Evening star., 1943-02-06
Mortar Fire Developed
As Effective Answer 10
Deadly Machine Gun
'Glorified' Hand Grenade
FolIs Like AeriuI Bomb
In Trench or Nest
[Sepenth OF a Series.l
(Sepenth OF a Series
BY WALTER McCALLUM,
Star Stan Correspondent.

BY WALTER McCALLUM,
Star Stan Correspondent.
FORT BENNING, Ga, Feb. g.
New technique against the scourge
Of advancing foot soldiers-the ma.
chine gun-constantly is being de.
veloped in the United States Army
Particularly is this development en-
phasized at Fort Benning, Ga, the
big Army infantry school. A ma
chine-gun position. or a series OF
such positions utilizing enfiladine
flre. can hold up an entire battalion
Of infantry.
Only until the machine guns have
been put out of action can infantry
advance, and machine gunners use
every bit of concealment, even a
wisp of grass, to hide their lethal
weapons. If foot soldiers can get
close enough to lob hand grenades
into the machine-gun position that
gun is out Of action. Rifle fire is
potent and counter machine-gun
fire works, but carefully concealed
post, heavily sand-bagged, isn't easy
to knock out.
The probable answer to the ma
chine gun either Is the tank or the
mortar. But there is an answer to
the tank, in the form of Individual
combat against the steel monster. or
artillery. The other answer-the
mortar-has been developed to a
high point of efficiency in the Army.
Fall Like Aerial Bombs.
stood on Georgia hilltop over
looking a vast valley miles long. in
which white flags flew. Behind the
hill stood batteries of mortars, the
heavy mortar Of 81 nm. and the
light, portable so nm. job. A NOR
tar is steel tube or feet
long, resting on a steel base plate.
It has no rifling, and the range find-
ing devices are not the highly spe-
cialized affairs of the rifle or the ar
tillery piece.
It fires a glorified hand grenade,
Of the augmentation type, which ex-
plodes on contact and spreads sud-
den death in the area where 1t ex-
plodes. If mortar shell falls near
q machine gun position, 1t does a
lot Of damage. It's primary job Is
to wipe out personnel, which it does
pretty ef1ectually. Mortar shells fly
q long way at high trajectory, falling
from the sky like airplane bombs.
Mortar fire is indirect fire. The
mortars themselves are out Of sight
behind a ridge, or in a fox hole or
trench. The gunners do not see the
target. Their aim is spotted by for
ward observers who give the range
and correct the firing data.
"Set 3, range 1900" yelled an OBJ
server, binoculars set tight against
his eyes. Fire"
Watch that white flag out there
by the clump Of trees" said the bat
terry commander. Seconds passed.
New Technique Developed.
Far down in the valley huge blob
of black smoke spread out behind
the target. The observer made some
range corrections. Swiftly the gun
crew dropped three grenades down
the smooth tube. BON, boom,
BOOM" coughed the mortar. More
seconds passed. Down there in the
valley the white nag marking the
target swiftly was obhterated by
three bomb bursts.
"A new technique has been devel-
oped for use of the small mortar, !"
said the captain. It came out of
the fighting in the Southwest Pacific
where fast mortar fire is necessary
and where you don't have time to
set up established positions. You
simply carry the tube Of the Comm.
mortar and supply of grenades,
set the base Of the mortar against
. log or a piece Of wood, or even
down on a piece Of firm ground, and
fire. The men have developed a
homemade sighting device which is
pretty good"
A sergeant ran out from behind
the hill carrying the 3-foot steel
tube. Quickly he sat down and
pounded the rounded base Of the
tube into the ground. With his eye
he scanned the valley below.
I'll aim at that clump Of trees -
he said.
He dropped three grenades down
the barrel. where they left with q
soft "plop." Rising swiftly in a
high arc they turned over at the
apex Of the curve and dropped. The
black bursts bracketed the trees. He
made slight correction in the aim
then quickly dropped three more
grenades down the barrel. The
bursts hit squarely on the target
hundreds Of yards down the valley
Easy Mobility.
This method does away with set
ting up prepared positions and
makes for mobility and quick place.
ment Of the guns" said the captain
'"The gunner can fire three or foul
bursts of fire, then pick up his gun
and move on his own feet many
yards away within a few seconds
He doesn't have to use base plate
In effect it has all the portability Of
an airplane bomb barrage, with ever
more assurance of hits on the target
and at little cost"
In one area I watched compan,
OF officer candidates attack and cap,
ture a simulated japanese command
post. 1t is an important and routin.
part of the officer candidate cours.
at Benning. teaching inflltratior
tactics, outpost and security tactics
and quick decision on the part O
n oHRror