page_title: Plastic armour
hierarchical_section_title: Plastic armour
caption_attribution_description: English: Plastic Armour does its job A ship returning from a scrap with its plastic armour damaged by enemy fire. The armour absorbed the impact of the shells, the underlying superstructure receiving less damage as a result. No casualties were taken.
context_page_description: Plastic armour was a type of vehicle armour originally developed for merchant ships by Edward Terrell of the British Admiralty in 1940. It consisted of small, evenly sized aggregate in a matrix of bitumen, similar to asphalt concrete. It was typically applied as a casting in situ in a layer about 2 in thick on to existing ship structures made from ¹⁄₄ in-thick mild steel or formed in equally thick sections on a ¹⁄₂ in-thick steel plate for mounting as gun shields and the like. Plastic armour replaced the use of concrete slabs, which although expected to provide protection, were prone to cracking and breaking up when struck by armour-piercing bullets. Plastic armour was effective because the very hard particles would deflect bullets, which would then lodge between the plastic armour and the steel backing plate. Plastic armour could be applied by pouring it into a cavity formed by the steel backing plate and a temporary wooden form. Production of the armour was by road construction firms and was carried out in a similar way to the production of road coverings, the organization of the armouring being carried out by naval officers in key ports.
context_section_description: Plastic armour (also known as plastic protection) was a type of vehicle armour originally developed for merchant ships by Edward Terrell of the British Admiralty in 1940. It consisted of small, evenly sized aggregate in a matrix of bitumen, similar to asphalt concrete. It was typically applied as a casting in situ in a layer about 2 in (51 mm) thick on to existing ship structures made from ¹⁄₄ in-thick (6.4 mm) mild steel or formed in equally thick sections on a ¹⁄₂ in-thick (13 mm) steel plate for mounting as gun shields and the like. Plastic armour replaced the use of concrete slabs, which although expected to provide protection, were prone to cracking and breaking up when struck by armour-piercing bullets. Plastic armour was effective because the very hard particles would deflect bullets, which would then lodge between the plastic armour and the steel backing plate. Plastic armour could be applied by pouring it into a cavity formed by the steel backing plate and a temporary wooden form. Production of the armour was by road construction firms and was carried out in a similar way to the production of road coverings, the organization of the armouring being carried out by naval officers in key ports.
caption: Damaged plastic armour after enemy attack
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