French OOB

[DRG]

I won't be making any change until I start work on the OOB's next fall . Maybe someone will come up with something definitive by then.

This does, however, point out why OOB work is a thankless PITA. The reason the same 105mm gun stays in service in the French OOB from 1946-2020 is because there is no info to be found. We ASSUME it must be wrong because it would seem a ridiculously long service life even if the nation were third world but there's nothing to be found so we either go with the best we have or leave it until we find something better or try an "educated guess" knowing full well all three options are probably wrong and at some point in the future someone will show up asking why this is still in service when the last one was used 1989 like EVERYBODY knew that.

Don

[FASTBOAT TOUGH]

Amen to that, and some wonder why I haven't been able to play the game , which I believe was last August sometime . But my Thai troops will have me back to fight the Chinese PLA soon enough before the Spring Offensive starts ! But in the meantime I contacted the French Army Museum in Paris, Conservatory Dept. This is a challenge, the Ethiopian T-72AG tank deal with the Ukraine is fast becoming my PITA !! Anyway here's their website and the email did get through the "post office" cleanly. Also the English translation is down (404 Error.) but, the Spanish one works great!!!
http://www.invalides.org/

Regards,
Pat

[FASTBOAT TOUGH]

I probably should see a Dr. as I can't even read a book without reading a passage and it coming back to a topic in the Forum.
The topic French flamethrowers. The result after many hours on the net have also been posted here, basically couldn't find anything except WW I use. So I read this book changed my search perimeters around it and what I read and guess what? Yeah, you guessed it of course they had them and it looks like from 1943 with the Free French units until possibly 1980 when France among others signed a treaty banning their use, see ref below. So for now I can say the French used the U.S. M2 Flamethrower when it also become available from 1943 - 1960 for sure.
The book HELL IN A VERY SMALL PLACE THE SIEGE OF DIEN BIEN PHU by Bernard Fall 1966. First mentioned them on Pg. 79 2nd full Para. "On February 6, Lt. Col. Langlais and GAP 2, the 2nd BT, the 1st Battalion of the 4th Moroccan Infantry, a Foreign Legion flamethrower detachment, and a platoon with explosive charges from the 31st Engineering Battalion assaulted the highest mountain in the immediate vicinity of Dien Bien Phu-Hill 754-781."

Also the book will have me looking into the U.S. 155mm and the
M24 CHAFFEE tanks the French used in Indochina and was thus available to the French Army. And a Battery was made up of four guns at that time in regards to the 105mm or 155mm if this needs a quick looking at in the OOB.

While I'm at it this is my plan for the 105mm: 1. Contact in writing Ft. Sill home to the USA Artillery School seeking their help and 2. I had an idea at work, what would happen if I searched using French? I'll try it. Regardless I have three dates in mind to purpose based I what I've been able to pull together on this thus far for the next Patch.

So far PITA is still a flat bread...so far!!
Note the last sentence of the ref. in regards to other countries, more issues?. This is represenative of a handful of others found.
http://christopher-eger.suite101.com...thrower-a73015

Anyway I hope you all have a great weekend and I need to hit the rack-one more to go!!

Regards,
Pat

[TonyE]

The 105mm M101 was mostly out of service with the french army by the early 1990s, it was retained for several more years (up until late 1990s max) as a stored pre-position weapon for intervention forces in several french bases in Africa + some for instructional use in France as long as remaining ammo stocks lasted. I know that the french marines had a mixed battery of 155mm BF50 and 105mm M101 in use in Djibouti in 1995 but 120mm mortars soon became plentifull due to french army downsizing.

[FASTBOAT TOUGH]

I had thrown out the mid nineties also in Africa thinking it was the Legion though. I have a "feeler" out to Ft. Sill that I hope leads to an answer. But the UK's Royal Artillery Museum thought they were pulled sooner, I believe I posted that email in here. So I and on behave of Don as well, welcome you to our PITA on this topic.

Regards,
Pat