Picture of the day

The automated loading seems far more efficient. Single loading those projectiles looks very labour intensive.

The fumes surprised me as did the need to wipe the chamber.
 
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The No.1 or gun commander is checking the fuse setting on a PD fuse,it can be set with a screw driver or spanner by the crew.The fuse setting on this particular round would be either SQ ( super quick ) or delay.
I was was a No.1 on both the C1 howitzer and a driver/gunner on the M-109A3 s.And theirs definitely a problem withe guns bore evacuator,the crew shouldn't be breathing in that volume of smoke in the cab,even with the dirty propellants the Americans use.
 
The same principle applied to the Ferret scout car which we used into the early '70s. The idea was to sneak and peek for information and evade as quickly as possible if engaged. Recce by death is rather unpopular with the crews.

"Found 'em! Alright, time to leave."

I 100% understand the reasoning. Especially when you're trying to locate armoured columns in the days before live satellite imaging.

While those vehicles were all probably a hoot to drive, I doubt that most of the drivers are overly upset that a large part of their work is now done by satellites and drones. If the cold war had turned hot, I can't imagine that being an armoured scout was a path to a long and healthy life.
 
I read about those Panhards in book about resistance in occupied Europe.They were often used for patrolling of rail corridors and large marshalling yards in France and Balkans.

Strangely enough Renault FT17s were also mentioned there either mounted on flatbed rail car in front of the train or on its own wheeled frame with chain drive from engine to axle.

I have yet to see pictures or drawings of it.
 
One of the last surviving Panthers. Not much to to see from the driver station, on other hand, when you driving tank you don’t need to see much.

 
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Sergeant Norman Jackson was flying his 31st, and final mission on 28 July 1943 with RAF No. 106 Squadron. He had been afforded the rare opportunity to flew beyond his threshold of 30 missions, as one sortie had been flown with a different crew. He would finish his tour with his original Lancaster crew of ME669.

While flying over Schweinfurt, Germany, they were attacked by a Luftwaffe night fighter hitting their starboard wing and fuel tank. Despite being wounded, he strapped a fire extinguisher to his harness, exited the pilot hatch and climbed onto the wing at 20,000 feet. In the process, his parachute accidentally deployed and the canopy spilled into the cockpit.

He gripped onto the air intake with one hand, and fought the raging fire with his other hand. The Lancaster by now was at risk of exploding, and Jackson's parachute canopy was smoldering. In the process, he was severely burned as he worked to save his bomber crew. He kept the fire at bay giving his crew some time to bail out.

The Luftwaffe night fighter attacked for a final run, hesitating for a moment before strafing the seemingly insane airman dangling from the starboard wing. Jackson was hit twice in the legs, and rocked off the aircraft.

He was last observed by the crew, himself and his parachute on fire plummeting to the earth. Amazingly, he survived his drop with a few broken bones, before being captured by German ground forces. He spent the next 10 months in a prisoner of war camp suffering from extremely painful wounds, before escaping and linking up with the US Third Army.

Jackson was awarded a Victoria Cross for his actions that day, and sold Scotch for a living after the war. He passed away in 1994.
 
Pic thread needs more pics.

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June 6th, HBO will be broadcasting "The Cold Blue", a documentary very much in the same vein as "They Shall Not Grow Old", using miles of cutting-room footage left over from Billy Wilder's "Memphis Belle" film.

Early reports are that it's a no-punches-pulled appreciation of the experience that USAAF bomber crews went through in the middle years of the war. The trailer is certainly sobering:

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