The Flamethrower
Written by: George Chittenden : 28 Jun 2019
This photo was taken in 1917 during World War One and features two German soldiers using a Wechselapparat flamethrower to light a cigarette. When the German army used flamethrowers in the early stages of the war they understandably terrified both French and British soldiers, however both countries quickly followed Germany’s example and began using them. The Germans used them to clear forward defenders during the start of their attacks, and then their infantry would advance.
Typically, they would use them in groups of six flamethrowers with each taking two men to operate. The life expectancy of flamethrower operators was relatively short, as they were marked men. The fuel was stored in a doughnut-shaped backpack so British and French soldiers would pour rifle-fire into the area of attack where Flamethrowers were used in the hope they would get lucky and cause and explosion. Flamethrowers were also more effective at close range, so operators would find themselves in the thick of it, and if they were captured they were shown little mercy. During WWI over 650 flamethrower attacks were carried out by German soldiers and they were even added to tanks towards the end of the war.
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