Sturmgeschütz or StuG III

When it first appeared the Sturmgeschütz, or as it is more commonly known the StuG III, was a unique weapon – a powerful artillery gun mounted on a fully armoured, tracked, low slung chassis based on the Panzer III medium tank, and designed to provide close support for the German infantry
The Sturmgeschütz Ausf.A was the first production version of the StuG III assault gun, designed to provide the German infantry with a fully armoured mobile artillery gun.
The Sturmgeschütz Ausf.B was the second version of the StuG assault gun, and saw the introduction of all of the improvements that had been made to the tracks of the Panzer III between the Ausf F and the Ausf H.
The Sturmgeschütz Ausf.C was the third version of the StuG III assault gun, and saw only minor modifications from the Ausf B.
The Sturmgeschütz Ausf D was very similar to the previous StuG III Ausf C.
The Sturmgeschütz Ausf.E was the final version of the StuG III assault gun to carry the short 7.5cm gun and to be designed as a close support vehicle for the infantry.
The Sturmgeschütz III Ausf F saw a major change to the design of the StuG III with the adoption of the long barrelled 7.5cm Stu.K.40 L/43.
The Sturmgeschütz III Ausf F/8 was the second version of the StuG III to carry the longer 7.5cm StuK40 L/48 gun, and differed from the Ausf F in the use of the hull from the Panzer III Ausf J
The Sturmgeschütz III Ausf G was the final version of the StuG III and was produced in vast numbers, with a total of 7,720 produced from new between December 1942 and the end of the Second World War

Panzer IV medium tank

The Panzer IV is normally described as having been the mainstay of the German tank forces during the Second World War, but that is actually somewhat misleading. While it is true that the Panzer IV was the only German tank to remain in production for the entire duration of the war, for the first three of those years it was a close support weapon produced in relatively small numbers, before being turned into a potent tank killer


The Panzerkampfwagen IV Ausf A was the first production version of the Panzer IV medium support tank, and shared many features with all of the over 8,000 tanks that followed.
The Panzerkampfwagen IV Ausf B was the second production model of the Panzer IV medium support tank, and saw an increase in frontal armour and in engine power
The Panzerkampfwagen IV Ausf C was the third version of the Panzer IV medium support tank, and saw a significant increase in the scale of production
The Panzerkampfwagen IV Ausf D was the fourth production version of the Panzer IV medium support tank, and saw the first increase in the thickness of the side and rear armour
The Panzerkampfwagen IV Ausf E was the fifth production model of the Panzer IV medium support tank and saw a significant increase in the armour carried by the tank
The Panzerkampfwagen IV Ausf F was the final version of the Panzer IV medium support tank to be produced with the short 7.5cm gun.
The Panzerkampfwagen IV Ausf F2 saw the biggest change in the design of the Panzer IV with the installation of the long barrelled 7.5cm KwK40 L/43 main gun
The Panzerkampfwagen IV Ausf G was the first version of the Panzer IV to be produced in really large numbers, with a total of 1,687 being completed as gun-armed tanks between May 1942 and June 1943
The Panzerkampfwagen IV Ausf H was produced in larger numbers than any other version of the Panzer IV, and at first was very similar to late production Ausf Gs.
The Panzerkampfwagen IV Ausf J was the last version of the Panzer IV medium tank to enter production before the end of the Second World War

The Tauchpanzer IV (literally 'dipping tank') was a version of the Panzer IV designed to be driven underwater.
The Brummbär ('Grizzly Bear') or Sturmpanzer IV was a heavy armoured assault vehicle based on the Panzer IV and armed with a short 15cm howitzer23 July

The Panzerbeobachtungswagen IV was an artillery observation vehicle based on the Panzer IV.

The Panzerbefehlswagen IV was a command vehicle based on the Panzer IV medium tank.24 July

Admiral Vian, first and second battles of Sirte, Operation MG

Admiral Philip Vian made his name as one of the most daring British naval commanders of the Second World War early in 1940 as the captain of the destroyer Cossack during the Altmark incident, before going on to hold high rank in the Mediterranean, during Operation Overlord and in the Far East
The first battle of Sirte of 17 December 1941 was the result of an accidental clash between British and Italian naval forces each escorting a convoy through the Mediterranean
Operation “MG1” of March 1942 was a costly attempt to run a small supply convoy from Alexandria to the besieged island of Malta
The second battle of Sirte of 22 March 1942 saw a British force of light cruisers and destroyers prevent a powerful Italian fleet led by the battleship Littorio from attacking a convoy heading for Malta with vitally important supplies

Picture galleries for Lancaster, Beaufighter, Mitchell and Spitfire

Today we add picture galleries for the Avro Lancaster, Bristol Beaufighter, North American B-25 Mitchell and the Supermarine Spitfire

494th Bombardment Group and 864th, 865th, 866th and 867th Bombardment Squadrons

The 494th Bombardment Group (Heavy) operated the B-24 Liberator with the Seventh Air Force in the Pacific from late in 1944 to the end of the Second World War. The 864th Bombardment Squadron, 865th Bombardment Squadron and 866th Bombardment Squadron were all formed as part of the 494th Bombardment Group, the last B-24 Liberator group to be deployed from the United States during the Second World War.

21st, 27th and 867th Bombardment Squadrons, AAF

The 21st Bombardment Squadron (Heavy) was one of a small number of USAAF units to take part in the fighting on the Aleutian Islands, becoming one of the first squadrons to make a land-based attack on the Japanese home islands.
The 27th Bombardment Squadron spent 1942 and 1943 flying anti-submarine warfare patrols and training replacement crews before moving to the Central Pacific in November 1943 to take part in the island hopping campaign.Despite its eventual high number the 867th Bombardment Squadron was in action almost from the start of the American involvement in the Second World War, flying anti-submarine warfare patrols for eighteen months before joining the Seventh Air Force as a heavy bomber squadron with the 494th Bombardment Group.

