Martin L. Fackler (1933–2015) was an American military officer, surgeon and

wound ballistics The field of wound ballistics largely comprises the study of the physical and physiological effects of ballistic trauma by projectiles (primarily, but not exclusively, bullets) on living humans or animals. It can be considered the interdisciplinar ...

expert. He served in the U.S Navy from 1960 to 1975 and in the U.S. Army from 1975 to 1991. He was a

field surgeon A combat medic, or healthcare specialist, is responsible for providing emergency medical treatment at a point of wounding in a combat or training environment, as well as primary care and health protection and evacuation from a point of injury ...

at the

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Support Hospitals at

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and at

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, and later a

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in the

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's Medical Corps. He was the founder and head of the

Wound Ballistics The field of wound ballistics largely comprises the study of the physical and physiological effects of ballistic trauma by projectiles (primarily, but not exclusively, bullets) on living humans or animals. It can be considered the interdisciplinar ...

Laboratory for the

Letterman Army Institute of Research Letterman may refer to: * Letterman (sports), a classification of high school or college athlete in the United States People * David Letterman (born 1947), American television talk show host ** ''Late Night with David Letterman'', talk show that ...

from 1981 to 1991. He was a member and leader of numerous distinguished organizations, among them the International Wound Ballistics Association, the French Wound Ballistics Society and the American Academy of Forensic Sciences. Dr. Fackler had numerous teaching appointments and was the author of over 300 publications in regards to wound ballistics, body armor, and treatment of injuries for both the military and civilian populations. He is credited with a number of contributions to the field of terminal ballistics, including: * Developing and testing improved media in which the effects of bullet wounds could be simulated. This led to the widespread acceptance of 10%

ballistic gelatin Ballistic gelatin is a testing medium designed to simulate the effects of bullet wounds in animal muscle tissue. It was developed and improved by Martin Fackler and others in the field of wound ballistics. It is calibrated to match porcine muscl ...

for evaluating penetration and expansion of projectiles. * Establishing effects of projectile design and shape on wounding. * He hypothesized that wound depth was much more important than previously thought, and recommended ammunition that could send a bullet at least twelve inches into his ballistic gelatin. * He was the first researcher to demonstrate that fragmentation was the most effective means of inflicting wounds in a modern military rifle round. He asserted that the "permanent wound cavity" or actual damage caused by a projectile is the primary "stopping power" mechanism and that the "temporary wound cavity" or shock wave produced by the projectile is at best a secondary mechanism, if not irrelevant.http://www.firearmstactical.com/pdf/fbi-hwfe.pdf

Gallery

Examples of Fackler's work on behalf of the U.S. military: File:RussianWP.jpg, Wound ballistics for various Soviet cartridges File:AK-47 7.62x39mm wound ballistics.gif, AK-47 7.62x39mm wound ballistics File:AK-74 5.45x39mm wound ballistics.gif, AK-74 5.45x39mm wound ballistics File:M16 5.56x45mm wound ballistics.gif, M16 M193 5.56x45mm wound ballistics File:M16A2 M855 5.56X45mm NATO wound ballistics.gif, M16A2 M855 5.56X45mm NATO wound ballistics

References

NATO Handbook Emergency War Surgery Chapter entitled Missile Caused Wounds was authored by Fackler.

External links

Shooting Holes in Wounding Theories: The Mechanics of Terminal Ballistics

What's wrong with the wound ballistics literature, and why

Internet Archive copy, includes articles by Fackler.
THE EFFECTS OF SMALL ARMS ON THE HUMAN BODY, By Martin L. Fackler, MD

The Library of Congress, Veterans History Project, Home Experiencing War: Stories from the Veterans History Project, Martin L. Fackler, October 26, 2011...Audio Interviews with Martin Fackler.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fackler, Martin Ballistics experts People associated with firearms American surgeons United States Army Medical Corps officers 1933 births 2015 deaths