This was one year before the Vinh Yen battle.Īlso of note, page 14 of same magazine states that GC 3/6 Roussillon mounted rockets on their P-63s for the first time (October 16, 1950). Therefore, I believe that this is proof that the Kingcobras carried napalm. "2/5" refers to the GC 2/5 Ile de France fighter group which flew the Kingcobra at this time, January 1950. January 10, 1950, Cdt Prayer and BoudierĬarried out the first Napalm bombing of 2/5." "It will then be the Diabolo operation on the Canal desīamboos which occupied 2/5 during the second half ofĭecember, followed in early January 1950 by an intervention atĬenter Annam. Le 10 janvier 1950, les Cdt Prayer et BoudierĮffectuèrent les premiers bombardement Napalm du 2/5. "Ce sera ensuite l'opération Diabolo sur le secteur du Canal desīambous qui occupa le 2/5 durant la deuxième quinzaine deĭécembre, suivie début janvier 1950 par une intervention auĬentre-Annam. SIC 100 (a battered original Bearcat fuel tank)Īnd to contradict what I wrote, this pic of a SECAN 63 and of a M116 with the igniter fixed at an unusual position (well, in fact it's not a French igniter, but a US one )įrom: Aviation Francaise Magazine (AFM) Dec 2004 / Janv 2005 (Don't forget also the huge shortage in drop tanks that plagued the French Bearcats.) The answer may be in the type of napalm igniter used by the French, that need to be attached on the side of the napalm canister, and, if this was quite simple in canisters with a roughly cylindrical body, on oblong shaped canisters it would have been quite a headache for the armourers. To make things more complicated, some Bearcats were seen in Indochina, carrying.P-51 drop tanks.leaving the question open whether, indeed, such tanks were only carrying fuel.or napalm. Their dimensions did not enable them to be carried under the P-63 (they were too long). ![]() The so-called improvised napalm bombs based on P-51 fuel tanks (in fact the forerunners of the 110 gal US 750lb Mk78 Firebomb) the standard US Napalm bomb of the mid/late fifties and the750lb Mk77 Mod 0 firebomb of the early sixties). ![]() They used to this purpose the "bidons speciaux" SECAN 63 (450 liters) and the smaller SIC 100 (based on original Bearcat fuel tanks, that soon became a rarity in Indochina, in spite of the efforts to look and find them on the the ground and re-use them), as well napalm canisters originally based upon F-80 US drop tanks (the "750lb, 110gal US fire bomb E74" that evolved into the later 750lb M-116 firebomb. Napalm was dropped the French in Indochina from Corsairs and Bearcats.
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