A Better Rifle at Halloween
- Thread starter diesal
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- britwank rifles ww1 different
An RAF wing commander is still equivalent to a commander RN, and an RAF group captain is equivalent to a captain RN; RAF ranks are basically RNAS ranks with some slightly snazzier names.
It really confuses pongos...
It's the enlisted ranks that get really odd. Below the rank of corporal the RAF uses modified naval ranks, at corporal and above they use army ranks.
Aircraftsman 2nd class, Aircraftsman 1st class, Leading Aircraftsman, Senior Aircraftsman, Corporal, Sergeant, Flight Sergeant, Warrant Officer 2nd class, Warrant Officer 1st class.
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This is the Seabrook Armoured lorry that entered service in 1915 (early?). Looks quite handy and I just love the Naval ensign staff mounted on the stern!!
Below is a Peerless truck in Army service with a 2lb Pom Pom as an AA gun. There is no reason why the RNAS cannot acquire a few of these guns from RN depots in 1914.
View attachment 681763
A combination of Seabrook lorries armed with 3lb Hotchkiss guns, Pom Poms and Vickers machine guns would be quite a formidable force.
This is the Seabrook Armoured lorry that entered service in 1915 (early?). Looks quite handy and I just love the Naval ensign staff mounted on the stern!!
Below is a Peerless truck in Army service with a 2lb Pom Pom as an AA gun. There is no reason why the RNAS cannot acquire a few of these guns from RN depots in 1914.
View attachment 681763
A combination of Seabrook lorries armed with 3lb Hotchkiss guns, Pom Poms and Vickers machine guns would be quite a formidable force.
Kit like that makes me wonder - if there had been numerous armoured mechanised forces available to one side at the start of WW1, would it ever have ground down to trench warfare?
If the Germans had them, they might do an early version of Blitzkrieg. If the Allies had them, they might be able to throw the Germans back.
Possibly someone takes the Fowler B5 and adapts the idea to ICE powered vehicles? http://www.landships.info/landships/tank_articles/fowler_B5.html
So not only a better rifle at Halloween...
If the Germans had them, they might do an early version of Blitzkrieg. If the Allies had them, they might be able to throw the Germans back.
Possibly someone takes the Fowler B5 and adapts the idea to ICE powered vehicles? http://www.landships.info/landships/tank_articles/fowler_B5.html
So not only a better rifle at Halloween...
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Sooty
Banned
Half-track - Wikipedia
Regimental Attack
8th September 1914, Namur.
The heavy guns had fallen silent again, the attacking infantry had crept as close to the falling shells as strict Prussian discipline and the traditions of the Guards would bring them. Fort De Congnelee had fallen the previous day, a fresh regiment was leading the attack on Fort D’ Emines. The German’s were using their artillery in the same manner as the previous attack, very heavy bombardment was being used to suppress the fortress position. Lighter guns working over the trenches and breastworks surrounding the Fortresses.
The fire from the guns ceased, the infantry swept forward, the French who were manning the breastworks and entrenchments near the Fort rapidly regained their defences. They had managed to secure additional machine guns, all of them were the St Etienne Mle 1907, these guns swept out a steady drum beat of fire. The lines of attacking Germans wavered, bugles and whistles blew, the line rallied, advanced, wavered, rallied and came on, countless dead and dying men stretching back to the jumping off point, the German line was close to the front by this point, already in their mind they had come so far forward that to retreat was more dangerous than to advance.
From the French line the whistles blew and men who had been sheltering behind the breastworks and below the lip of the rudimentary trenches clambered out, there bayonets glinting they counter-attacked. The attackers already wearied and bloodied by their ordeal, retreated their retreat became a rout, as Poilus bayonets fixed added volleys of close-range gun fire to the already overwhelming fire of the machine guns.
The French 75’s their numbers depleted by the fire of the heavy artillery finally began to rain shrapnel on the now retreating German, but in this they were too late with the vast majority of the rounds wasting on the empty space between the routed infantry and the defensive line. One round either a misfire or faulty fuse detonated behind the breastwork, its deadly cargo sleeted forward and down, killing a company commander and his senior NCO. With angry curses for the gunners the rest of the French regained the dubious safety of their defences while a futile attempt was made to signal the gunners they were firing short. More shells flailed the front line, the casualties slowly mounting until finally the shelling ceased.
This respite was short-lived, but sufficient to evacuate some of the wounded and bring up more ammunition, then the hammer blows from the Krupps guns resumed and the defenders hunkered down to await another attack.
The heavy guns had fallen silent again, the attacking infantry had crept as close to the falling shells as strict Prussian discipline and the traditions of the Guards would bring them. Fort De Congnelee had fallen the previous day, a fresh regiment was leading the attack on Fort D’ Emines. The German’s were using their artillery in the same manner as the previous attack, very heavy bombardment was being used to suppress the fortress position. Lighter guns working over the trenches and breastworks surrounding the Fortresses.
