Dear All,

This message has been sent to several lists - my apologies for any
duplication.

I have a couple of questions arising from a visit to the Australian War
Memorial (AWM) with the Naval Historical Society yesterday:

1. There is a model of one of the Australian 'I' class destroyers on
display, as equipped for service in the Mediterranean/Adriatic 1917-19 -
ie, the torpedo tube right aft has been landed and replaced by depth
charge rails. However, there are also four devices fitted on both sides
further forward which look suspiciously like depth charge throwers
(K-gun type). I was unaware that such throwers were used during WW1, and
neither my JANE'S compilation or Manning's THE BRITISH DESTROYER mention
them. Can anyone enlighten me further?

2. My second question arises from a photo, which shows an AA gun and
crew on 'a destroyer off Bardia' (presumably Australian). Although the
photo doesn't include the barrel, it appears the gun is not automatic
(eg, pom-pom, Bofors, etc.) and I therefore assume it is a 3" AA -
carried by all ships of the "Scrap Iron Flotilla". The layer(?) is
sitting in the left-hand seat and has the normal concentric-ring
foresight and peep backsight. In the right-hand seat is a second member
of the gun's crew who has the same peep backsight; however, *his*
"foresight" is a wire frame, shaped like rectangle with the short sides
vertical but with the long sides bowed; there are also about
half-a-dozen equally-spaced vertical wires enclosed by the frame. The
whole thing seems to be about six by nine inches.

Can anyone explain what this (and its purpose) is? I suspect it might be
a crude height-finder (remember, this equipment dates from the end of
WW1), and the operator would pass the estimated/calculated height to the
fuse-setter before each round was loaded.

I'd be grateful for any information on either question, and am happy to
receive responses either via the list or direct to me.

TIA

Peter Sinfield
Canberra, ACT
AUSTRALIA
email: [log in to unmask]



%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%