Medical Aspects of Chemical Warfare (2008) - The Black Vault

Medical Aspects of Chemical Warfarethis delivery system by developing the Livens projector,an 8-in, mortar-like tube that shot or projected acylinder into the enemy’s lines (Figures 4-4 and 4-5).Its range was 1,700 yd, with a flight time of 25 seconds.The Livens system had several problems; a battery ofthe projectors required extensive preparation becausethey were electrically fired and could not be movedonce they were set up, and a battery could normallyonly be emplaced and fired once a day. This limitedmobility required the element of surprise to preventthe Germans from taking counter measures.British 4-in trench mortars, called “Stokes mortars”(Figure 4-6), provided a solution to some of the problemswith the Livens projectors. Stokes mortars did notrequire extensive preparation and could be moved asneeded. Because it was not rifled, the mortar’s rangewas only 1,200 yd, which meant about a 14-secondflight time. The small shell held only about 6 to 9 lb ofagent, but experienced gunners could fire 25 roundsper minute. American troops used both Livens projectorsand Stokes mortars during the war. An Americanversion of the Stokes mortar failed to reach the frontbefore the end of the war.In addition to the special chemical weapons, theCWS fired chemical rounds from 75-mm, 4.7-in, 155-mm, and larger caliber guns. Many of these guns hadranges of 5 to 10 miles and payloads of as much as 50lb of agent. Because of a shortage of shell parts and thelate completion of US shell-filling plants, US artilleryprimarily fired French chemical rounds. 2,4,5The 1920sThe 1920s brought reports of isolated chemicalattacks during the Russian civil war, as well as lateraccounts of the British, French, and Spanish usingchemical weapons at various times during the decade(see chapter 2). 6 In addition, reports of Italy’s developingchemical warfare service particularly alarmed theUnited States. 7–9 The CWS improved various deliverysystems for chemical weapons during the 1920s. Asearly as 1920, Captain Lewis M McBride experimentedwith rifling the barrel of the Stokes mortar, and in1924 a rifled Stokes mortar barrel was tested. Truingthe inside diameter of the 4-in barrel before riflingexpanded the bore’s diameter to 4.2 in. This increasedthe range of the mortar from 1,100 yd (0.63 miles) to2,400 yd (1.3 miles). In 1928 the improved mortar wasstandardized as the M1 4.2-in chemical mortar andbecame the CWS’s prized ground weapon for deliveringtoxic chemical agents as well as smoke and highexplosives. 5An expanded role for airplanes in the next chemicalwar was predicted in 1920:The dropping of gas bombs of all kinds upon assemblypoints, concentration camps, rest areas and theFig. 4-4. A battery of dug-in Livens projectors, with one gasshell and its propellant charge shown in the foreground.Electrically-controlled salvo firing was the usual mode ofoperation. Emplacement was a slow process that limited thepossibility of a surprise attack.Photograph: Courtesy of Research, Development and EngineeringCommand Historical Research and Response Team,Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland.Fig. 4-5. Sectionalized view of a Livens projectile. The centraltube contains a small explosive charge, which, whendetonated by the contact fuse, breaks the shell, aiding in thedissemination of the chemical agent. The usual weight of thechemical agent was 30 lb; the shell weighed an additional30 lb. Photograph: Courtesy of Research, Development andEngineering Command Historical Research and ResponseTeam, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland.118