WON’T CATCH FIRE
PBTIIOL TANKS FOB WARPLANES New British warplanes even after having their petrol tanks riddled with machine-gun bullets will not catch fire. They are being fitted with a new type of petrol tank on which exhaustive experiments have been made at the British Air Ministry’s experimental station.
This tank has been in use in Italian and French fighting machines for over two years, but it has only recently been installed in British warplanes.
Secret material, which makes the tanks fire-proof, resembles cellular indiarubber, being spongy and having elasticity. \
It provides, a. covering nearly an inch thick round the tank, and when a bullet pierces it the material “grows” quickly round the aperture, closing and. sealing it completely. The tank'was tried out especially cn a twin-engined bomber sent by Ft anee to Spain,, After. this machine had’ been shot down by an enemy fighter from a great height, , it whs closely examined. All four occupants of the machine were killed, the two petrol tanks had 30 bullets through them, and were partly filled with - petrol, but the bomber did not catch fire.
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Bibliographic details
Hokitika Guardian, 28 April 1939, Page 8
Word Count
183WON’T CATCH FIRE Hokitika Guardian, 28 April 1939, Page 8
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