The Waterbury Democrat., 1945-05-08


 with the spectacularly new weapons that had been first tried in wars pas artillery, and the infantry's automatic world war or earlier, but little by ] chimes of such tremendous destruc- |, tive power. speed and precision that their model IT. ancestors seemed like toys.
 There were brand new weapons too-radar, primarily defensive but | also an element in the wizardry of . modern fire control; rockets, shot | from planes and ships; the in- fantry's bazooka; the German robot i bombs. Their part, relatively speak ing, was subordinate in the great | scheme of battle. But everything that had been used before was better, and in many cases much bigger - better planes, better tanks, better guns, better ex- plosives, better flame throwers bet ter gasoline-and aIl used with dar- ing new conceptie1ls of tactics. It all added up to greater firepower, and more efficient use of it.
 Fire Was Intensified
 FirepQSer efficiency and superb ority were achieved mainly by en- ploying greater concentrations of automatic weapons. The range and muzzle velocity of the guns them selves did not greatly increase.
 Planes, which carried mostly single weapons in the last war, bristled with guns in this. Fight CTS carried up to eight 50-caliDer machine guns, four 40-mm. can non, or combinations of these. The P-39 and P-63 carried 27-mm. can- non through the propeller hub. Big bombers carried multiple power turrets. One versian of the B-25 carried IA 50-calber machine guns and 75-nlm. cannon.
 Bombers were developed to carry more than 10 tons of bombs and drop them precisely. Bombs grew in size up to the 6-ton British block busters.
 The big bombers brought an en- tirely new strategic development in warfare. For the first time it be- came possible to strike directly at the heart of enemy war economy, destroying the enemy's power to make the goods with which to wage war. Before the coming of the plane the only means of doing this was to drive ground forces into the heart of enemy territory.
 The tank, like the plane, was in- troduced in the last war and de- veloped much more elaborately in this, with improvements in fire power, armor, range, speed and mobility. AS the war wore on there were new anti-tank weapons, in- cluding the bazooka and grenade launcher employed by infantrymen. anti tank and tank = destroyer weapons and mines.
 Rifles Were Better
 The firepower of the individual soldier was greatly increased, not only by the bazooka and grenade launcher, but also commencing with the basic weapon. the rife. The semi automatic Garand replaced the old Springfield. Increased fire power was represented in the 50. caliber machine guns and the lighter automatic anti-aircraft weapons and extended up through the ar tillery.
 New conceptions of firepowe, brought such artillery tactics a "massed fire" in which all avail able artillery is directed silnulta neously at a single target. Ameri cans developed this to a high degree and German prisoners often callet it automatic artillery, they were st impressed.
 The rocket also brought with i increased firepower. Since its recoi is not registered on the launcher large caliber rocket weapons can b fired by individuals and from planes The baZookas is of 2.36-inch caliber while AS rockets have been employ e6 by planes. Lack of recoil permit use of multiple-barrelled launchers
 New and mighter explosives als increased firepower. Pentolite, uset in rockets, is 20 per cent nor powerful than TINT. and RDX. uset | III anu fO VI w PN cent more powerful.
 Jet Too Late
 5 Akin to the rocket is jet-propul sion. used in the German rcbo bomb a potentially important wea pon which was developed too lat to effect the outcome of the war. l is really an automatically control . led, jet-propelled plane. Both belli gerents were working on jet-propel led fighters. with new speeds an n rates of climb. but these likewis 4 were too late to affect the cours
 of the war.
 Greater mobility was achieved fo almost every sort of force, weapo n and vehicle. The war brought - great variety of self-prcpelle :. ground weapons in addition to th
 tank-artillery up to l55-mm. an e anti-aircraft up to 90 nm. Wit = lighter armor and greater mobilit, l. these weapons were able to figf
 interchangeably with tanks in me
 chanized warfare.
 IS Heavier artillery became mol : mobile with better transport an n more ingenious arrangements ft
 breaking down and setting up tt