Davis gun
| Davis Gun | |
|---|---|
| File:Davis gun NARA-45523875.jpg Davis gun mounted on Curtiss F5L anti-submarine seaplane | |
| Type | Recoilless cannon |
| Place of origin | United States |
| Service history | |
| Used by | Royal Naval Air Service |
| Wars | World War I |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Cleland Davis |
| Designed | 1912–1914 |
The Davis gun was the first true recoilless gun developed and taken into service. It was developed by Commander Cleland Davis[1] of the United States Navy in 1910, just prior to World War I.
Development
[edit | edit source]
Davis' design connected two guns back to back, with the backwards-facing gun loaded with lead balls and grease of the same weight as the shell in the other gun, acting as a counter. His idea was used experimentally by the British and Americans as an anti-Zeppelin and anti-submarine weapon[3] mounted on the British Handley Page O/100 and O/400 bombers and the American Curtiss Twin JN[1] and Curtiss HS-2L and H-16 flying boats. The direct development of the gun ended with the end of World War I in November 1918, but the firing principle has been copied by later designs.
Description
[edit | edit source]The gun was made in three sizes: 2-pounder, 6-pounder and 12-pounder; 1.57 in (40 mm), 2.45 in (62 mm),[4] and 3 in (76 mm) in caliber respectively, firing 2-pound (0.91 kg), 6-pound (2.7 kg), and 12-pound (5.4 kg) shells. The 3-inch gun carried a pressure of 15 tons per square inch (2,109 kg per cm2) when fired.[5] Usually a Lewis machine gun was mounted on top of the Davis gun's barrel for use in sighting and as an auxiliary and anti-aircraft weapon.
Aircraft used
[edit | edit source]The gun was tested on various aircraft and some aircraft were designed to carry the gun:
- Airco DH.4
- Armstrong-Whitworth FK.5 and FK.6 - "escort fighter" triplane
- Curtiss F5L - patrol flying boat used by US Navy
- Felixstowe Porte Baby - large flying boat
- Handley-Page O/100 - twin engined bombers with 6pdr Davis gun added for ground attack and anti-submarine
- Handley-Page O/400 - larger version of the O/400
- Naval Aircraft Factory N-1 - patrol floatplane designed by US Navy, four prototypes built, project canceled[6]
- Short Type 184
- Short 310-B seaplane
- Pemberton-Billing PB.29E
- Pemberton-Billing PB.31E - long endurance anti-Zeppelin night fighter with 37mm Davis gun, prototypes only
- Robey-Peters RRF.25 Gun-carrier - two Davis guns. Single prototype for Royal Navy completed
Surviving examples
[edit | edit source]There are examples at the Naval Aviation Museum at Pensacola, Florida, the Imperial War Museum in London, and the Kentucky Historical Society in Frankfort, Kentucky.[citation needed]
See also
[edit | edit source]References
[edit | edit source]- ^ a b Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Williams give 57mm calibre
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
Bibliography
[edit | edit source]- Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).