Operations Hurry, Hats, Squawk and Coat

Operation Hurry (1-4 August 1940) was a Royal Navy operation whose main purpose was to ferry twelve Hawker Hurricane aircraft to Malta, where they were desperately needed to reinforce the beleaguered garrison
Operation Hats (30 August-5 September 1940) was one of a series of complex operations carried out by the Royal Navy after the entry of Italy into the Second World War effectively split the British Mediterranean fleet in two.
Operation Squawk (31 August-1 September 1940) was a deception operation carried out as part of Operation Hats, a major fleet movement in the Mediterranean, and was designed to convince the Italians that Admiral Somerville’s Force H from Gibraltar was heading for GenoaOperation Coat (15-20 November 1940) was the second attempt to ferry Hurricane fighters to the beleaguered island of Malta by aircraft carrier, but unlike the first attempt the operation ended in failure

Admiral Sir James Somerville

Admiral Sir James Somerville (1882-1949) was one of the most able British admirals of the Second World War, serving at Dunkirk, as the commander of Force H at Gibraltar and as Commander-in-Chief of the Eastern Fleet, despite having only been declared fit for light duties at the start of the war.

Operation Collar and The action off Cape Spartiavento (Sardinia)

Operation Collar (24-30 November 1940) was a British naval operation launched from both ends of the Mediterranean, with the intention of combining the movement of two small convoys with the redistribution of British naval forces.
The action off Cape Spartiavento (Sardinia) of 27 November 1940 was an inconclusive clash between elements of the British and Italian fleets which came about because of Italian efforts to interfere with Operation Collar.

Admirals Dudley Pound, John Cunningham and Lord Cork

Sir Dudley Pound was the First Sea Lord, the professional head of the Royal Navy from early in 1939 until just before his death in October 1943.
Sir John Cunningham was a British admiral who rose to become Commander-in-Chief in the Mediterranean from 1943 until the end of the Second World War.
William Boyle, 12th Earl of Cork and Orrery was a British admiral who was appointed to command the Allied forces involved in the attack on Narvik in April-May 1940

Bell P-39 Airacobra and related aircraft

We start with a look at the development of the P-39 Airacobra

Bell P-39 Airacobra in American Service: The Bell P-39 Airacobra was the least well regarded fighter aircraft to serve in large numbers with the USAAF during the Second World War, but despite this it did perform some useful services on New Guinea and Guadalcanal early in the war in the Pacific

Bell P-39 Airacobra in Soviet Service: The Bell P-39 Airacobra had a terrible reputation amongst British and American pilots, but it rapidly became one of the favourite fighters in the Soviet Union. Of the top six Soviet air aces, four scored the majority of their victories in the Kobra.

The Bell P-400/ Airacobra I was the export version of the P-39 Airacobra, originally developed in response to a French order of 30 March 1940 for 170 aircraft.

The Bell Airacobra first entered service with the RAF, in October 1941, but only flew a handful of sorties before it was withdrawn from the front line.

The Bell P-39C Airacobra was the first production version of the Airacobra, although only twenty aircraft were produced before production moved on to the P-39D.

The Bell P-39D Airacobra was the first version of the Airacobra to be produced in large numbers, and the first to reach the Soviet Union, where the aircraft would achieve its main successes.

The Bell XP-39E Airacobra was an experimental version of the Airacobra originally produced as a test bed for the Continental V-1430 engine.

The Bell P-39F Airacobra was produced in order to cope with a shortage of Curtiss Electric propellers and used the 10ft 4in Aeroproducts propeller.

The Bell P-39G Airacobra was to have been similar to the earlier P-39D-2 lend lease aircraft, but using a different propeller to replace the Curtiss Electric. None were produced.

The Bell P-39J Airacobra designation was given to the last twenty-five aircraft ordered as P-39F Airacobras.

The Bell P-39K Airacobra designation was given to the first 210 aircraft that had originally been ordered as the P-39G.

The Bell P-39L Airacobra designation was given to 250 aircraft produced with the Allison V-1710-63 engine and a 10ft 4in Curtiss Electric propeller

The Bell P-39M Airacobra designation was given to 240 aircraft powered by the Allison V-1710-67 (E8) engine, a lowered powered model than was then standard in the Airacobra, but one that gave more power at 15,000ft than the -63 used in the P-39K and P-39L.

The Bell P-39N Airacobra was the first version of the Airacobra to be produced in truly large numbers, with a total of production run of 2,095 aircraft in three main sub-series.

The Bell P-39Q was the last version of the Airacobra, and was produced in greater numbers than any earlier version, with the 4,905 built representing just over half of the total production run of 9,529 aircraft.

The Bell XFL-1 Airabonita was a variant of the Airacobra that was produced for the US Navy as a possible replacement for its fleet of aging biplanes.

The Bell P-59A Airacomet was the first American jet fighter to take to the air, making its maiden flight on 1 October 1942.
The Bell XP-83 was developed in an attempt to produce a long range jet powered escort fighter.

Bell XP-52, XP-59 and XP-77 fighter aircraft

The Bell XP-52 (Model 16) twin-boomed pusher aircraft was one of a number of unusual designs for fighter aircraft produced in the United States during the Second World War.
The Bell XP-59 (Model 16) was the designation given to a short-lived project to produce a twin-boom pusher fighter powered by a Pratt & Whitney R-2800 engine.
The Bell XP-77 was a lightweight wooden fighter aircraft produced to solve a problem that never materialised.

Hawker Hurricane and HMS Queen Elizabeth galleries

We return from a short break with picture galleries on the Hawker Hurricane and on HMS Queen Elizabeth