Raf dispatch riders ww2 guns

The air battalion was the forerunner of the royal flying corps and royal air force. Ww2 rubberized motorcyclists coat dispatch rider genuine nos. It involved most of the worlds nationsincluding all of the great powerseventually forming two opposing military alliances. Video wwii army motorcycle dispatch riders had brass. While in the military the riders were paid 35 shillings per week the equivalent of. Mitchell, who had produced the schneider trophy champions of. Number of squadrons, locations and aircraft equipment in britain, africa, middle and far east. British ww2 era motorcyclist pantaloons pants dispatch rider motorcycle. Over 100 wrens, women motorcycle riders, were killed and lost their lives serving their country proudly as. Excellent british bsa matchless dispatch riders pantaloons trousers. Raf guns is coordinator of ecoomantwerp, where he works on the further development of and research based on the vabbshw. The armys antiaircraft command batteries worked with light and heavy antiaircraft guns in cooperation with searchlight units. Entries are listed below in alphanumeric order 1toz. The raf regiment is a highlyspecialised force with responsibility for providing force protection to enable and support air operations.

The royal air force regiment raf regt is part of the royal air force and functions as a specialist airfield defence corps founded by royal warrant in 1942. They are in excellent order with no damage but just minor surface wear in places, all original buttons are in place and good and the original size label is to the rear for sizes see photos it has a printed date of 1945 and an ink stamped date of july 1945. Some us fighters the most important of them was the p51b had only four. This genuine wartime example features a full set of brass kings crown buttons. Military side arms of the major combatant powers by peter suciu editors note.

Peter suciu, whose previous articles for have included the small arms rifles, submachine guns, machine guns of the major world war ii belligerents, turns his attention to the principal hand guns used by allied and axis countries. The pants are in great condition and are complete with suspender buttons, all six front closure buttons, red stripes, and leather and steel buckles. One occasion, she rode through the streets in the dark during a bombing raid. Breast of man overjacket 43ins to 44inssold out size 9 height of man 511 to 60. Aircraft and bases of the royal air force in june 1942. The wreckage of an raf bomber shot down during world war two has been discovered thanks to a german soldiers photos of the crash site. Royal winnipeg rifles northwest canada 1885 uniform hat cap badge military. As in the modern wars prior, it was the service pistol that proved the last line of defense for the warfighter of world war 2. They were also used by the royal air force and the royal navy, where they maintained contact with land bases and some of the riders were members of the womens royal naval service wraf. Raf regiment servicemen near khandahar airfield, afghanistan january 2010.

Motorcycle despatch riders were first used in wwi by the british army royal engineers signal service. For sale here is a great looking pair of ww2 british raf walking out dress uniform pants. These messages were added to this story by site members between june 2003 and january 2006. Its unlikely that a dispatch runner uses a bike with sidecar and mounted mg since hes acting all on his own, hence the solokrad. From my previous linky our thinking was that as we had motor bikes we would join the royal signals as despatch riders which we did. Royal air force, youngest of the three british armed services, charged with the air defense of the united kingdom and the fulfillment of international defense commitments. Ww2 british army dispatch riders pantaloons world war. The guns tested were the vickers, hotchkiss, darne, madsen and the colt mg40 and mg402. Just like having the right tool for the job is the difference between failure and success, so is having the right weapon for the job is difference between victory and defeat rifle caliber machinegun rcmg, 7mm to 9mm. World war ii, or the second world war often abbreviated as wwii or ww2, was a global conflict that was underway by 1939 and ended in 1945. The pants are made of heavy blue wool with red wool felt stripes. These boots have been made with a rubber dms sole instead of the original leather sole which makes it safer and more comfortable to wear. He transferred to the rfc as an observer when the need for dispatch riders reduced and later train. The rate of fire of most guns was about per second, but a twogun turret fifty calibre was still more effective than a fourgun.

Withtin the department of research affairs and innovation research affairs unit, he supports the work on publications and bibliometrics and coordiantes the uantwerp participation in the vabbshw. The royal air force had both fighter and bomber command as their major offensive arms but as a defence raf balloon command placed barrage balloons around potential target areas. An original matched set of raf officers service dress in good condition and dating from the second world war. A despatch rider or dispatch is a military messenger, mounted on horse or motorcycle and occasionally in egypt during world war i, on camels in the uk despatch rider is also a term used for a motorcycle courier despatch riders were used by armed forces to deliver urgent orders and messages between headquarters and military units. British ww2 tankerparatrooperdispatch rider steel helmet. Harry watts the dispatch rider motorcycles in the war. In the uk despatch rider is the most common term used for a motorcycle courier. Raf recruitment raf regiment gunner royal air force. Enlistment did not fall under the jurisdiction of conscription. Specialists in ground combat operations, the raf regiment contributes to the defence of raf airfields in the uk and overseas, forward air controlling, ceremonial duties and support to special forces operations. By july 1941 the strength of bomber command stood at 45 raf squadrons with a theoretical deployment of 1,000 aircraft. There are a total of 41 world war 2 service pistols 1939 1945 in the military factory. Made in 1940s by victory garment manfacturers government contractors. Early in world war ii, the british were in favour of pattern harmonisation, a shotgunlike tactic which disperses the fire of multiple guns to gain a greater chance of a hit.

