Summary: A picture of the equipment and procedure at typical gun sites in Britain's anti-aircraft defences.
Description: The visual content includes three alerts, with film of crews running to man guns, target locating equipment (height-finders, predictor), men laying guns (4.5" and 3"), setting fuses, loading and firing; there is also stock material of 'flak' bursts, and 2 aircraft crashes, besides pictures of routine activities (PT exercises, spotters on duty, cleaning and maintenance of guns, checking ammunition stores) and 'human interest' shots (kitten on gun barrel, grinning gunners chalking slogans on shells). The commentary predictably blends description and exhortation, but there is one curious (and entirely unpredictable) moment when one of the slogans chalked on a shell, "Hold this one Adolf", prompts the commentator to speculate on the probability of Hitler meeting his death "in the shape of a German bullet when, as his star begins to wane, his Gestapo guards stand aside for a moment as if by accident."
Alternative Title:
Colour:B&W
Digitised:No
Object_Number:COI 148
Sound:Sound
Access Conditions:
Featured Period:1939-1945
Production Date:1940
Production Country: GB
Production Details: Ministry of Information (Production sponsor)
Gaumont British News (Production company)
Personalities, Units and Organisations: British Army, anti-aircraft gun crews (regiment/service)
Keywords: defences, British - emplacement (object name)
equipment, British military - fire control (object name)
operations, British military - maintenance (object name)
operations, British military - preparation (object name)
operations, British military - routine (object name)
weapons, British - gun [AA]: 3-inch (object name)
weapons, British - gun [AA]: 4.5-inch (object name)
GB, England (geography)
Physical Characteristics: Colour format: B&W
Sound format: Sound
Soundtrack language: English
Title language: English
Subtitle language: None
Technical Details: Format: 35mm
Number of items/reels/tapes: 1
Footage: 776 ft; Running time: 9 mins
