Photos of WW1 flamethrowers

[Signalmet]

I bought a collection of 43 small (2.75x1.5") photographs of World War I action at the flea market last weekend. Including 10 with dead bodies, 2 crashed aircraft, a number of burning buildings (inclding a shot in Paris), many views of soldiers, trenches, cannons, etc. Four of the photos show AEF troops in large formations with the US flag in evidence. The photos are small (obviously commercial) but enlarge fairly well. I thought this group might be interested in these photos of French and German flamethrowers.The German model is carried on the back of a soldier, the French model is too big for that.

Paul

[centurion]

I bought a collection of 43 small (2.75x1.5") photographs of World War I action at the flea market last weekend. Including 10 with dead bodies, 2 crashed aircraft, a number of burning buildings (inclding a shot in Paris), many views of soldiers, trenches, cannons, etc. Four of the photos show AEF troops in large formations with the US flag in evidence. The photos are small (obviously commercial) but enlarge fairly well. I thought this group might be interested in these photos of French and German flamethrowers.The German model is carried on the back of a soldier, the French model is too big for that.

Paul

I think the 'French' flame-thrower is a mis captioned photo of an Italian pneumatic mortar

[4thGordons]

These sets of commercial photos seem to have been fairly popular (particularly with US soldiers) I have a number of them also.

I wonder if there is a listing of the complete set anywhere? (or perhaps we could compile one)

Some of the captions are a little "iffy" in my view but they seem to have been reproduced in numerous post-war publications of the 1920s and even far more recently.

I agree though they are often decent quality images given their size.

Chris

[centurion]

Here are French flamethrower troops supporting US assault units in Catigny

[Tom W.]

I thought this group might be interested in these photos of French and German flamethrowers. The German model is carried on the back of a soldier, the French model is too big for that.

As already noted, the French "flamethrower" is a pneumatic mortar. You can see that the soldier on the left holds a shell in his left hand.

The German flamethrower is the Wechselapparat (Wex) M.1917, also called the kleine Flammenwerfer. It was often deployed in five-man squads consisting of one squad leader, one lance operator, two Wex carriers, and one assistant-grenadier. That's the configuration in your photo.

I have a large-format copy of this image. The interesting thing is that the men belong to Sturmbataillon Nr. 5 (Rohr). You can see that the Wex carrier has a death's-head badge worn above the sleeve cuff. This position identifies the assault battalion.

[Tom W.]

Here are French flamethrower troops supporting US assault units in Catigny.

That's the P4 flamethrower, used with the nine-minute F9 fuse. The German soldier in front of the French sapper is calling to his comrades in a cellar to surrender. The French used a very smoky oil mixture at Cantigny to force the Germans out of their shelters.

The U.S. tested two models of American flamethrower in combat, but the weapon was rejected as being too heavy and too dangerous for the men using it. As a result at Cantigny a platoon of French flamethrower sappers of the 40th Battalion, 1st Engineer Regiment, was attached to the American 28th Infantry Regiment for the assault.

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That's the P4 flamethrower, used with the nine-minute F9 fuse. The German soldier in front of the French sapper is calling to his comrades in a cellar to surrender. The French used a very smoky oil mixture at Cantigny to force the Germans out of their shelters.

The U.S. tested two models of American flamethrower in combat, but the weapon was rejected as being too heavy and too dangerous for the men using it. As a result at Cantigny a platoon of French flamethrower sappers of the 40th Battalion, 1st Engineer Regiment, was attached to the American 28th Infantry Regiment for the assault.

There appear to be two French sappers one behind the other.

Here is an American flamethrower

[centurion]

And another shot of a different US flamethrower

BTW the French seem to have attached flamethrower men to the Americans on a semi permanent basis.

[Tom W.]

There appear to be two French sappers one behind the other.

Here is an American flamethrower.

Yes, there are two French sappers in the Cantigny photo. The German is facing to the right, leaning over, wearing a round field cap.

Actually, the flamethrower in that photo is the Austrian kleine 22l M. 15 Flammenwerfer, the first portable Austrian flamethrower. It was operated by a two-man squad and was based on the Fiedler device patented in 1910.

[Tom W.]

And another shot of a different US flamethrower

BTW the French seem to have attached flamethrower men to the Americans on a semi permanent basis.

That's a British Lawrence Knapsack Flame Projector Model 1917, a remarkable weapon designed by the equally remarkable Lieutenant Percy H. Lawrence, R.E. The Lawrence had a range of 135 feet, much longer than that of other portable devices, and it weighed only 40 lb. The rigid, swiveling lance was attached to the right side of the oil tank, while the firing lever was on the top; you can see it behind the engineer's hat. To use the weapon, the operator pulled down on the firing lever with his left hand, which pierced a small tank of carbon dioxide inside the oil tank, pressurizing the oil. A hand grip resembling an old-fashioned car braking handle on the end of the firing lever allowed the operator to fire bursts with his left hand while he aimed the lance with his right.

Originally the Lawrence was fitted with a portfire beneath the nozzle, which the operator ignited with a friction fuse before he pressurized the oil. The example in this photo has a small, battery-operated hydrogen burner in place of the portfire; you can see the hydrogen container on the top rear of the oil tank.

Lt. Lawrence went to Russia to demonstrate his flamethrower, which the Russians adopted in 1917. He then tried to demonstrate the weapon to the Americans in France but was prevented by the War Office. Brig-Gen C. M. Wagstaff wrote to Amos A. Fries that Lawrence had "given a lot of trouble to the War Office, and they are not going to let him give any more, to themselves or anybody else." In February of 1918 Lawrence had told the Americans that his own design was superior to the Norris-Menchen flamethrower, adopted by the British in 1915. This apparently got him in hot water.

