed many shortcomings during initial flight-testing. It was found to be under-powered and had a tendency to snap roll in tight turns. The dive brakes were ineffective and vibrated violently when diving at 90 degrees. However, the aircraft did show promise because it had a strong airframe and the overall handling characteristics were good, with the exception to snap roll in tight turns. The second prototype was the Aichi D3A1, configured with a fixed landing gear to eliminate extra weight and maintenance problems of a retractable landing gear system. The Aichi prototype was extensively modified to overcome the shortcomings of the Nakajima design. Engine power was increased to 840 hp with a Mitsubishi Kinsei 3 fourteen-cylinder radial engine, and a redesigned cowling was installed. The wing span was increased, the vertical stabilizer was enlarged, and improved dive brakes were installed. The better performing Aichi D3A1 was selected to go into production under the designation Navy Type 99 Carrier
Bomber Model 11.
(aviation-history.com)

HMS Hermes

HMS Hermes (95) of the Royal Navy of United Kingdom was the first ship in any navy to be designed and built as an aircraft carrier, although the Imperial Japanese Navy's Hōshō was the first to be commissioned. The design of Hermes preceded and influenced that of the Hōshō, and she was launched before Hōshō was laid down, but was commissioned more than six months later than Hōshō.

Hermes was laid down by Sir W. G. Armstrong-Whitworth and Company at High Walker on the River Tyne in January 1918 and was launched on 11 September 1919. She was not commissioned until 1923.

Despite her size, Hermes was only able to carry 20 aircraft. Like other carriers of the time, Hermes, as built, was fitted with longitudinal wires, but these were changed to transverse arrester wires in the early 1930s.

During World War II she served briefly with the Home Fleet before being assigned to the southern Atlantic from October 1939. She worked with the French navy based at Dakar until the Vichy government came to power, following that her aircraft took part in a strike against the French vessels at Dakar. In July 1940 she collided with a merchant vessel and was repaired at Simonstown, South Africa. Following repairs she continued patrols but this time in the Indian Ocean as part of the Eastern Fleet.

During the Indian Ocean raid, Hermes was in harbour at Trincomalee, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), undergoing repairs. Advance warning of a Japanese air raid allowed her to leave port, but as she returned following the raid on 9 April 1942, she was spotted off Batticaloa by a Japanese reconnaissance plane. Lacking planes of her own, she was defenceless when she was attacked by 70 Japanese bombers. Hit 40 times, Hermes sank with the loss of 307 men. Her escorts – the destroyer HMAS Vampire and the corvette Hollyhock – and two tankers were also sunk. 590 survivors of the attack were picked up by the hospital ship Vita and taken to Colombo. Some survivors were taken to Kandy where they spent 10 days recuperating at the Queens Hotel.

(Wikipedia)

Squadrons and Aircraft

In mid-1930s she was reduced to operating 15 aircraft and by 1939 this had dropped to only 12.

FAA squadrons embarked	Dates	Aircraft type
814	Sept 1939-Feb 1942	Swordfish II
710 dt	May 1940	Walrus I

Carrier name	HMS Hermes
Class	Hermes Class
Type	Fleet Aircraft Carrier
Ships in Class	Hermes
Launched	Built by Armstrong Whitworth. Laid down 15 January 1918. Launched 11 September 1919. Commissioned July 1923.
Tonnage	Displacement: 11,085 tons standard ; 13,208 tons full load
Engines	Propulsion: Two Parsons Steam Turbines (6 Yarrow small-tube boilers, 2 shafts, Parsons geared turbines), 40,000 shp.
Speed in Knots	Speed: 25 knots
Armament	Guns: 6 x 5.5 inch ; 3 x 4 inch AA; 2 quad 0.5 inch AA (added 1934). 6 x 1 x 20mm AA
Crew Complement	700 Officers & Ratings including Air Group
Range	6000 miles @ 18 knots
Length (ft/inches)	Dimensions: 548 pp, 600 oa x 70.25 x 21.5 feet
Beam (ft/inches)
Draught (ft/inches)
Flight Deck length (ft/inches)	570
Flight Deck width (ft/inches)	90
Armour	3" side (belt) 11"-2" side (ends) 1" upper deck 1" main deck
Number of aircraft carried	Aircraft: Up to 20 planes including Martlet (F4F) Fighters Swordfish T.B's
Fate of carrier	Sunk 9 April 1942 by Japanese aircraft from the carriers Soryu, Hiryu and Akagi.
Notes	The first purpose built aircraft carrier in the world.

