Davis gun
| Davis Gun | |
|---|---|
 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 | |
| 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 US Navy, in 1910, just prior to World War I.
Development[]
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 World War I, but the firing principle has been copied by later designs.
Description[]
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 calibre respectively, firing 2 pounds (0.91 kg), 6 pounds (2.7 kg) and 12 pounds (5.4 kg) shells. The 3 inch (7.62 cm) carried a pressure 15 tons per square inch when fired.[5] Usually a Lewis machine gun was mounted on top of the Davis gun's barrel which was then used for sighting and as an auxiliary and anti-aircraft weapon.
Aircraft used[]
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[]
There are examples still 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[]
References[]
- ^ a b Williams, Anthony G (August 2014). "The Cannon Pioneers: The early development and use of aircraft cannon". Retrieved 28 December 2021.
- ^ United States. Navy Dept. Bureau of Ordnance (1923). Ammunition : instructions for the naval service, 1923. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office. p. 162.
- ^ "DAVIS AMMUNITION". www.big-ordnance.com. Retrieved 19 November 2012.
- ^ Williams give 57mm calibre
- ^ Trimble, William F. (1990). Wings for the Navy: A History of the Naval Aircraft Factory, 1917-1956 (1st ed.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. pp. 35–36. ISBN 0-87021-663-5.
External links[]
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