The Americans purchased 48 Lawrence Knapsack Flame Projectors; the one in that photo was being used by the Chemical Warfare Service to melt snow off of sidewalks in New York City in the fierce winter of 1920.

[Tom W.]

Here's a rear view of the Lawrence Knapsack Flame Projector Model 1917 being used by the CWS in New York in the winter of 1920. You can see the operator squeezing the grip of the oil-pressurization lever with his left hand, which is firing a burst of flame.

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Franco US cooperation in France

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Brig-Gen C. M. Wagstaff wrote to Amos A. Fries that Lawrence had "given a lot of trouble to the War Office, and they are not going to let him give any more, to themselves or anybody else." In February of 1918 Lawrence had told the Americans that his own design was superior to the Norris-Menchen flamethrower, adopted by the British in 1915. This apparently got him in hot water.

Wagstaff was of a similar mind set to Fries and consistently tried to downplay the value of the flame thrower. He had 'snaffled' a large parapet style flame projector (not a Livens) which he used to demo how non portable and impracticable the idea was and I think the person that Lawrence had given a lot of trouble to was Wagstaff himself.

[centurion]

Yes, there are two French sappers in the Cantigny photo. The German is facing to the right, leaning over, wearing a round field cap.

Actually, the flamethrower in that photo is the Austrian kleine 22l M. 15 Flammenwerfer, the first portable Austrian flamethrower. It was operated by a two-man squad and was based on the Fiedler device patented in 1910.

Actually its the American Knapsack Flame Projector, Mark I in part also based on the Fiedler patent

[Tom W.]

Actually its the American Knapsack Flame Projector, Mark I in part also based on the Fiedler patent

No, it's the Austrian 22l kleine M. 15 Flammenwerfer. The reducer on top of the oil tank and the dual handles on the lance give it away. Plus, American designs were all twin-tanked models.

[centurion]

No, it's the Austrian 22l kleine M. 15 Flammenwerfer. The reducer on top of the oil tank and the dual handles on the lance give it away. Plus, American designs were all twin-tanked models.

Your comment would be more credible had you not posted a photo of an Italian copy of the Austrian flame thrower (hence the Adrian helmet). I have a number of photos of Italians with this.

[Tom W.]

Your comment would be more credible had you not posted a photo of an Italian copy of the Austrian flame thrower (hence the Adrian helmet). I have a number of photos of Italians with this.

The Italians didn't copy Austrian flamethrowers. It's a captured weapon being displayed by an Italian soldier.

Here are Austrian assault troops at the Battle of Ortigara, June of 1917. They have several kleine 22l M. 15 Flammenwerfer, identified by the reducer valve and rigid oil-evacuation tube on the right side.

[centurion]

No, it's the Austrian 22l kleine M. 15 Flammenwerfer. The reducer on top of the oil tank and the dual handles on the lance give it away. Plus, American designs were all twin-tanked models.

I have an American source that states that the original knapsack had a single tank

[Tom W.]

I have an American source that states that the original knapsack had a single tank.

How about posting the quote? There may have been initial experimental designs that had single tanks, but production models had twin tanks.

[centurion]

Italians using Austrian style flamethrowers (one of a series)

The Arditi appear to have used these prior to the adoption and adaptation of French Schilt models.

[Tom W.]

Italians using Austrian style flamethrowers (one of a series)

The Arditi appear to have used these prior to the adoption and adaptation of French Schilt models.

That's an Italian Schilt No. 3 bis. See attachment. You can tell by the wide metal bands attaching the propellant bottle to the oil tank.

The Reparti d' Assalto were established on June 26, 1917; the Bergomi Society of Milan had been supplying Schilt No. 3 bis built under license since April. The I Reparto d'Assalto of the Second Army was the first Arditi unit to use flamethrowers in combat, during the capture of Mount San Gabriele, September 21, 1917. They used the Schilt No. 3 bis. However, because the Arditi considered the Schilt too heavy and slow in operation, it was withdrawn from service with the assault battalions and replaced with the DLF (Apparato Italiano Modificato Tipo D.L.F.), and the Italian Twin-tank Apparatus (Apparato Tipo Italiano a Due Serbatoi Accoppiati), also called the Italian Intermittent-jet Apparatus with Automatic Ignition (Apparato Tipo Italiano a Getto Intermittente con Accensione Automatica). Arditi used Schilt flamethrowers in combat only once.

The kleine 22l M. 15 Flammenwerfer weighed 75 lb full, while the Schilt No. 3 bis weighed 51 lb. Also, the Austrian flamethrower tended to explode, so it was often used as a static device buried in the earth to contain the explosion. I don't think your sources are accurate in saying that the Arditi used Austrian flamethrowers or copies of Austrian flamethrowers.

The above information was taken from the official Italian Army history of flamethrowers in World War I: Filippo Cappellano, “Lanciafiamme italiani 1915-1918,” Studi Storico-militari 1999. Rome: Stato Maggiore Dell’Esercito Ufficio Storico, 2000.

[Antonio8888]

Found lots of photos of Italian and AH flamethrowers in this book I recently read 

 

https://www.amazon.com/Hell-Trenches-Austro-Hungarian-Stormtroopers-Italian/dp/1912174987/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=paolo+morisi&qid=1596725419&sr=8-1