From the Rolls-Royce experimental archive: a quarter of a million communications from Rolls-Royce, 1906 to 1960's. Documents from the Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation (SHRMF).
The installation progress and operational requirements for a 40mm gun in a Beaufighter aircraft.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 176\1\ img080 | |
| Date | 20th September 1940 | |
| Va. from Dr. C. HS.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} C. RV. file S RA.7/M.E.R.20.9.40. 40 m/m.{Mr Moon / Mr Moore} GUN IN BEAUFIGHTER. Having failed to get Frise to Derby we visited Bristol to see what progress he had made with the installation of the gun in the Beaufighter since last we were down there. He has made little or no progress. He is struggling with four cannon guns in the Beaufighter. He was very anxious that we should instal the 40 m/m.{Mr Moon / Mr Moore} gun if we had any spare Drawing Office capacity. He gave us up-to-date information on the machine, which we have passed to R.V. Whilst we were there we collected the following information :- GENERAL :- 1. To ensure that a gun operates automatically under service conditions, it has to function under an acceleration of 4.G. in any direction. 2. On cannon guns they use harmonising gear. Presumably it would be an advantage to keep anything as big as a 40 m/m.{Mr Moon / Mr Moore} cannon gun in step with it's neighbour. We are getting further particulars of this gear. They criticise pneumatic firing gear owing to the delay which takes place between pressing the button and the actual firing of the round. They are in favour of electro-pneumatic to overcome this trouble. They want us to test the gun with a blast-tube. - Continued - | ||