Rolls-Royce Type BH (40 mm)
Contents
Description
Write an introduction to the article in 2-3 small paragraphs. Briefly tell us about the history of the development and combat using the weaponry and also about its features. Compile a list of air, ground, or naval vehicles that feature this weapon system in the game.
Vehicles equipped with this weapon
General info
Tell us about the tactical and technical characteristics of the cannon or machine gun.
Available ammunition
Describe the shells that are available for the weapon and their features and purpose. If it concerns autocannons or machine guns, write about different ammo belts and what is inside (which types of shells).
Comparison with analogues
Give a comparative description of cannons/machine guns that have firepower equal to this weapon.
Usage in battles
Describe the cannon/machine gun in the game - its distinctive features, tactics of usage against notable opponents. Please don't write a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but give the reader food for thought.
Pros and cons
Summarise and briefly evaluate the weaponry in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark pros and cons as a list.
Pros:
- Option to fire AP-T or HEFI-T* shells, or a mix of both ammo types
- High rate of fire
- HE shell is very effective against most aircraft
- All shells have a tracer
Cons:
- Overheats quickly
- Successive shots reduce accuracy
- Both AP-T and HEFI-T* have different muzzle velocity
History
In 1938 the Royal Air Force pursued the development of a 40 mm cannon for use on aircraft. The genesis of the program was the threat of enemy bombers which would be more difficult to take down with the machine guns or 20 mm cannons the RAF aircraft was armed with at the time. The competition came between Rolls-Royce and Vickers, with the Type BH being the Rolls-Royce's entry into the competition.
The Rolls-Royce Type BH was designed by the Italian engineer Spirito Mario Viale at Littleover, Derby as a drum-fed cannon. It was tested against the competing Vickers S. Initial tests of the Rolls-Royce cannon took place at Sinfin before the Type BF was mounted on the Bristol Beaufighter and Hawker Hurricane for further testing. It was initially selected as the winner of the competition and 200 were built for aircraft before the cannon became notorious for misfires and ammunition explosions.
The Vickers Model S, which also benefited from a larger ammunition capacity, was therefore the cannon that got mounted onto the Hurricanes that saw combat. The development of anti-tank cannons for aircraft ceased in favor of the RP-3 air-to-ground rockets in 1943. The 2pdr Rolls Royce cannon design was not forgotten however as it was adopted by the Royal Navy coastal forces in 1941 to provide their motor gunboats with the needed punch against the E-boats of the Kriegsmarine (Germany Navy). The cannon was also tested by the British Army as an anti-aircraft weapon mounted on a Morris truck bed but was not adopted.
Media
Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.
See also
- Vickers S (40 mm) - Vickers-built competing aircraft cannon design.
- 2pdr Rolls Royce (40 mm) - Naval variant of the Type BH
External links
Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
- topic on the official game forum;
- other literature.
| Britain aircraft cannons | |
|---|---|
| 20 mm | Hispano Mk.I · Hispano Mk.II · Hispano Mk.V · Oerlikon KAD-B |
| 25 mm | ADEN 25 |
| 30 mm | ADEN · ADEN Mk.4 |
| 40 mm | Rolls-Royce Type BH · Vickers S |
| 47 mm | Vickers P |
| 57 mm | Molins Class M |
| Foreign: | |
| 20 mm | GI2 (South Africa) · Hispano 404 (France) · M61A1 (USA) |
| 27 mm | Akan m/85 (Sweden) · Mauser BK27 (Germany) |
| 30 mm | M230E-1 (USA) |
