World+War+I

=**The GREAT WAR**=


 * Post pics and info of any NEW technological developments used** **during World War I**

> > ===== ===== MACHINE GUN The most famous and firstly introduced weapons was the machine gun. Originally invented by an American, Hiram Maxim, German's stole the idea because they saw military potential. The Germans made the American designed machine gun lighter for land mobility and air-cooled for airplanes. The machine gun was greatly underestimated and proved deadly when German machine guns killed and injured 60,000 English soldiers in one day in Somme.

POISON GAS Poison gas was a weapon that could be deadly if used probably at the right time. Poison gas could easily be brought back to the soldiers who used it by wind currents changing. Poison gas is inhaled and over time burns and liquidizes your lungs. The only way to counter the effects of poison gas is to urinate on a cloth and put it to your nose and mouth. Urine counters the effects of poison gas because urine contains ammonia  The first use of poison gas was by Germany in Ypres. Later on, gas mask kits were provided to soldiers.

FLAMETHROWER The flamethrower was a weapon that terrified the Triple Entente because they never excepted enemy soldiers to shoot huge flames. The flamethrower was used to burn soldiers, bunkers, and other wooden obstacles. The flamethrower was first introduced by the Germans.

TRACER BULLETS During World War 1 ,fighting at night was useless because there was no way to see where you were shooting. The British invented tracer bullets—bullets which gave off small amounts of flammable material that left a phosphorescent trail. The first attempt, in 1915, wasn't actually that useful, as the trail was not straight and limited to 100 meters, but the second tracer model developed in 1916, emitted a regular bright green-white trail and was very successful. Its popularity was due in part to an unexpected side-benefit: the flame could ignite hydrogen, which made it perfect for taking down the German zeppelins.

WAR PLANES Early in the war, aircraft were simple machines, more alike to birds than anything else. The first missions were carried out as observation. Spotting artillery, troop concentrations, and supply lines. Pilots were even accustomed to waving or saluting each other. Eventually, it was realized that the recon aircraft were a much larger problem than originally seen. Pilots began throwing rocks at each other, and taking shots with pistols, or rifles from observers. Ultimately, machine guns were outfitted on the upper wings of aircraft. Although very inaccurate, it was the first step in the establishment of dogfights. The Germans were the first to introduce an interrupter gear for the rotary engines used, so the machine guns could be placed on the cowling, and fired through the propellers.

"All of the Above was posted by Matt Zizelmann"