AMERICA'S VEST·POCKET CANNON IS A

Machine-Gun Destroyer

ACCURATE 60-MM. MORT AR THROWS DEADLY SHELLS INTO THE ENEMYJS LINES

By HICKMAN POWElL

ONE of the most important elements in. the increased fire power which our infantry uses against the Axis 1£ the 60·millimeter mortar, a light, hand-carried cannon which tosses three-pound packages of TNT with deadly accuracy at ranges up to 2,000 yards.

Along with the machine-gunners in the weapons platoon of an infantry company, there are mortar squads of five men, each equipped to do a dean-up job on enemy troops Whom rifles and machine guns cannot reach-men whd have taken cover in ravines or trenches, along the banks of streams, in woods, or on reverse slopes. The mortar projectile fiies high into the air

THE CORPORAL corrres field gl"sse." the sight, lensc+ic compcss, mortar ba'9 plate, a bore-cle.aning brush and s.taff, and ;, bag of spare por+s, as shown below from left to right. The gunner in the photo at the right carries the mortar tube and a bipod on which it rests. He bears side ar-ms for protection in the event the squad is rushed by tile enemy during close fighting

ATIACHING THE BASE PlATE. The end of the morto'ri'. set on the plc+e, cs above, and, held with a lug. The base is fixed in posif'ion before- the crew 9085, into action

and dtops almost vertically en its target.

This weapon is a simple but ingenious thing calculated to delight anybody who ever enjoyed playihg with fiFewot.ks. It io; simply a .smooth-bore pipe, ab out 2 1/3 inches in callber and about 29 inches long, and has a cap screwed on the base end, Th.ere is a _firing pin in the center of this cap, and the mcrtan is_ firedsimp!y by dropping the projectile tail fitst Into the muzzle of the ,steeply elevated barrel. The impact on the firing pin, as it Slides down the barrel, detonates the propelling charge. Lying beside it, a gunner can fire in this fashion at the rate of 35 shots to the minute"

The base of the barrel ends in a spherical projection, which Iocks into a socket on a steel base plate which rests'on the ground to take the recoil. The tube is supported on .a bipod which incorporates traverse and elevating mechanisms. The whole thing weighs. only 42 pounds and is easily taken apart for carrying ..

Thi$ mortar its_eu is not fundamentally verydiffetent from the Stokes mortar used in the First World War. The big difference rs that the 60-mHliineter job is a high precision instrument finely made and the am-

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GOING INTO BATILE, the corporal lee ds the squo d, followed closely by the gu.nner and ammu-nition hearers:

He,move~ 'up- ahead to. spot the >enem:,; posi+icn; c-arryilt9 'with him an -aimi-ng stake on whic_h the g~nneT, Dock in a p~otected d_ep~e.siotl, as .belew, trains his sig.hts

munition haS been developed to a high point ofaccuracy and safety. The Stokes mortar sb;ell was shaped like an clang-a ted tin can, and it had no fins. Thrown from a Iow-, veloci:ty tube, it tumbled end over end m flight. It was Of short range al1d a hii was langely a matter of luck. Sometimes, too, the old Stokes exploded prematurely, killing its crew.

Today's modal' missile flies true to its

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AIMING THE GUN. Using ~~e sight and aiming .take, the gunner adjusts the mortar until the squad's leader give. the word that the range has been found. His job is doneforthe mornen+ now; he lie's to one' side os all assistont gunner takes over

FIRIN,G IS DONE simply by dropping 5 h" 115 t'o iI first into the muzzle of the mortar. Impact of the shell as it strikes the firi ng pin de,tonates the propelling charge. An essis+o n+ gunner Iyin.g down co n fire '35 shots Q minute

target. Painted bright yellow, with black markings (bright blue for practice shells)" it is also a 'very pretty plaything. A round of ammunition for the 69-millimeter mortar is about 9% inches long, tapering at both ends, with eight fins on its tail to make it :fly a true course. It looks rather like a miniature airplane bomb.

