Vol. VIII No. 1

“One in the breech, five in the magazine”: British Aircrew Armament of the First World War

Jonathan S. Ferguson & Terence O’Hanlon Smith

Abstract

Prior to the successful adaptation of machine guns to military aircraft by means of fixed or flexible mounts, pilots and observers wishing to attack or defend themselves from enemy aircraft were obliged to make use of small arms—pistols, rifles, and shotguns. Whereas a body of research into those armaments integrated into aircraft exists, no dedicated study of aircrew weapons has thus far been published. In an effort to shed light on this little-understood aspect of firearms history, this article summarises the small arms, other than machine guns, known to have seen air service with the British Army’s Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) during the first two years of the First World War (1914–1918). It also addresses, as far as is practicable, their usage and effectiveness with reference to period examples.

Issue: Vol. VIII No. 1
Published: 31 July 2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.52357/armax90731
Peer-reviewed?: Yes

Keywords: Royal Flying Corps, Royal Navy Air Service, aircraft, First World War, small arms, United Kingdom

Bibliographic Information

Jonathan S. Ferguson & Terence O’Hanlon Smith, ‘“One in the breech, five in the magazine”: British Aircrew Armament of the First World War’, Armax: The Journal of Contemporary Arms, Vol. VIII № 1 (2022), pp. 1–26, <https://doi.org/10.52357/armax90731>.

About the Authors

Jonathan S. Ferguson is Keeper of Firearms & Artillery at the Royal Armouries Museum in the United Kingdom, a Technical Specialist with Armament Research Services (ARES), and the Associate Editor of Armax: The Journal of Contemporary Arms. He is curatorially responsible for a collection spanning the full history of firearms, from the handgun of mediaeval times to the latest modular assault rifle designs. His research interests include the use and effect of firearms and the history of British military small arms. Notable publications include The ‘Broomhandle’ Mauser (Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2017), Thorneycroft to SA80: British Bullpup Firearms, 1901–2020 (Nashville: Headstamp Publishing, 2021), and numerous ARES technical reports.

Terence O’Hanlon Smith is an independent researcher and shooter who runs the Historic Arms Resource Centre’s Miniature-Calibre Rifles Research Site, <rifleman.org.uk>. A London-born late-war arrival, Terence was, on his ninth birthday, given his first rifle by his father—a Webley Junior—which he still considers the most important acquisition in his collection. School days in the Combined Cadet Force, and a short interval in the R.A.F., guaranteed an ongoing interest in rifles and target shooting, and he has shot at county level, in the Combined Services competition, and even as a substitute for the English national TR team. His website has, over nearly twenty-five years, developed into an important reference source on ‘miniature-calibre’ rifles.