FM 21-80 Aircraft / Tank Designation Systems (1944)

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FM 21-80 Aircraft / Tank Designation Systems (1944)

Postby ramseyd » Mon Jun 25, 2018 3:58 pm

Was doing some research and stumbled on FM 21-80 that listed how the different aircraft, tanks, and ships in WWII were name by the various countries. Helps explain names for the different aircraft (and hence, ID models) , etc. and thought others might like to read this. (I left out the ship portion). Some of this I knew already, but there were several interesting things I was not aware of.

AIRCRAFT, ARMORED VEHICLE, AND NAVAL VESSEL NAMES AND DESIGNATION SYSTEMS
Section I. AIRCRAFT
1. UNITED STATES. For a detailed explanation of United States Army and Navy systems of aircraft designation, see page 9, FM 30-30.
2. GREAT BRITAIN. a. The British do not use a system of code designation for their aircraft, but instead, use names. Names of fighter planes usually suggest power and destructiveness, while those of other types can not be precisely classified. The names of many airplanes, of all types, alliterate with the name of the manufacturer. For example
(I) Supermarine "Spitfire"—fighter.
(2) Hawker "Hurricane"—fighter.
(3) Handley Page "Halifax"—bomber.
(4) Short Bros. "Stirling"—bomber.
b. Modifications of each type are indicated by a roman numeral following the name. The British at times refer to these as "Mark" (model) numbers, as "Spitfire Mk. (mark) V." These modifications may or may not affect the appearance of the plane. For example
(r) "Spitfire IX"—ninth modification of the Spitfire, involving principally an engine change.
(2) "Halifax II"—second modification of the Halifax, involving structural changes which materially alter the appearance.
c. In addition, the name may be adapted or altered to indicate versions especially equipped for tropical duty, or service on aircraft carriers. For example
(i) "Tropical Hurricane."
(2) "Seafire."
d. Armament changes or other slight modifications indicating different missions are denoted by a small letter following the "mark" number. Since such changes are usually unimportant from the recognition point of view they should be ignored or mentioned only as a point of interest except in the rare cases in which appearance is affected. For example
(r) "Spitfire Va"—clipped wing "Spitfire."
(2) "Hurricane IId"—"Tank buster" mounting two 40-mm guns.
3. UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST REPUBLICS. a. Soviet aircraft are produced by state factories. Aircraft are usually not named, but are designated by a code system consisting of a combination of numbers and abbreviations of the designers' names. The numbers indicate the sequence of the products of each designer. For example
(1) PE-2—second aircraft designed by Petlyakov.
(2) IL-2—second aircraft designed by Iliuchin.
(3) YAK-1—first design of Yakovlev.
b. Modifications are indicated by a capital letter following the designation. For example, PE-2B.
c. Some Soviet aircraft have acquired unofficial popular names. For example
(i) IL-2—"Stormovik."
(2) I-16—"Rata."
4. GERMANY. a. The Germans do not name their aircraft, but instead use a system of co. designations which consist of a combination of an abbreviation of the manufacturer's name and a number. For example
(1) Me 109 (Messerschmidt).
(2) Ju 88 (Junkers).
b. No two airplanes, even of different manufacture, bear the same number. Apparently each manufacturer is assigned a block of last two digits. Thus Junkers apparently have the block from 85 to 90, since they have produced the Ju 86, Ju 87, Ju 88, Ju 188, Ju 89, Ju 90, and the Ju 290. For any one manufacturer, the model numbers indicate the order in which the designs appeared. For example, the Me 110 is a later design than the original Me 109.
c. When the manufacturer's name is a composite one, the first letters of both names are used. For example
(1) Fw 190—(Focke-Wulf).
(2) Bv 138—(Blom and Voss).
d. When more than one name begins with the same two letters, obvious alternatives are used. For example
(i) He 111 (Heinkel).
(2) Hs 129 (Henschel).
e. Extensive modifications representing structural changes or changes in basic design are usually indicated by a jump of 100 in the numerical portion of the designation, or in some cases, a jump of 200. For example
