Evening star., 1940-05-10
Rubber Plane Tank
Survives Bullets;
May Go 10 Allies
Tests Show New Fuel
Containers for Aircraft
Resist Leokoge
BY ROBERT BRUSKIN,
star Stan CORRESPONDENT,


MIDDLE RIVER. Nd, May TO-
The allies may soon be receiving
American warplanes equipped with
a self-sealing, flre-retarding fuel
tank which Mai. Gen. II. H. Arnold
listed as q must" for future United
States planes.
At the conclusion Of tests con-
Quoted at the Glenn l.. Martin Co.
proving ground yesterday during
which bursts of machine gun bullets
failed to cause leakage to the new
tank, w. X. Ebel, chief engineer,
disclosed that France will receive
the new tanks In Martin bombers
I'm about six months" He said the
tank was superior to those developed
by belligerents.
Reports reaching him "from extra
good sources" In Europe, Mr.. Ebel
said, indicated that about rs per
cent" of warplane combat casualties
in the first few months Of the Eu-
ropean war were caused by fuel
fires."
Tank Of Synthetic Rubber.
The new tank, made of synthetic
rubber about q quarter-inch thick.
was developed in the Martin labora-
tories under the direction of r. B.
Gray. Its composition is strictly
confidential, omcials declared in
warning newsmen not to ask ~too
many questions on how 1t works. !"
The gasoline is believed to set up a
chemical reaction which aids in clos
ing the punctures.
The tests showed conclusiyelv that
the tank Is self-sealing under the
impact Of 80 caliber bullets. A
tracer bullet included In the machine
gun burst passed through the tank
without causing damaged. A minute
leakage followed the impact of the
bullet, but the punctures seemed To
close almost Immediately. Eight
bullets were fired at range Of so
yards and when the tank was In
spected the punctures appeared only
rs Sits and tiny holes that had been
effectively closed.
Resists Heavy Slug.
No test was made yesterday with
the .50-caliber machine gun which
fires a heavy slug. But in the
laboratory newsmen were shown
tanks which had withstood such
fire without i'll effect. Some of
the laboratory tanks had been
patched with the same material
used in closing punctures on inner
tubes Of automobiles. Mr.. Gray ex-
planned, however. that this was used
merely in reinforcing the fabric for
further tests and that the punctures
had healed effectively without the
use of patching
Mr.. Gray admitted that punctures
created by high explosive, which
might be caused by anti-aircraft
guns and small cannon now being
installed In warplanes, might dam
age the tank irreparably. Moreover,
"a lucky shot" across the edge
might tear away d corner and thus
said. ~
By contrast, Martin pfIicials fired
q machine gun burst, which included
several tracer bullets, into the older
type Of metal tank. It burst into
flame almost instantly, as the highly
volatile gasoline spilled into . dug
out. The machine gun was also
fired Into two metal tanks filled with
seawater and both were emptied in
. few seconds. Where the bullets
left the tank, holes large enough to
admit q football. were punched
through the aluminium alloy.
Difference in Weight.
Several Army and Navy officers
viewed the tests, but declined to
comment. One pointed out, how
ever, that In contrast to fuel tanks
now In use which are made an in
tegral part Of the structure, the
synthetic rubber tank would in
crease slightly the weight of a
plane. Martin officials claimed,
however, 1t would decrease the
weight carried and permit easier
repairs.
The tank can be stuffed into small
openings, and as it Is filled with
fuel it expands into any shape per-
mitted by the space. The Army is
reported to be experimenting with
a similar type Of tank. Germany
has been using = self-sealing tank
made Of fiber, rubber compounds
and rawhide. The airfleets of Great
Britain and France are reported to
have a leak-retarding tank similar
in many aspects to the Mareng Cell
perfected bY the Martin c0mua nv