The nose is fitted with asupcrquick, pointdetonating fuse. This is held safe by a cot-

OOTOBER) 1942

BURSTS OF THE SHELLS are kept in view by the corporal as he shouts bock directions fer aiming. Only a few of the first ,shots go wide,for he is a trained judge of distances

tel' pin attached to a Wire ring, which is jerked loose just an instant before the shell is dropped vinto the mortar rnuzzle. But even then the projectile is not completely armed-not until a brass plug is blown out of the side of the fuse by the force of the propelling charge. 'I'his happens just as the shell emerges from the muzzle, and not until then is the TNT charge ready to explode. The thing is practically f00lprOof.. If the

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AMMUNITION SAGS, e,,,~h with a capacih)' 'of 12 rounds. h9hg over ~the men's shoulders, one in ,front and one CIt the back". The highly accurateCl,nd foolproof .hell. are equipped wHh toil fins to carry them true tothei. mark

propellfng' charge misfrres, the barrel ts simply tipped forward, the shell caught by its sides as it slides out. The cotter pin "is put back, and tttsssre.agatn,

The 'propelling charges are even more. ingenious. The baste charge is a cartrtdge tnserted in the rear end of the projectile, much as for a shotgun shell, put it is entirely filled with powder, ne chamber into which this paper cartI'idgefits is perlor~ted at the sides, so that theexploston bursts out jstdewrse between the fins into the space behind the belly of the shell. Each of the fin blades has a slit in it; parallel with the Shell's axis: and into these slits are inserted, diagonally, tittle square bundles of sheet powder, 'looking much like bits of photographic negative. These bundles are held 'in place by their corners in the sltts, and anyone or all of them can be easily pulled out.

Thus the full charge is made up of sep-

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-arate parts. For close Work all the increments are removed. For middle zones of fire, one· or 'mose a118 removed. With inese v·ari~tions,a;nd changes in the elevation ®f the barrel, any desired range can be, accurately obtained,

Thempl';tal' $q1l,ad i,S a closely knit combat team ·of five men, mcluding a. co'Tpbrru who combines the duties of squad Mader and.observer. Going inte. action" the corporal carries the rnorfar'S base plate, spare parts, sight, field glasses, and compass. Tke ,gunner carries the mortar tube and. biped, while the' assistant gunner and two ammunition carriers carry twelve rounds each. The ammunition bag liangs over the' shoulders, front and hack, with a hole at the center to let the head through. Additional ammunition suppJiesare parked in a quarterton truck close to the scene of firing.

Tbe mortar is set up fpr firing usually in a ,smallgllilY or other protected place, When) only another mort-ar can get at it. Thecorpora.l places an aiming 'stake nearby, fOr the gun.ner to sight on, and then takes a sight on the target with a lensatic compass, to obtain the approximate -azimuth. For range he is dependent at the start on his abi,lity to juCl,ge Qist~nce,allQ. art in, which he has been thor.oughly trained.

While, the gun crew remains, pro-teeted, the corporal takes hiS: position .at a point where he can see the target, observe the shell bursts, andc6rl'ect the :tiring. Though the first shot may be wide and short, the next two or three bring a,djustmeut,. 3,13 the gunner, lying on the ground at the left of the mortar, keeps ~his s~ght trained on the aiming stake and makes the changes shouted by the corperal, T1ren the order is to fire f®r effect, five shots in rapid sueeessron, The assistant glinn.er does the firing, lying at the r.ig'ht of the mortar, dropping the

shells in with his left hand, .

Falling OB its nose, each shell explodes OR contact, and the burstaife,cts a wide circle. Through natural disper:;;ion, five shots cpvera large area. The effect on enemy personnel is devastating.

Y@u may hear more about the big guns, the monster's that roll into action on highspeed axles behind powerful prime movers. They are more sensationaland make striking pictures. But when it comes dowp. to dose-range fighting with enemy machine gun!l and infantry, the little eO-millimeter mortar will be right in there, clearlrrg the way for the advance. TJi.e Ax,IS will hear from our vest-pocket cannon,

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