(r) Ju 88—Ju 188.
(2) Me 110—Me 210—Me 410.
f. Changes not affecting the basic design or airframe are indicated by a capital letter following the designation. For example-
(1) Me 109G.
(2) Fw 19oA.
g. The letter "K" (Krieg) following the type number indicates that the aircraft is a military adaptation of a civil plane. For example
(1) Fw 200—civil transport.
(2) Fa 200K—bomber.
h. The above system may occasionally appear inconsistent from a recognition point of view. Sometimes extensive changes may not alter the appearance of a plane. For example, the Me 410 does not differ noticeably in appearance from the Me 210. On the other hand, relatively slight modifications may alter the appearance considerably. The Me 109F differs markedly from the Me 109E.
i. Various versions of certain multiple purpose types may also be indicated by a capital letter. For example
(1) Ju 88A—horizontal dive bomber.
(2) Ju 88C—escort and night fighter.
(3) Ju 88D—reconnaissance.
(4) Fw 190—fighter.
(5) Fw 190A—fighter-bomber.
5. JAPAN. a. The Japanese designate their aircraft by using arm, manufacturer, type, and year of design, using the last two digits of the Japanese calendar, in which the year 2600 corresponds to our year 1940. For example
Mitsubishi '00 Army Type Single Seat Fighter ("Zero").
b. Since even this inexact translation of the Japanese system is too involved and difficult to remember, a system of code names for Japanese aircraft has been adopted. Fighters and reconnaissance planes are assigned masculine names, and bombers an torpedo planes are assigned feminine names. For example-
(1) "Zeke"—Mitsubishi Type '00 Fighter.
(2) "Jake"—Aichi Type '00 Reconnaissance Plane
(3) "Betty"—Mitsubishi Type '01 Medium Bomber.
(4) "Val"—Aichi Type '99 Dive Bomber.
Section II. ARMORED VEHICLES
6. UNITED STATES. a. The official ordnance designation of United States armored vehicles consists of type and model number. These designations will be used in recognition instruction. Subsequent modifications of a basic design are indicated by a letter and a number. Modifications which have little effect on recognition usually can be ignored in recognition instruction.
For example
(1) Light tank M5.
(2) Light tank M5A1 (first modification).
(3) 105-mm howitzer motor carriage M7.
b. The British have given proper names to most United States armored equipment they have used. For example
(1) Medium tank M4—"Sherman."
(2) Light tank M5—"Honey."
7. BRITISH. a. British armored vehicles are designated by popular names and "mark" numbers which indicate modifications. There is no reference, in the official designations, to type.
(1) "Churchill" Mk. III (heavy tank).
(2) "Humber" Mk. II (armored car).
b. There is no pattern in selecting names, except in the case of self-propelled artillery. When the British adopted the United States 105-mm howitzer motor carriage, M7, they named it the "Priest." Self-propelled artillery weapons which they themselves developed subsequently were also given clerical names. For example-
(1) "Bishop" (25-pounder on Valentine chassis).
(2) "Sexton" (17-pounder on M4 chassis).
8. UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST REPUBLICS. Soviet armored vehicles are designated by type and model. For example
a. Medium tank T-34.
b. Heavy tank K.V. 2.
9. GERMAN. a. German armored vehicles are designated by type and a model number. The types are broad. For example, "PzKw" is the type designation for all tanks, and "SdKfz" for all armored cars. Some late models of German armored equipment have been given popular names in addition. Examples of both follow:
(1) PzKw IV (medium tank).
(2) PzKw VI (heavy tank), "Tiger."
(3) SdKfz 231 (eight-wheeled armored car).
b. "PzKw" is an abbreviation of the word "Panzerkampfwagen," which translated freely means "armored fighting vehicle" or, simply, "tank." "SdKfz" is an abbreviation of the words "Sonder Kraftfahrzeug," or "special motor vehicle."
10. JAPAN. Japanese armored vehicles are designated by type and the year of design. The Jap light armored car 2597, for ex-ample, was designed in the Japanese year 2597, which corresponds to our year 1937. Examples
a. Light Tank 2595 (1935)
b. Medium Tank 2597 (1937)
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