U.S. Army 1944 Firing Test No.

1
Posted on 13 April 1998 by John 0 Comments
Report on Comparative Firing Program Witnessed at Shoeburyness, Essex, 23 May 1944 by
U.S. Army Headquarters ETO representatives.
ARMORED FIGHTING VEHICLES & WEAPONS SECTION
APO 887
319.1 24 May 1944
MEMORANDUM TO: Executive Officer, AFV&W Section, Hq., ETOUSA.
SUBJECT: Report on Comparative Firing Program Witnessed at Shoeburyness, Essex, 23
May 1944.
1. Introduction: Comparative firing tests between 76mm (M1), 17pdr (Mk.I), 90mm (M1),
and 75mm (Mk.V), guns were conducted against rolled homogeneous armour plate at 30
obliquity with service, APC(BC), ammunitions. The 17pdr fired solid shot, the 90mm and
76mm guns fired shot loaded with a base charge of Explosive D, and the 75mm fired both
inert loaded and Explosive D loaded shot.
2. Program:
a. Phase I The 17pdr, 90mm and 76mm were fired at 120mm homo plates (@ 30) at 800,
400, and 100 yards to determine their comparative armor penetration characteristics.
b. Phase II The 17pdr, 90mm and 76mm were fired at 100mm homo plate (@ 30) backed
up by a vertical 100mm plate at 500 yards to determine the relative damage caused behind
[the first] plate.
c. Phase III 75mm APC M61, inert loaded and Explosive D loaded, was fired at a 20mm
homo plate spaced 6 inches [152mm] in front of a 50mm face hardened (1) plate at 30
obliquity at 500 yards to determine the limitations of base charge shot as opposed to solid
shot in the attack of spaced armor.
3. Results (See Inclosure No.1) The firing tests were too brief to support any positive
conclusions, however the tests indicated that:
a. At close ranges the 17pdr gun has decidedly superior armor penetrating characteristics as
compared with the other guns and ammunition fired.
b. Phase II The instantaneous detonation of the relatively large base charge of the 90mm,
Shell, APC M82 adversely effects the armor penetration characteristics of this ammunition
against heavy armor plate at 30 obliquity. As a result, under certain combinations of range
and armor thickness, it can be out-performed by inert loaded 76mm APC M62.

c. Phase III It is possible to defeat the attack of 75mm APC M61, Explosive D loaded, at
certain obliquities and ranges with a 20mm homo plate spaced 6 inches in front of a 50mm
face hardened1 plate. This deficiency is further supported by extensive firing tests conducted
under Ordnance Board Proceedings No. 26,495. (See Inclosure No.2).
4. Addendum Blast effect of 76mm gun M1, in Medium Tank, M4A1, during firing tests. A
total of four (4) rounds were observed from the tank commanders position. Blast obscuration
timed in observing a target at 1000 yards varied between 3.1 and 5.8 seconds. It is not
believed that tracer could have been picked up by a tank commander with field glasses under
1500 yards. Firing was conducted in a 5 to 10 mile, 12 oclock wind, in a grassy field. There
was absolutely no dust encountered. All obscuration resulted from muzzle smoke.
RL D. BRENT, II,
Captain, Cavalry
2 Incls:
Incl 1 Record of Firing.
Incl 2 Summary of Ord Bd Proceedings 26495
Notes:
(1) The original wording of the report states homo in type but this has been crossed out and
face hardened written in in hand writing.
Inclosure No.1
RECORD OF COMPARATIVE FIRING TEST
Shoeburyness 23 May 1944
Rolled Homo @ 30 ; Service Velocity Ammunition
ROUND AMMUNITION***
PHASE I
1
90mm Shell, APC M82
2
17pdr APCBC
3 & 4* 90mm Shell, APC M82
5
76mm Shell, APC M62
6
90mm Shell, APC M82
7
76mm Shell, APC M62
PHASE II
8
17pdr APCBC
9
90mm Shell, APC M82
10
76mm Shell, APC M62
11
76mm Shell, APC M62
PHASE III

ARMOUR
THICKNESS

BDF
FUNCTIONING

800 yds
800 yds
400 yds
400 yds
100 yds
100 yds

120mm
120mm
120mm
120mm
120mm
120mm

yes
yes
no
yes
no

PP Depth 3, Bulge 3/8

PTP
PP Depth 4, Bulge 1

500 yds
500 yds
500 yds
500 yds

100mm
100mm
100mm
100mm

yes
no
no

PTP Excellent Spall Effect

PP Depth 33/8, Bulge 7/8
PTP
PTP

RANGE

RESULTS**

PP Depth 21/8, Bulge 1/8

PP Depth 4, Bulge
PP Depth 2, Bulge 1/8

12
13
14
15

75mm Shot, APC M61

75mm Shot, APC M61
75mm Shell, APC M61
75mm Shell, APC M61

500 yds 20mm

500 yds 6 in front
500 yds of 50mm
500 yds
FH1

no
yes

PTP
PTP
PTP
(see note 2)

* Successive rounds, point of impact one to two inches apart.

