BOMBERS' ARMOUR

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3199, 25 September 1917, Page 6

BOMBERS' ARMOUR

PROBLEMS OVERCOME.

Countless experiments' have been made in the search for a satisfactory invention for body armour for- the men- at the front. Up to the present no inventor has been able to produce iqiy ' shield" which will fulfil the necessary re-. ' quirementsj/the soldier who goes 'over the top" and advances to. the attack under a friendly barrage wears no armour to-day beyond the . once-dendcd "tin hat/' which has gaved him many " a time. One protection in use at the- :■ front to-day is the bomber's'" armour. 'Most ; of our bombers have that now, and wonderfully usefnl it has proved, in 1 : spite of the weight and "drag." A sol , - ' dier thus encased looks very.niuoh like an old-time Japanese warrior 'in full, ar- -■ mour. His mobility is not greaf, <but the cumbrous drees suits his purpose'well ■ Enough! Oiir bombers at-the front shook their, heads at first, but they are glad ' ..enough to accept,it now. "For infantrymen the problem is far nipre difficult, in- ■ volving, first and last, the question of ■weight. ': , 'I discussed the matter yesterday with ■ -■' one who has made a special studyj of -body armour (says the special correspondent of ttie "Daily Mail"). He said that a body shield of-steel, ■ properly padded and weighing a 'good deal, is the •lightest protection that has. yet been found,, and even that .covers a .small ■area, leaving some of the vital organs" ;•':exposed.' It is made of a certain ninal- ! gam; it is impervious to'shrapnel and '; splinters, and it is so dressed as to ab■'v'sorb the "splash" of the bullet. It has ;;been tried at home and abroad under 'full service conditions. Its weight is. the main objection, "but there is n Beyond one: the men don't like it, complaining ..that it-"cramps their style." Recently this armour was given a trial .In England. " .Both British and enemy trenches were dug and a "No Man's .- Land" was laid put. A hundred soldier#were picked; 60 were supplied with the new armour, and 50 unarinmired scattered among them. The dummy barTage lifted, 'and : the. men charged the enemy trenches. Their, advanco was carefully watched and timed. The men dashed forward, and the percentage of those jn first naturally favoured the un- ' armoured 50, who won the race. When all were in.-the enemy's trenches they •were next examined as to their fitness ito "carry on." Most of the armoured ISO were too-,"blown,"' and it wae teck--oned--.that the best of their ■ fighting power bad been absorbed in their weight.canyinpr race. I do.not know how tho • "casualties" were reckoned, but ?.n unfavourable verdict was passed on tne ?r----monred attack judged as a whqlo. Other experiments have been tried since, and similar results recorded; ."The arming of infantrymen," eaid my. informant, "would undoubtedly eave life in thn sense that the injuries would be of a less severe character. .But the argument of the authorities is that the time the men would be exposed in tho ('anger \ zone would be at least . one-fourth as lorn? again." . . '; The crux is weight, and weijht a'cne. The problem of design. has beer, overcome. 'AH manner of steel substitutes have been tried and found wanting. Steel is the only stuff to stop high velocity bullets. At different ranges and at <Hferent speeds it is remarkable the tncks a nickel bullet will perform. Complaint has been made by\ numerous inraitors that their suggestions and models fi'vo been "thrown down" by the J'.miftry of Munitions, and that they haye been treated with le.=s than scant rnurtesy. I am assured, however, thatnot.a rt.klc case has been rejected without a coneid- ' ered reason being given.