The fire from the guns ceased, the infantry swept forward, the French who were manning the breastworks and entrenchments near the Fort rapidly regained their defences. They had managed to secure additional machine guns, all of them were the St Etienne Mle 1907, these guns swept out a steady drum beat of fire. The lines of attacking Germans wavered, bugles and whistles blew, the line rallied, advanced, wavered, rallied and came on, countless dead and dying men stretching back to the jumping off point, the German line was close to the front by this point, already in their mind they had come so far forward that to retreat was more dangerous than to advance.
From the French line the whistles blew and men who had been sheltering behind the breastworks and below the lip of the rudimentary trenches clambered out, there bayonets glinting they counter-attacked. The attackers already wearied and bloodied by their ordeal, retreated their retreat became a rout, as Poilus bayonets fixed added volleys of close-range gun fire to the already overwhelming fire of the machine guns.
The French 75’s their numbers depleted by the fire of the heavy artillery finally began to rain shrapnel on the now retreating German, but in this they were too late with the vast majority of the rounds wasting on the empty space between the routed infantry and the defensive line. One round either a misfire or faulty fuse detonated behind the breastwork, its deadly cargo sleeted forward and down, killing a company commander and his senior NCO. With angry curses for the gunners the rest of the French regained the dubious safety of their defences while a futile attempt was made to signal the gunners they were firing short. More shells flailed the front line, the casualties slowly mounting until finally the shelling ceased.
This respite was short-lived, but sufficient to evacuate some of the wounded and bring up more ammunition, then the hammer blows from the Krupps guns resumed and the defenders hunkered down to await another attack.
A Union Suppressed
8th September 1914, Butte Montana.
The Sergeant of the guard had grown tired of the three prisoners in his care, their singing, chanting and constant demands for release had tried his patience. In addition, he had spent the previous night drinking whiskey with a fella who had explained that the union and the mine owners would be real glad if the prisoners had a hard time of it.
He had picked his detail this morning with care, the corporal who he put in charge was a real hard case, he should not have even been in the National Guard, but they needed numbers and so were not as picky as they should be. As for the rest of the detail no one selected had much going for them except violent tempers and a willingness to look the other way.
The singing resumed, this time it was that socialist anthem The Internationale, the corporal bellowed for silence only for the next chorus to ring out. “Tis the final conflict; Let each stand in his place. The International working class, shall be the human race!” With that the guardsmen rushed into the cells, billy clubs smacked and rifle butts clubbed, within moments all three of the prisoners were down on the cell house floor, that didn’t seem to satisfy the attackers who continued to brutally beat the prisoners. Finally, they realised that they may have taken the attack too far, two men were choking and gasping but one man the former president of the rouge union would never harangue a crowd again, nor man a picket line his head was twisted at an unnatural angle a boot print outlined on his face.
The corporal knew with that that he had gone to far, the testimony of the survivors would see him hang. He was a brutal man but not stupid, a solution was obvious, he cried out “stop or I will shoot”, with that he fired his revolver three times hitting the two injured men in the chest, the dead man he shot in the head.
With that he turned to his men and said, “I warned them didn’t I boys” they agreed, “the was fixin to escape, for sure” said one young soldier a cowboy from Texas who had somehow ended up in the Montana National Guard.
The Sergeant of the guard had grown tired of the three prisoners in his care, their singing, chanting and constant demands for release had tried his patience. In addition, he had spent the previous night drinking whiskey with a fella who had explained that the union and the mine owners would be real glad if the prisoners had a hard time of it.
He had picked his detail this morning with care, the corporal who he put in charge was a real hard case, he should not have even been in the National Guard, but they needed numbers and so were not as picky as they should be. As for the rest of the detail no one selected had much going for them except violent tempers and a willingness to look the other way.
The singing resumed, this time it was that socialist anthem The Internationale, the corporal bellowed for silence only for the next chorus to ring out. “Tis the final conflict; Let each stand in his place. The International working class, shall be the human race!” With that the guardsmen rushed into the cells, billy clubs smacked and rifle butts clubbed, within moments all three of the prisoners were down on the cell house floor, that didn’t seem to satisfy the attackers who continued to brutally beat the prisoners. Finally, they realised that they may have taken the attack too far, two men were choking and gasping but one man the former president of the rouge union would never harangue a crowd again, nor man a picket line his head was twisted at an unnatural angle a boot print outlined on his face.
The corporal knew with that that he had gone to far, the testimony of the survivors would see him hang. He was a brutal man but not stupid, a solution was obvious, he cried out “stop or I will shoot”, with that he fired his revolver three times hitting the two injured men in the chest, the dead man he shot in the head.
With that he turned to his men and said, “I warned them didn’t I boys” they agreed, “the was fixin to escape, for sure” said one young soldier a cowboy from Texas who had somehow ended up in the Montana National Guard.
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Ah, the clockwork machine gun. Hope they are pumping out Hotchkiss guns quickly enough to eventually replace these. Now that I think on it, with the front further away, I wonder if the Hotchkiss Portative factory will remain in France. IOTL they moved Hotchkiss gun production to the south of France and Portative production to Britain.
