ORDNANCE IDENTIFICATION AND
MARKING
Identification
of
ammunition
is
extremely
important when handling ordnance. Identification
provides working/safety information, such as service
(live)/nonservice
(training)
ammunition,
class
of
explosives, and color codes representing the explosive
hazards. Identification also provides administrative
information, such as mark, modification, and lot
numbers.
Color
codes
contain
the
most
important
information of the identification system! Color codes
identify the explosive hazards contained within the
ordnance. Regardless of your rating, you will work
around ordnance-handling crews. Therefore, you
should be familiar with the color code identification of
ordnance.
Table 8-1 gives the color codes used to identify the
hazards contained in ordnance. It also gives the
meaning for each color code. These colors are normally
painted on the ordnance during manufacturing. The
colors may be stripes painted around the body or down
the side of the item.
You can use the color codes shown in table 8-1 to
identify ordnance explosive hazards. For example, you
are approaching an aircraft and there is a bomb loaded
on a wing station. The bomb is painted an olive drab
(overall) color and has a yellow band painted around
the nose. The olive drab color has no identification
color-coding significance; but, the yellow band means
that the bomb contains high explosives. Another
example is a missile. A missile is painted white with a
yellow band around the warhead section and a brown
band around the rocket motor section. The white color
on a missile has no identification color-coding
significance. The yellow band means that the warhead
contains high explosives. The brown band means that
the rocket motor contains low explosives.
Knowing the color codes and the type of ordnance
loaded on the aircraft give you vital information in an
emergency such as a fire. For example, an aircraft
loaded with ordnance is engulfed in a fire. All the
ordnance on the aircraft is a light blue color with no
other identification color codes visible. From this
visual information, you can determine that none of the
ordnance contains explosives. Thus, the fire can be
fought much closer to the aircraft than if the ordnance
contained high explosives.
Q8-4.
What is the difference between an explosive
and an explosion?
Q8-5.
What are the two general classes of military
explosives?
Q8-6.
High explosives are not used in ammunition
and gun systems for what reason?
Q8-7.
Define low explosives.
Q8-8.
What type of information is provided by
ordnance identification?
Q8-9.
In the ordnance identification system, the
color codes provide what information?
AIRCRAFT WEAPONS AND
AMMUNITION
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Identify the
types, uses, and basic characteristics of
aircraft weapons and ammunition.
Aircraft weapons and ammunition are designed to
reduce and/or neutralize an enemy's war potential.
Several different types are discussed in the following
text.
AIRCRAFT BOMB-TYPE AMMUNITION
Bomb-type ammunition is carried either in the
bomb bay of an aircraft or externally on the wing or
fuselage stations. Because of safety requirements,
some bomb-type ammunition is shipped and stowed
without the fuzes or arming assemblies. Ordnancemen
must assemble these types of ammunition before they
are used. Other types, such as cluster bomb units
(CBUs),
are
shipped
and
stowed
as
complete
assemblies.
Only
the
general
characteristics
and
basic
principles of operation for bomb-type ammunition and
associated components are discussed in this chapter.
8-3
