American Flamethrower in Okinawa

Image size: 1715 x 2048 pixel. 928 KB
Date: Friday, 22 June 1945
Place: Okinawa, Empire of Japan
Photographer: Unknown

Men of 4th Regiment, 6th Marine Division, 10th Army, using "corkscrew and blowtorch" techniques of flame-throwers, explosives, and riflemen at the perimeter, to eliminate remnants of the Imperial Japanese 32nd Army on June 22, 1945. The 1st and third battalions converged from the east and west on positions east of the village of Kiyamu. While American casualties remained high across Okinawa as 32nd Army disintegrated, Japanese casualties increased from a few hundred to over 4,000 per day. The number of Japanese surrendering increased as well, from four per day at the start of the campaign to 343 on June 19 and 977 on June 20. 500 civilians also surrendered, overcoming fear of massacre at the hands of the Americans. Lieutenant General Mitsui Ushijima, commander of the 32nd Army, and Major General Isama Cho committed suicide at 03:45 Hours on June 22, the same day Okinawa was declared secured by US 10th Army. Scattered resistance continued until June 30.


Source :
https://worldwar2database.com/gallery/wwii1125

Char B1 Flammenwerfer Before Operation Barbarossa

Image size: 1600 x 1190 pixel. 334 KB
Date: Monday, 23 June 1941
Place: Lwow Voivodeship, Poland
Photographer: Unknown

French-designed Char B1 bis tanks (Flammwagen auf Panzerkampfwagen B2 (F) in German service) of Panzerabteilung (F) 102 captured by the Germans in the Battle of France move up to the front during Operation Barbarossa. These tanks have been modified with the same flammenwerfer-Spritzkopf (flamethrower spray head) system designed for the Panzer II in the place of the hull-mounted 75mm (3-inch) main gun. The Germans took as much captured equipment as they could from occupied countries. Reichskanzler (Reichchancellor) Adolf Hitler, shown the plans for the Panzer II flammenwerfer, wanted a heavier armored vehicle for flame operations. The French Char B1 bis was already being used as a police tank around the German-held territories, and the Germans had taken over the maintenance facilities to paint the tanks in German colors and markings and repair them. On May 26, 1941, Hitler approved the formation of Panzerabteilung (F) 102 consisting of two Schwere Flammkompanie (Heavy Flame Companies) of 12 flammenwerfer tanks and three unmodified Char B1 bis with the 75mm gun still in place. This unit was to work closely with the German Pioneeren (combat engineers) reducing Soviet fortifications. Serving under Armee-Oberkommando 17, Panzerabteilung (F) 102 was attached to the 296th Infantry Division for the assault on Wielki Dzial Mountain, Poland (now Ukraine), one of many border fortresses established by the Soviets. On June 29, the flammpanzers, supported by 88mm (3.5 inch) flak guns firing depressed against surface targets, attacked the Soviet positions on June 29, losing three flammpanzers. On July 27, Panzerabteilung (F) 102 was disbanded, but sixty Panzerkampfwagen B2 (F) were modified with a new pressurized flamethrower system and served with Panzerabteilung 223 (Eastern Front); Panzerbrigade 100 (Western Front); and SS "Prinz Eugen" (Yugoslavia). Panzerkampfwagen B2 (F) flammpanzers were encountered by Allied paratroopers at Osterbeek during Operation Market-Garden.

Churchill AVRE with Small Box Girder Bridge and Churchill Crocodile

Image size: 1600 x 1008 pixel. 316 KB
Date: Saturday, 1 January 1944
Place: Unidentified place in England
Photographer: Unknown

Churchill Armoured Vehicle Royal Engineers (AVRE) with Small Box Girder (SBG) Bridge and Churchill Crocodile flamethrower, two of "Hobart's Funnies" of the 79th Armoured Division under the command of Major-General Sir Percy "Hobo" Hobart (June 14, 1885 - February 19, 1957). The SBG was designed by Royal Engineers Colonel Millis Rowland Jefferis (1899-1963) who was an explosives expert who designed the Projector, Infantry, Anti Tank (PIAT) which was a spigot mortar for paratroopers and light infantry to attack tanks; and the 290mm (11.4 inch) spigot mortar for the Churchill AVRE. The SBG could breach gaps of 30 feet (9 meters) and be deployed in 30 seconds. When not hung on the front of the AVRE for deployment, the bridge could be pulled on a small tire bogie behind the tank. The Churchill Crocodile, seen here without its accompanying fuel trailer, expressed flame through a nozzle in the front of the hull and had a turret-mounted 75mm (3 inch) main gun. The AVRE and the Crocodile, working together, would reduce bunkers and fortifications. The AVRE would fire its spigot mortar from close range, and the Crocodile would douse the debris with flame. 

Source:

http://www.worldwar2database.com/gallery3/index.php/wwii0056

Churchill Crocodile "Calgary" Attacks German Positions Across the Senio River

Image size: 1600 x 1410 pixel. 410 KB
Date: Monday, 9 April 1945
Place: Between Cotignola and Felisio, Romagna, Italy
Photographer: Sergeant Menzies from 2 Army Film & Photos

Churchill Crocodile "Calgary" of 51 Royal Tank Regiment, C Squadron, attached to the 2nd New Zealand Division, sprays flame across the Senio River prior to the Allied crossing on April 9, 1945. The Senio River crossing was preceded by a large aerial bombardment, then 28 Crocodiles and 127 Wasp flamethrower carriers, spaced every 70 yards (64 meters) along a five-mile (8-kilometer) front, burned everything along the line. The 2nd New Zealand suffered no casualties in crossing the Senio. The Crocodile was based on the Mark VII Churchill Tank, and retained a 75mm (3 inch) cannon in the turret with a flamethrower in place of the hull-mounted BESA 7.62mm (.30 caliber) machine gun. Designed by Major-General Sir Percy "Hobo" Hobart (June 14, 1885 - February 19, 1957) famed commander of the 79th Armoured Division, the Crocodile was one of "Hobart's Funnies" designed for specialized operations during the Normandy Campaign. Only in 1945 were the "funnies" made available to the Italian Theatre of Operations. The unique design - a trailer pulled behind the Crocodile held four hundred gallons (1500 liters) of fuel - made the Crocodile marginally safer than previous motorized flamethrowers, which would burn furiously if hit. The Crocodile used pressurized nitrogen to send flame up to 120 yards (110 meters). The appearance of a Crocodile, or a spray of unignited fuel, would be enough to affect a surrender. Used in concert with the Churchill Armored Vehicle Royal Engineers (AVRE) which mounted a 290mm (11.4 inch) spigot mortar. The AVRE would fire on a bunker, then the Crocodile would flame the debris. There are reports that some Crocodile crews, when their tank was "brewed" or knocked out, were executed immediately by the Germans rather than taken prisoner because of the fear and anger over the weapon! A unit of Crocodiles was sent to Korea in 1950. 

Source:

Imperial War Museum (IWM) NA 23837 

http://www.worldwar2database.com/gallery3/index.php/wwii0054