Sunday, February 28, 2010

Swedish Gun

Bofors 75 mm L40 M1935 gun
For decades it was the field weapon of the Ejército Argentino (Argentine Army)

Monday, February 22, 2010

Armored Engineering Vehicle

Soukou Sagyou Ki was Japan's first Engineering vehicle. Developed in 1935, it was based on the Type 89 Medium Tank. The vehicle was designed to perform the following tasks:
  1. Blasting tochca (pillbox) with 300kg demolition
  2. Excavating trench
  3. Disinfecting gas attack
  4. Flame throwing
  5. Breaking through obstacle
  6. Scattering poison gas
  7. Removing mines with mine plow
  8. Throwing up smoke screen
  9. Crane
  10. Bridge layer
The "Manchurian Incident" showed that the vehicle was too small to perform all these tasks perfectly. The vehicle was redesigned and the tasks required of it were decreased. The last type was called the "SS SS-Ki Bo Gata" and could only do tasks 1, 4, 7, and 10 listed above. When Pacific War with the U.S. began, SS-Ki was sent to south front, as a bridge layer. In the battle of Philippines, 1945, the US captured 8 SS-Ki, without bridges. So US forces mistakenly classified SS-Ki as flame throwing tank. SS-Ki's detailed military service is unknown. 119 Produced (total of all types, Kou, Otsu, Hei, Tei, Bo).

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Little Flatiron

This multifunctional building, housing a department store, a hotel and a number of municipal offices, was built in Voronezh, Russia in 1930.
Design: AI Popov-Shaman
The building was called Utyuzhok (little flatiron) after the earlier structure that really resembled a flatiron and was demolished in the late 1920s.

Friday, February 19, 2010

Time Tunnel

A model of Daimler race car in the wind tunnel of Aerodynamischen Versuchsanstalt, Goettingen
1923

SteamGirls

Hello, holidays! Goodbye, Paris!

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Light Artillery Tractor

Produced under license from German Hanomag company, the Breitfeld-Danek tractor could tow no more than 3 tons.
In 1925-26, five BD-25s (shown) and twelve more powerful BD-30s were build.

Photo from "Army and Nation" booklet (1938)

Source: valka.cz

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Useful Knowledge

Learn to drive a motorcycle, it will help you to fight!

The Luckiest Giant

March 1919:
The British airship R33 in its hangar as it prepares for its first ever flight at an aerodrome in Barlow, Yorkshire

via x planes

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Chinese Cruisers

The Ning Hai class were a pair of light cruisers in the Chinese fleet before World War II. Ning Hai ("Peaceful Seas"), the lead ship of the class, was laid down in Japan while the follow-on, Ping Hai ("Amicable Seas"), was laid down in China and completed with Japanese assistance to a slightly modified design that included the deletion of seaplane facilities (Ning Hai has a small hanger for two seaplanes).
While Ning Hai was quickly commissioned, tensions between China and Japan plagued the efforts to complete the Ping Hai. Both served as flagships of the Republic of China Navy, with Ping Hai taking over the role from its older sister ship since April 1937. The ROCN had an ambitious plan to procure a larger and more-powerful command cruiser and then to re-assign the two vessels as scouts/flagships of submarine flotillas, but the outbreak of war with Japan put an end to all related efforts (including the acquisition of submarines).
Ning Hai and Ping Hai were sunk in defense of the Kiangyin Fortress, Yangtze River, near Nanking by Japanese aircraft (of which the two ships shot down four) on September 23, 1937, but then re-floated by the Japanese. Originally they were to be transferred to the puppet government of Wang Jing-Wei, but the Japanese then had a change of heart and outfitted them first as barracks hulks and ultimately as 2nd class light cruisers Ioshima (Ning Hai) and Yasoshima (Ping Hai) in 1944.
Both Isoshima and Yasoshima were sunk by late 1944.

Source (text): Wiki (EN)

Friday, February 12, 2010

The Great White Palace of Modernity

Marine Court, Hastings & St. Leonards On Sea
Built in 1936 and designed to resemble the Queen Mary ocean liner. With the lower floors representing the hull, the upper floors were built with wide balconies and at the end step back from the floor below to resemble decks, on the east side the floors are curved to resemble the bridge of the liner, it was even built with a ballroom and sundecks. You may not of been aboard an ocean liner but this was the next best thing.

Photo & comment © love-charlie @ Flickr

J'attendrai Swing


Django Reinhardt & Friends
1939

1938 Schneider Trophy

Conway R-3 vs. Blitzen II

Monday, February 8, 2010

Friday, February 5, 2010

French Aviators' Watch

Type XX (or 20), the official watch of l'armée de l'air, is far less known than its Luftwaffe or RAF counterparts. But this beautifully shaped chronograph is a predecessor of the prestigious Breguet Aeronavale, also labeled 'Type XX'. By the way, in the 40s Breguet timepieces for the French air force were domestic production - the watchmaking facilities were transfered to Switzerland only in 1976.
The Chronofixe Type 20 is shown, manufactured by Dodane.

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Dutch Tri-Motor

In 1933 Pander starts building the Pander Postjager, as it is called, and the Pander factory tries to do its utmost to have the new plane flying in December so it can compete in the extra Christmas flight to Batavia that has already been planned by the KLM...
(full story)