The 3-inch gun M1918 was a United States 3-inch anti-aircraft gun that entered service in 1918 and served until it was largely superseded by the

3-inch anti-aircraft gun M3 The 3-inch anti-aircraft gun M3 was an anti-aircraft gun which served throughout the 1930s and possibly into early World War II. Developed from the earlier 3-inch M1917 and 3-inch M1918 guns, it was in the process of being replaced by the ti ...

in 1930, though the M1918 remained with some

National Guard National Guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. Nat ...

units until early in World War II. The M3 was subsequently replaced by the M1 90mm AA gun early in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, primarily during 1942. The M3 3" gun was later adapted for the

anti-tank Anti-tank warfare originated from the need to develop technology and tactics to destroy tanks during World War I. Since the Triple Entente deployed the first tanks in 1916, the German Empire developed the first anti-tank weapons. The first dev ...

role, serving as the main armament of the

M10 tank destroyer The M10 tank destroyer was an American tank destroyer of World War II. After US entry into World War II and the formation of the Tank Destroyer Force, a suitable vehicle was needed to equip the new battalions. By November 1941, the Army requeste ...

during World War II.

The predecessor: 3-inch gun M1917

The 3-inch gun M1917 was the United States Army's first dedicated

anti-aircraft gun Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based ...

, entering service during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. Only a few were built, as the similar 3-inch gun M1918 on a mobile mount was considered more useful and was produced in large numbers. Development of the M1917 started in 1915, and as the name implies, took two years to enter service. The gun was essentially an unmodified 3-inch M1903 (76.2 mm L/55) coastal-defense gun barrel on a new fixed mount allowing it to be aimed to high elevations.Berhow, pp. 250–252 A number were used during World War I on fixed mountings; 116 were completed by April 1919. Most of the weapons were deployed at

United States Army Coast Artillery Corps The U.S. Army Coast Artillery Corps (CAC) was an administrative corps responsible for coastal, harbor, and anti-aircraft defense of the United States and its possessions between 1901 and 1950. The CAC also operated heavy and railway artillery ...

seacoast forts after World War I. In the immediate post-war era it was developed as the 3-inch M2, using a removable barrel liner. In 1928 it was further improved in the 3-inch M4 by using a thicker removable liner that eased manufacturing. However, the M2 and M4 appear to have been produced in small quantities. The M1917, M2, and M4 remained in service through World War II.

History of the 3-inch M1918

For mobile use the original coastal gun was too heavy, so a smaller version was developed as the 3-inch M1918. This weapon was based on the

Driggs-Seabury Driggs-Seabury Ordnance Company was founded in 1897 by William H. Driggs and Samuel Seabury, both US Navy officers, in partnership with William's brother Louis Labadie "L. L." Driggs, originally to produce guns for the US Army and US Navy desig ...

3-inch gun M1898 The 3-inch gun M1903 and its predecessors the M1898 and M1902 were rapid fire breech-loading artillery guns with a 360-degree traverse. In some references they are called "15-pounders" due to their projectile weight. They were originally emp ...

, a smaller predecessor of the M1903. This weapon had a barrel 50

calibers In guns, particularly firearms, caliber (or calibre; sometimes abbreviated as "cal") is the specified nominal internal diameter of the gun barrel bore – regardless of how or where the bore is measured and whether the finished bore match ...

long instead of 55 calibers, and a smaller breech with a different cartridge (76.2x585R, 212 cubic inches instead of 76.2x690R, 293 cubic inches). The barrel of the M1918 was shortened to 40 calibers and a semi-automatic breech was added. "Semi-automatic" on this type of weapon meant that the breech would open automatically after firing. Like the adaptations that created the M2 and M4, the M1918 was also fitted with a removable liner in 1927 and a barrel 50 calibers long, becoming the 3-inch M1; a year later the M3 weapon was introduced with a larger removable liner. Another upgrade was started in 1931 as the T8, and then T9, but these projects were cancelled in 1938 when the 90 mm gun M1 was selected in their place. The 3-inch gun M1918 remained in service, particularly in National Guard units, and saw action in early World War II. In September 1940 a project started to adapt the 3-inch gun to the

role, starting with the T9 experimental model but equipping it with the breech, recoil system and carriage borrowed from the 105mm M2 howitzer. The gun was accepted for service as the 3-inch M5. A similar derivative of the T9 – the 3-inch M6 – was intended to be mounted on the M5 self-propelled gun, which was eventually abandoned. A final adaptation was the 3-inch M7, which included minor modifications for mounting on the

M6 heavy tank The Heavy Tank M6 was an American heavy tank designed during World War II. The tank was produced in small numbers and never saw combat. Development Because of limited budgets for tank development in the interwar years, at the outbreak of Worl ...

and M10 tank destroyer. M7 saw wide use although it was supplanted to some extent by more powerful weapons such as the 90mm M3 and the British

QF 17 pounder The Ordnance Quick-Firing 17-pounder (or just 17-pdr)Under the British standard ordnance weights and measurements the gun's approximate projectile weight is used to denote different guns of the same calibre. Hence this was a 3-inch gun, of which ...

