Flame thrower in the lead at a cave entrance

453 Views 5 Replies 5 Participants Last post by Square target, Sep 25, 2019

ARMARIN

Discussion Starter · Sep 24, 2019

Flame thrower in the lead at a cave entrance somewhere in the PTO. In trying to ID the location, I found this excellent piece (and the photo) about demolition duty on Iwo Jima: "Private Domenick Tutalo was used to volunteering. He’d volunteered for the Marines less than a month after his eighteenth birthday, volunteered to go to a Pacific-bound replacement draft, volunteered for machine gun training with Company C, 24th Marines. However, “I couldn’t tell you why I chose to become a demolition man and flamethrower.” “The training was very rough,” continued Tutalo. “We spent months learning how to blow things up with satchel charges and burn with flamethrowers.” The nineteen-year-old Tutalo stood five-feet-five-inches and tipped the scales at 126 pounds: the M2 flamethrower alone was more than half his body weight. Fortunately, Tutalo was in exceptional shape, both physically and mentally. “At the time, it wasn’t that heavy,” he said. “You’re carrying a tank of napalm but actually, at that time, you don’t think it’s dangerous. Your mind doesn’t think about that.” Really, it’s better not to think about the danger. It’s better to focus on the routine. Wait for the call from a pinned down platoon. Put down your rifle and draw your weapons—the bazooka, the heavy satchel charges, the cumbersome flamethrower. Let the riflemen point out the objective, let the BARs and machine guns shoot right over your head, let them pin down the Japanese while you crept up as close as you could, cursing the short range of your flamethrower and knowing you had only ten seconds worth of fuel. When the cover fire stops, get in there before the enemy reacts, because they know what’s coming. If it’s a cave, aim for the back to incinerate the enemy, or shoot across the front to draw out the air and asphyxiate them. If it’s a bunker, aim for the firing port. Use short bursts and brace yourself against the recoil. Let your buddy with the satchel charge take over, pray that his aim is true as he hurls eighteen pounds of explosive underhand into an opening, hope that the Japanese are too shocked to throw the charge back, brace for the explosion and the shower of rubble and be ready to hit them with the flame again. Above all, be ready for the sight of your enemies running out on fire from head to toe, and hope that the riflemen are coming up behind you to put them down or toss grenades into the ruined defenses. And then get back under cover, because another emplacement has you in its sights, or the Japanese are calling down mortars where they’ve seen the smoke. If your tank is empty, just drop it and wait. Your assistant will carry it away. You have a few minutes to recuperate before he returns with a full one. And you’ll need those few minutes, because you’ll be doing this again and again and again. "

(Used info from Dutch National War Museum)
Have a good cigar and regards
As-salāmu ʿalaykum
ARMARIN

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deputy

· #2 · Sep 24, 2019

always wondered about the flame thrower in U.S. service..........

was it a designed implement over a period of time or was it a thrown together field expediency..........

and do we still have it in inventory in some form/fashion or has it been regulated to history.......

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Square target

· #3 · Sep 24, 2019

deputy said:
always wondered about the flame thrower in U.S. service..........

was it a designed implement over a period of time or was it a thrown together field expediency..........

and do we still have it in inventory in some form/fashion or has it been regulated to history.......

They were designed for trench warfare during WWI but not sure if we still use them or not. Fun fact is you can legally own one here in the U,S, with no Federal restrictions but not sure which, how many states if or if any have them banned. There was a company i seen advertising them a few years ago and i think they were several grand if i remember right.

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Jack Ryan

· #4 · Sep 25, 2019

Trump could use one of those to clean the rats out of congress.

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Stamps6

· #5 · Sep 25, 2019

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Square target

· #6 · Sep 25, 2019

I should get one of those, my weed wacker stopped running and this looks like it would be much more fun.

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