Ammunition, smoke , white

Ammunition smoke, white phosphorus, with burster, expelling charge or propelling charge 0245... 

Ammunition, smoke, white phosphorus with burster, expelling charge, or propelling charge 0246... 

In the military, white phosphorus is used in ammunitions such as mortar and artillery shells, and grenades. When ammunitions containing white phosphorus are fired in the field, they burn and produce smoke. The smoke contains some unbumt phosphorus, but it mainly has various burned phosphorus products. In military operations, such smoke is used to conceal troop movements and to identify targets or the locations of friendly forces. White phosphorus munitions are intended to burn or firebomb the opponents, in other words, to effectively produce widespread damage but not kill the enemy. 

Ammunition, smoke (water-activated contrivances), with or without white phosphorus or phosphides, with burster, expelling charge or propelling charge, see Ammunition, p.8... 

White smoke compositions Signal ammunition in explosions... 

White phosphorus is used by the military in various types of ammunition, and to produce smoke tor concealing troop movements and identilying targets. 

Smoke ammunition including smoke bombs and smoke grenades delivers smoke-producing chemicals to screen the movement of troops or equipment and for marking targets. White smoke is produced by the following chemicals as they explode or spontaneously combust on exposure to atmospheric moisture or oxygen ... 

At the end of May, Shadle expressed his satisfaction with the chemical offensive potential and ammunition status in the North African theater. His view seems to have been overly optimistic since smoke pots, tear gas, and HC smoke grenades were the only ammunition items available in sufficient supply. All the chemical supply officers reported urgent requests for unavailable white phosphorus grenades. The Twelfth Air Force reported limited quantities of ANM50A1 4-pound incendiary bombs, a few Mja yoo-pound incendiary bomb clusters, and a considerable number of My4 loo-pound incendiary bomb clusters. There was no other chemical ammunition in the theater although the New York port had promised that 120 days supply of high explosive and smoke shell was en route for the three chemical mortar battalions which had recently arrived in the theater. Aside from a small amount of artillery shell stored by Ordnance, no toxics were available in the theater and none was scheduled to arrive until the fall of 1943. The March theater plan for gas warfare, the first such plan, was based on meeting possible enemy gas attack with this plainly inadequate supply of artillery shell. The new War Department policy for retaliation in event of enemy initiation of gas warfare called for the use of aerial munitions as the principal gas weapons. Shadle s satisfaction with the toxic supply status can be explained by the fact that he did not con-... 

Infantry commanders had long been reluctant to request WP fire. Smoke as a means of concealment was often superfluous in the jimgle fighting during the early years of the war, and casualties were produced by high explosives. As a consequence, white phosphorus ammunition remained unused while stockpiles of high explosives were bled white. 

Starting with one basic type of shell in 1942, the CWS evolved a variety of shells for the 4.2-inch mortar. Only three of these, HE, white phosphorus, and FS smoke, were employed in battle, but their effectiveness led Generalleutnant Oschner to say, in speaking of the American mortar, that "the various types of ammunition used with it are excellent. ... 

Phosphorus is commonly found in inorganic phosphate rocks and in all living cells. The most important commercial use of phosphorus-based chemicals is the production of fertilisers. They are also widely used in explosives, nerve agents, friction matches, fireworks, pesticides, toothpaste and detergents. White phosphorus is used in incendiary bombs, smoke bombs and tracer ammunition. 

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