**
Results:
PTP
=
Projectile
passes
through
plate.
CP = Complete Penetration projectile failed to pass through plate, but light visible through
hole
or
crack
in
plate.
PP = Partial Penetration failure to make crack or hole in plate through which light is
visible.
3

***
Lot
90mm
Shell
APC
M82
76mm
Shell
APC
M62
75mm
Shot
APC
M61

75mm Shell APC M61 GR-3-4

OOP

12-22415-26

Numbers:
6
OOP-1-2
KOP

Notes:
(1) FH = Face Hardened, the FH has been added in hand writing.
(2) Result for this round reads: Projectile passed through first plate and base charge
detonated between plates Only spall and fragmentation effect on surface of second plate.
(3) The word light has been added in hand writing.
Inclosure No.2
ARMORED FIGHTING VEHICLES & WEAPONS SECTION
APO 887
SUMMARY OF CONCLUSIONS FROM ORDNANCE BOARD PROCEEDINGS No.
26495
1. 75mm APC M61 Inert loaded and Explosive D loaded have similar maximum
perforative performances against single homogeneous plate.
2. Against a spaced plate assembly consisting of 20mm homo plate in front of 50mm FH
plate, the shell failed at all velocities up to the velocity of the gun. The same shell, but with
empty fuse succeeded against this target at velocities above 1780 f/s (equivalent to a range of
about 850 yards with a MV of 2050 f/s). The failure of the filled and fused shell must be
attributed to fuse action and detonation between the plates.
4

3. Against 70mm homo plate at normal or 60mm and thinner plates at 30 the shell was as
successful as shot and gave detonations at distances of up to 20 feet in rear of the target .
5

4. The effect of 5mm and 8mm skirting plate in front of 30mm homo plate did not affect the
performance and successful functioning of the fuse .
6

Notes:
(4) This possibly is a typo and should have been altered to Face Hardened it is unclear if
both plates were face-hardened, or just the second (50mm thick ) one.
(5) 70mm plate at 30 is equal to a thickness of 81mm on the horizontal plane. The records of
these
firings
are
not
included
in
the
documentation.
(6) The records of these firings are not included in the documentation.
CONSOLIDATION OF DATA FROM ORDNANCE BOARD PROCEEDINGS 23114
AND 26594
75mm APCBC M61 HE filled versus Inert loaded

75mm APCBC M61 - HE filled versus Inert loaded

ETOUSA OUTGOING MESSAGE
ORIGINATOR: ETOUSA.
DATE: 24 May 1944.
ACTION TO: AGWAR.
INFO TO: CG AGF.
TEXT: Recent firing tests indicate twenty mm homo plate spaced six inches from fifty mm
FH plate at thirty degree obliquity will defeat service velocity seventy-five mm APC M sixtyone at five hundred yards by functioning base fuze.

(signed Eisenhower)
Also tests witnessed indicated instantaneous functioning of HE filling in ninety mm APC M
eighty-two does not permit satisfactory armor penetration performance on one hundred mm
homo plate at thirty degrees at five hundred yards.
(Reference ETOUSA cable WL dash two one nine two and British ordnance board
proceeding number two six five nine four)
If tests in US indicate above deficiencies cannot be corrected immediately it is requested all
seventy-five mm seventy-six mm and ninety mm APC shipped for ETO be inert loaded.
DISTRIBUTION: Ord O, G-3, G-4, FUSAG, SHAEF.
ORIGINATING DIVISION: AFV&W Section.
PRECEDENCE: Routine.
NAME & RANK: W. J. Reardon, Col, Cav, 1039.
This signal was prepared as a result of these tests but not actually sent (possibly because of
the potential morale effects if it had leaked out or become public knowledge, or because the
tests were not considered adequate for this conclusion to be made).
This information above was supplied to me by Jim ONeil (Arizona, USA), the original
source is declassified documents made available in 1974 and 1988.

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