French bombs may be divided into three classes. The bombs in each class are named according to their weight, approximately in multiples of 10 kg, and there follows a desig-nation intended to differentiate several bombs of the weight. H.E. service bombs are made of steel-hardened, forged, or drawn steel; welded sheet or cast steel. The bomb filling are generally as follows:

Fillings

70% melinite (picric acid)
30% mononitronapthalene

80% melinite
20% dinitronapthalene

60% melinite
40% dinitrophenol

Of these, "M Mn" is the most usual filling for cast steel anti-personnel bombs. The re-mainder are normally fillied with "M Dn", "D D" being confined to certain types which are now considered obsolete.

Flares are normally used in reconnaissance of tragets or landing grounds. They may be 10 or 30 kg in weight and should be used at altitudes between 1,500 and 5,000 feet. The star burns for four or five minutes. The smoke bomb produces, on impact, a cloud of smoke which lasts about a minute and indicate the direction of the wind.

Markings indicatin manufacture are stamped on the nose of the bomb, either transvers-ely near the nose-fuze pocket or in a direction parallel to the axis of the bomb.

On mild or forged steel bombs they indicate the source of the steel, the establishments which have carried out the tempering and the manufacture, a consecutive number, the lot number and year of manufacture. The letter M shows that the bomb is of rolled steel.

On bombs of cast steel, markings indicate the foundry, the lot number, the year of ma-nufacture, and the mark of the factory.

The nature of the exploive filling is indicated by letters 0.4 inch in height, stamped on the bomb at 0.4 inch from the nose fuze-pocket.

In black, initials of the firm which carried out the filling, with the month and year of filling, e.g. PCFD-7-22.

In red, the inscription "F de Culot" on the same side as the other markings, in the case of bombs fuzed in the tail. In addition, bombs of 100 kg and over carry, below all other markings, a number indiacting the exact weight of the bomb, to the nearest kilogram.

FRENCH NAVY BOMBS

Little information has been found on French Navy bombs. Only the information in the fol- lowing chart is available, except for the 125-kg light-case bomb, which is included in the bomb section.