Re: AAA ground support

[Lynn Nelson <ibetext@raven.cc.ku.edu>]

On Mon, 2 Sep 2002 ChosinMead@aol.com wrote:

> Yes, I know of at least one guy (US Army) that was attached to the Marines at 
> the Chosin Reservoir- he operated quad fifties mounted on a half track. I 
> also know of quad fifties and 40MM that was used by the Army (Task Force 
> Faith) east of the Chosin. Lee

The Army's standard quad-50 was on a wheeled M-55 mount that could be
towed behind a jeep if necessary and fire while being towed or while being
set on the ground. The M-55 was intended, though, to be mounted on the bed
of a 2 1/2 truck - not because of its size as much as because it ate up
ammo so fast that it needed the 21/2 to carry the boxes to keep it
running.

The M-55 mount could train 360 degrees in azimuth and from 0 to 90 degrees
in elevation, and its rate of fire was 2400 rounds p.m. (660x4). Given the
power of a .50-cal. round, it could eat up a good amount of countryside.
Since the solenoid-fired guns were mounted on the outside of a steel drum
that shielded the elevation traversing gears and formed the sides of the
gunner's seat, the noise inside the quad-50/M-55 was unbelievable. I know
of no quad-50 gunner that did not have occasional broken eardrums and
at least partial, but permanent loss of hearing. Firing tended to be
intermittent, not so much because of the need for cooling the guns or
reloading as to allow the gunner to regain consciousness of be replaced.

Much of my own training as an AA 90mm Bn Master Gunner was directed toward
maximizing the Bn's effectiveness at surface fire. The 90mm gun had been
developed in about 1940 in response to the German 99mm and was used with
effectiveness as field artillery - usually against armor - in North
Africa. Several AA Gun Bns served in Korea as surface artillery and did so
with - I was told - great effectiveness, but I have always wondered how
true that was. The 90mm required a prime mover for transport, its set-up
and take-down time was lengthy, it could not fire effectively from its
bogies, and its flat trajectory would seem to me to have been a
disadvantage in uneven terrain. 

Does anyone have any personal - rather than official - information on
this?

Lynn