The markings show the raf serial number raf157684 on the right picture on. Dispatch riders were used by armed forces to deliver urgent orders and messages between headquarters and military units. This story has been written by the widow of bill gordon, bill died in september 2000. My partners grandmother was a dispatch motorcycle rider. We found just a single case of fewer than 20 of these helmets. Dispatch riders were issued a special pair of boots and breeches to ride motorbikes during ww2.

Bbc ww2 peoples war dispatch rider bef fall of france. There are four photos of raf drls despatch rider letter service related activities in the book the postal history of the naval and raf postal services by e b proud. We were married in 1935 and bill enlisted on the 2nd july, 1940 at the age of 26. Not quite the same pizzaz but nevertheless it looks the part. Tracing its ancestry to a successful line of racers, the spitfire was designed by supermarines chief engineer, reginald j. Wouldnt some members of the british armed forces who also happened to have privately owned side arms during ww2 sometimes carry the pistols while on duty. Breast of man overjacket 41ins to 43ins sold out size 10 height of man 511 to 60. At age 19, having completed basic training at fort william, now known as thunder bay, harry watts official position with the canadian armoured corps initially began as trooper. World war 2 service pistols 19391945 military factory. A dispatch is a military messenger, mounted on horse or motorcycle. Briefing for the crew of a heavy stirling bomber of the raf bomber command.

Motorbike dispatch riders the unsung heroes of two world. Both pictures show dispatch riders of the 83rd group, 2nd tactical air force raf. For riders, enlistment as a dispatcher lasted a year, or however long the war lasted. A good original 1945 dated british army dispatch riders pantaloonsbreeches. The raf regiment is trained in cbrn chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear defence and equipped with advanced vehicles. How effective were antiaircraft guns during the second. Just after these guns had been produced, the raf decided to hold competitive trials to select a modern automatic gun. Norton 16h instructional footage wwii for dispatch riders.

Height of shaft 14 inch with leather sole and steel beetween the soe and heel. Yet despite the odds stacked against them, dispatch riders held no rank and were rarely acknowledged for their important role in the war. Ww1, royal engineer tunnelling companies, nicknamed the moles, were specialist units of the corps of royal engineers within the british army, formed to dig attacking tunnels under enemy lines during the first world war. Supermarine spitfire no single aircraft has so captured the worlds imagination as the royal air forces sleekly elegant spitfire. The boots were a high leg and had 3 metal buckles on top plus a reinforced leather toe for protection. The royal air force raf tried various patterns of gun harmonisation, with the convergence area taking the form of a rectangle or a circle. This uniform is the pattern used by all raf officers throughout the second world war and was superseded shortly after the conflict by a three button version. I think its probably a case of many soldiers were given a motorbike to carry out their duties, but not all would necessarily be r signals dispatch riders.

If bombers were able to fly towards a defenceless target, they were able to pick the height at which they attacked, the speed at which they attacked, the direction from wh. The raf continued to show interest in airborne antitank guns, leading to the development of the dh mosquito fb xviii better known as the tsetse. Marked by significant events involving the mass death of civilians, including the holocaust and the only use of nuclear weapons in warfare, it is the deadliest conflict in human history, resulting in 50 million to over 70 million fatalities. During ww2 british motorcyclist were to be found in all brigades and divisions preforming a variety of different roles from a dispatch rider delivering messages in the royal signals from unit headquarters and royal artillery delivering messages to gun batteries,road traffic duty in the royal military police and a general motorcyclist in most corp passing on urgent. The first wraf was an auxiliary organization of the royal air force which was founded in 1918. From early 1944, 1 group bomber command lancaster bombers used the rose rear turret, which had a pair of fifty calibre guns. Dispatch riders dr boots by gse soldier of fortune military.

Flag images indicative of country of origin and not necessarily the. History, development, service, specifications, pictures and 3d model. The markings show the raf serial number raf157684 on the right picture on the front fender with the unit marking underneath. This carried an army 6 pounder antitank gun fitted with an autoloader developed by the molins company. Although my grandfather wasnt a member of the regular armed forces during ww2, he was in the home guard and was also an air raid warden with the civil defence. Please practice handwashing and social distancing, and check out our resources for adapting to these times.