Rocket, incendiary

TEA is currently being used in small incendiary rockets which can be fired from the shoulder by a lightweight launcher, designed to replace conventional flamethrowers. It is the incendiary agent in several prototype large cal incendiary projectiles for use by armored vehicles (Ref 7,... 

According to the book of Marcus Graecus, entitled Fire, which appeared about 1300 AD, the following composition was known in the. 13th century in Europe saltpeter 6p (66.7%), charcoal 2p (22.2%) and sulfur lp (11.1%). It was used in two munitions, a thunder bomb and an incendiary rocket, called the flying tunica. The latter consisted of a narrow cylinder filled with the above Black Powder mixture which served as both propellant and incendiary for this prototype rocket... 

It was used in anti-aircraft fire (Ref 9, p 55) 5-inch Incendiary Rocket, used at ranges of about 5,000 yds, was an effective weapon when fired from landing craft in amphibious operations. The rocket head was loaded with thermite or oil incendiary mixtures... 

More peaceful uses of these crude articles appeared in the form of fire crackers - the first fireworks One mixture corresponded quite closely to modern gunpowder in that it contained saltpetre, sulfur and willow charcoal. The fire cracker was said to consist of a loosely-filled parchment tube tied tightly at both ends and with the introduction of a small hole to accept a match or fuse. All of these incendiary mixtures, presumably containing saltpetre, are mentioned in Chinese work dating from the eleventh century ad. Thus, in theory at least, the Battle of Hastings could have been one of Greek Fire , incendiary rockets and grenades. 

In addition to incendiary bombs, grenades, and shells, the CWS worked with incendiary rockets. Rocket research, to determine if the munitions would be suitable for toxic fillings, was first undertaken for the service by the NDRC in 1941. Incendiary fillings became the subject of CWS experimentation two years later, with the Ordnance Department and Navy co-operating in the design of rocket bodies and mortars. 

In 1943 the CWS began to develop a 2.36-inch incendiary rocket for the bazooka. Chemists filled shells with various thermite and PT mixtures and tested them. The missiles were not stable ballistically, and the fuel would not always ignite upon impact. While these problems might eventually have been solved, there was another obstacle that proved insurmountable. The rocket cavity held so little filling that it was practically... 

In similar fashion the CWS and Ordnance Department Rocket Research Division evolved an incendiary rocket from the AN-M57 250-pound general purpose bomb. With three rocket motors attached to the base, the bomb would fly almost half a mile. Containing eighty pounds of PT fuel, this was the largest experimental rocket worked on by the service. 

The development of incendiary rockets for the Army proceeded slowly until the autumn of 1944, because none of the theaters or branches of the armed services set up a military requirement for the munition. Then a joint Army-Navy testing and experimental board asked for one hundred 7.2-inch incendiary rockets for trial. This became a joint project of the Ordnance Department and CWS, with the latter filling the rocket with incendiary fuel and fitting it for bursting and ignition. The rocket head held about twenty pounds of PT fuel, a quantity shown by test to be adequate for starting fires. This rocket was never standardized, but the CWS would have considered it satisfactory for use as a standard munition if the need for such a rocket had arisen. ... 

The development of incendiary rockets proceeded slowly because the Army did not ask for them and the Navy was only mildly interested. Without a definite military requirement, the CWS was not justified in diverting men and funds fi-om crucial projects. The work done was exploratory in nature, and served to give engineers experience that would have been useful if theaters of operations had suddenly requested incendiary rockets to place beside HE rockets. 

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