Glider Pilot Regiment

Glider Pilot Regiment
Active	21 December 1941- 1 September 1957
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	British Army
Type	Army Aviation
Role	Air transport and airborne infantry
Part of	Army Air Corps 1942-1949 Glider Pilot and Parachute Corps (1949-1957)
Motto	Nihil est Impossibilis "Nothing is Impossible"
Colors	None issued
Engagements	invasion of Normandy Operation Market Garden Invasion of Sicily, Crossing of the Rhine
Battle honours	Normandy Landing, Pegasus Bridge, Merville Battery, Arnhem 1944, Rhine, Southern France, North-West Europe 1944-45, Landing in Sicily, Sicily 1943[1] Rhine
Commanders
Colonel Commandant	The Rt Hon Alan Francis (Brooke), 1st Viscount Alanbrooke, KG (1942-)
Insignia
Beret colour	Maroon

The Glider Pilot Regiment was a specialist British unit of the Second World War which was responsible for crewing the British Army's Military gliders and saw action in the European Theatre of World War II in support of Allied airborne operations. Established in 1942, the regiment was disbanded in 1957 becoming part of the Parachute Corps.

Contents [hide] 1 Formation 2 Europe 2.1 Operation Husky 2.2 Operation Tonga 2.3 Operation Market-Garden 2.4 Operation Varsity 3 Far East 4 Post-war 5 See also 6 References 6.1 Notes 6.2 Bibliography 7 External links

[edit] Formation

The German military was one of the pioneers of the use of airborne formations, conducting several successful airborne operations during the Battle of France in 1940, including the Battle of Fort Eben-Emael.^[2] Impressed by the success of German airborne operations, the Allied governments decided to form their own airborne formations.^[3] This decision would eventually lead to the creation of two British airborne divisions, as well as a number of smaller units.^[4] The British airborne establishment began development on 22 June 1940, when the Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, directed the War Office in a memorandum to investigate the possibility of creating a corps of 5,000 parachute troops.^[5] On 21 June, 1941, the Central Landing Establishment was formed at Ringway airfield near Manchester; although tasked primarily with training parachute troops, it was also directed to investigate the possibilities of using gliders to transport troops into battle.^[6][7] It had been decided that the Royal Air Force and the Army would cooperate in forming the airborne establishment, and as such Squadron Leader L.A. Strange and Major J.F. Rock were tasked with gathering together potential glider pilots and forming a glider unit; this was achieved by searching for members of the armed forces who had pre-war experience of flying gliders, or were interested in learning to do so.^[7] The two officers and their newly-formed unit were provided with four obsolecent Armstrong Whitworth Whitley bombers and a small number of Tiger Moth and Avro 504 biplanes for towing purposes. Around this time the War Office and Air Ministry began to draw up specifications for several types of military gliders to be used by the unit, which would eventually take the form of the General Aircraft Hotspur, General Aircraft Hamilcar, Airspeed Horsa and the Slingsby Hengist. These designs would take some time to be designed and produced, however, and for the time being the fledgling unit was forced to improvise.^[8]

A Glider Training Squadron was formed, and the first test-flights were conducted using British Aircraft Swallow light aircraft which had their propellors removed to simulate the flight characteristics of a glider; they were towed by the Whitley bombers using tow-ropes of varying number and length for experimentation purposes.^[9] Appeals were made throughout the United Kingdom for civilian gliders to be donated to the squadron, and the first four arrived in August; three of them had been manufactured in pre-war Germany. Within a short period of time several more were donated, and these were put to use training instructors, glider pilots and newly-formed ground crews. Accidents were quite frequent in these early months, primarily due to the hemp tow-ropes breaking during flight; these problems were only solved with the introduction of nylon two-ropes imported from the United States of America.^[9] The first demonstration of the squadron's abilities took place on 26 September, when Prince George, Duke of Kent witnessed a demonstration of the fledgling airborne establishment's capabilities; four parachute-drops were conducted, and then two gliders were towed by civilian aircraft.^[10] This was followed on 26 October by a night exercise being conducted by the squadron, with two Avro 504s towing four gliders, and on 13 December five gliders were towed to Tatton Park, where they landed alongside sixteen parachutists dropped from two Whitley bombers.^[11][12]

There was a certain carefree atmosphere present in the squadron in the first few months of its existence; new recruits were not obliged to pass a medical test to join the squadron, and it attracted a number of adventurous-minded men with a passion for flying, including a sergeant who had flown a Messerschmitt during the Spanish Civil War.^[13] These first pilots had been volunteers recruited from all of the branches of the armed forces, primarily the Army, but as the squadron began to conduct training exercises, arguments broke out between the RAF and the Army over the pilots.^[14] In the view of the RAF, gliders were aircraft and were therefore in their jurisdiction and should be controlled by them; the Army argued that as the glider pilots would subsequently be fighting alongside the troops they were transporting after the gliders had landed, they should therefore come under Army control.^[13] After much debate, a compromise was brokered between the two services: the pilots would be recruited from the Army, but they would be trained by the RAF.^[13]