. 6,824 M7 guns were manufactured.Chamberlain, Gander – ''Anti-Tank Weapons'', p 49.

Variants

*3-inch Gun M1917 – Original fixed-place anti-aircraft gun introduced in 1917, barrel based on 3-inch gun M1903. *M1918 – Mobile anti-aircraft gun using a barrel based on the

and a new mount. *M1 – Variant of the M1918 with a removable barrel liner. *M2 – Variant of the M1917 with a removable barrel liner. * M3 – Development of the M1918 with a removable barrel liner, but on a mobile mount. *M4 – Version of the M2 with a thicker liner for easier manufacturing. * M5 – Version of the T9 adapted for anti-tank use. *M6 – Version of the T9 as mounted in the 3-inch

M5 Gun Motor Carriage The M10 tank destroyer was an American tank destroyer of World War II. After US entry into World War II and the formation of the Tank Destroyer Force, a suitable vehicle was needed to equip the new battalions. By November 1941, the Army request ...

. *M7 – Version of the M5 for use on the M6 heavy tank and M10 tank destroyer

Self-propelled mounts

*Heavy Tank M6 (M7 gun in mount T49). *3in Antiaircraft Gun Carriage T1 (Garford 7½ ton 6x4 truck chassis).Hunnicutt, 2002 p 41. *3in Gun Motor Carriage T1 / M5 (high speed tractor M2 chassis, M6 gun).Hunnicutt, 1992, p 295-296. *3in Gun Motor Carriage T7 (Trackless Tank chassis).Hunnicutt, 2002, p 71, 164. *3in Gun Motor Carriage T15 (Ford 4x4 / 6x6 truck chassis).Hunnicutt, 2002, p 163, 164. *3in Gun Motor Carriage T20 ( Light Tank M3 chassis).Hunnicutt, 1992, p 298-301. *3in Gun Motor Carriage T24 ( Medium Tank M3 chassis, M3 gun).Hunnicutt, 1994, p 360-361. *3in Gun Motor Carriage T35 / M10 (

M4 Sherman } The M4 Sherman, officially Medium Tank, M4, was the most widely used medium tank by the United States and Western Allies in World War II. The M4 Sherman proved to be reliable, relatively cheap to produce, and available in great numbers. It ...

chassis, M7 gun in mount M5).Hunnicutt, 1994, p 557. * 3-inch Gun Motor Carriage T40/M9 (Medium Tank M3 chassis, M1918 gun). *3in Gun Motor Carriage T50. * 3-inch Gun Motor Carriage T55. *3in Gun Motor Carriage T56, T57 (Light Tank M3A3 chassis, M7 gun).

Surviving examples

The only known surviving example is located at the

Fort Sill Fort Sill is a United States Army post north of Lawton, Oklahoma, about 85 miles (136.8 km) southwest of Oklahoma City. It covers almost . The fort was first built during the Indian Wars. It is designated as a National Historic Landmark ...

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

museum.

Notes

References

* *Chamberlain, Peter and Gander, Terry – ''Anti-Tank Weapons'', Arco Publishing Company, New York, 1974 (WWII Fact Files), . *Hogg, Ian. ''Twentieth-Century Artillery''. New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 2000. Pg.117 * * *. *. *

External links

"Fast Motorized Guns With Steel Brains - Built To Hunt Planes In Next War" ''Popular Mechanics'', March 1930, pp 458-459
*United States. Army. Ordnance Dept
"Handbook of artillery : including mobile, anti-aircraft and trench matériel", May 1920.
See "3-Inch Anti-Aircraft Gun, Model 1918" Pages 326–339 and "3-Inch Anti-Aircraft Gun, Model 1917" Pages 340–353
Training Air Defense
August 1940

Popular Mechanics ''Popular Mechanics'' (sometimes PM or PopMech) is a magazine of popular science and technology, featuring automotive, home, outdoor, electronics, science, do-it-yourself, and technology topics. Military topics, aviation and transportation o ...

article on 3-inch M3 coastal defense unit
M5 & M7 armor penetration table
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:3-Inch Gun M1918 World War I anti-aircraft guns Anti-aircraft guns of the United States Tank guns of the United States World War I artillery of the United States 76 mm artillery