{"id":1592867,"date":"2023-05-19T17:39:01","date_gmt":"2023-05-19T15:39:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/armahobbynews.pl\/?p=1592867"},"modified":"2024-03-12T14:51:15","modified_gmt":"2024-03-12T13:51:15","slug":"flying-tin-can-opener-part-i-origins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/armahobbynews.pl\/en\/blog\/2023\/05\/19\/flying-tin-can-opener-part-i-origins\/","title":{"rendered":"“Flying Tin Can Opener” – Part I – Origins"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cFaster, higher, stronger!\u201d is primarily the motto of athletes, but it also rather aptly describes the efforts of combat aircraft designers. The tank-buster Hurricane Mk.IID was inspired by the last word of this Olympic slogan: stronger!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Cannon-armed aeroplane<\/h2>\n

The idea for an aeroplane to carry a weapon of larger calibre that would make life more difficult for the enemy had appeared already during the Great War. Initial tests of 37 mm and 47 mm (!) cannons were carried out on Voisin aircraft, which then had the distinction of becoming the first aeroplanes to use these weapons in combat.<\/p>\n

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Voisin IV LBS with 37mm cannon. Photo: Wikimedia Commons<\/p><\/div>\n

In the summer of 1916, the great French ace Georges Guynemer himself suggested that cannons be mounted on the SPAD fighter. The task was undertaken by Marc Birkigt, the designer of Hispano-Suiza V8 engines, which in the version with a reducer could be fitted with a machine gun firing through the propeller hub without it being necessary to employ a synchronizer. After making the necessary modifications, Birkigt found space between the engine cylinders for a weapon far more brutal than a machine gun: the 37 mm SAMC semi-automatic cannon manufactured by Puteaux, which fired canister-shot cartridges containing nineteen lead balls. A completely new aircraft, the SPAD S.XIICa1, was built for the new engine plus cannon; it delighted Guynemer and allowed him to extend his list of victories by four confirmed kills in July and August 1917.<\/p>\n

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SPAD S.XIICa1, Photo: La contemporaine. Biblioth\u00e8que, archives, mus\u00e9e des mondes contemporains<\/p><\/div>\n

Great War Aces<\/h2>\n

It was not, however, a fighter for the average pilot. Suffice it to say that the cannon was semi-automatic, that is, after each shot the breech-block remained open for manual reloading. In addition, after a shot was fired the cockpit would fill up with thick gunpowder smoke, forcing Guynemer to roll over, for he noticed that the smoke dispersed more rapidly when the aeroplane was flying upside down. At the same time, it would be necessary to load a fresh cartridge, to this end reaching quite far down to the breech-block, while not losing sight of the enemy and at once \u2013 if the first shot had been ineffective \u2013 preparing a successive attack. Clearly, there was a lot of work to be done, simultaneously and at speed, because the opponent would obviously not be waiting, disinterestedly, for another dose of lead.<\/p>\n

Hurricane Mk IID – zawarto\u015b\u0107 pude\u0142ka<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n