The RAF was dismissive of soldiers flying aircraft, but it was agreed that the pilots would be drawn from the army and trained by the RAF. Volunteers were sought from the Army and these had to be passed by RAF selection procedures before entering training. Once qualified as light aircraft pilots after a 12 week course, they were given further training on gliders; another 12 week course to qualify on the General Aircraft Hotspur glider. After a period they would then go to a Heavy Glider Conversion Unit for a six week course so they were qualified for the Airspeed Horsa.^[15]

In 1942 the Glider Pilot Regiment came under a newly formed administrative corps, the Army Air Corps, alongside the Parachute Regiment, and the Air Observation Post squadrons of the Royal Artillery.

(Wikipedia)

LONG TOM, 155mm GUN FROM USA

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M1 155 mm Long Tom
Long Tom in travelling position, US Army Ordnance Museum.
Type	Towed field artillery
Place of origin	United States
Service history
Used by	United States, Austria, South Korea, Republic of China, Turkey, Pakistan, Croatia
Wars	World War II
Production history
Designed	1930s
Specifications
Weight	13,880 kg (30,600 lbs) (travelling)
Barrel length	45 calibre: 6.97m (22.86 ft)
Crew	14
Caliber	155 mm (6.1 inch)
Breech	Asbury breech
Carriage	M1 Carriage
Elevation	−2°/+65°
Traverse	60°
Rate of fire	40 rounds per hour
Muzzle velocity	853 m/s (2,800 ft/s)
Maximum range	23,221 m (25,395 yds)

See also: 155 mm Creusot Long Tom

The 155 mm Gun M1 and M2 (later M59), widely known as Long Tom, were 155 millimeter calibre field guns used by the United States armed forces during World War II. The Long Tom replaced the Canon de 155 mm GPF in United States service.

Contents [hide] 1 Development 2 Service 3 Variants 4 Ammunition 5 Existing examples 6 Notes 7 References

[edit] Development

Before entering World War I, the United States was poorly equipped with heavy artillery. To address this problem a number of foreign heavy artillery guns were adopted, including the Canon de 155 mm GPF. After the end of the war development work began in the United States on a design to improve upon the existing models of heavy gun and carriage. A number of prototypes were produced in the 1920s and 1930s, but the projects were put on hold due to lack of funds. In 1938 the 155 mm Gun T4 on Carriage T2 was finally adopted as 155 mm gun M1 on Carriage M1.

The new design used a barrel broadly similar to the earlier 155 mm GPF, but with an Asbury breech. The new split-trail carriage featured four roadwheels, each mounting two tires. The wheels could be lifted, allowing the gun to rest on a firing platform. This made the gun very stable and thus accurate.

The gun was developed into M1A1 and M2 variants. After the war, the United States Army re-organized, and the gun was redesignated as the M59.

[edit] Service

Long Tom at crew training in England.

The Long Tom saw combat for the first time in North African Campaign in 1943, with 34th Field Artillery Battalion. Eventually it equipped about 49 battalions, including 40 in the European Theater and 7 in the Pacific. The preferrable prime mover was initially the Mack NO 6x6 7 1/2 ton truck; from 1943 on it was replaced by the tracked M4 High Speed Tractor.^[1]

A small number of Long Tom guns were supplied via lend lease channels, to the United Kingdom (184) and France (25).

[edit] Variants

M2 on Battle of Okinawa.

M40 in the US Army Ordnance Museum.

Gun variants:

• M1920 - prototype.
• T4 - prototype.
• M1 (1938) - first production variant, 20 built.
• M1A1 (1941) - modified breech ring.
  • M1A1E1 - prototype with chromium plated bore.
  • M1A1E3 - prototype with liquid cooling.
• M2 (1945) - modified breech ring.

Carriage variants:

• T2 - prototype.
• M1 (1938).
• M1A1 - refurbished T2 carriages.

The gun was also mounted on a modified M4 medium tank chassis, in mount M13. The resulting vehicle was initially designated 155 mm Gun Motor Carriage T83 and eventually standardized as 155 mm Gun Motor Carriage M40.

155 mm Gun Motor Carriage T79, based on T23 Medium Tank chassis, never advanced past proposal stage.

(Wikipedia)