13 Pounder 9cwt Anti-Aircraft Guns somewhere in France. Such guns were commonly mounted on lorries, as in this picture, for the mobile defense of the rear areas (note the generally intact countryside behind).
This photograph is one in a sequence which focuses on wrecked enemy aircraft. The men in this scene are all intent on their jobs and there is an atmosphere of studied concentration present.
Anti-aircraft guns were not at all successful at this period as it is was difficult to aim the guns on fast-moving aircraft by sight. A variety of equipment was used to aid this process but proper systems were not developed until the inter-war years.
Uniform details and weather suggest a date later than spring, 1916.
Original reads: ‘OFFICIAL PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN ON THE BRITISH WESTERN FRONT IN FRANCE. Anti-aircraft guns which brought down a huge German aeroplane in France.
Original URL: http://digital.nls.uk/first-world-war-official-photographs/pageturner.cfm?id=74548698
Resource Type : image
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