What's the correct Naval Aviatior revolver?

[ILLWIND]

Most Navy pilots during Vietnam carried 38s and some 1911s.

My uncle was a Navy cargo pilot in the late 60's early 70's. (LCDR) He had a .38 Smith...No idea what happened to it.

 

[ANGST]

I was a U.S. Army Aviator flying the AH-1S "Modernized" Cobra and we were issued an S&W M10 with fixed sights, 4" barrel and totally wimped out 130 grain FMJRN .38 spl ammo.

Never figured out WHY as an Infantry mortar gunner I was issued the 1911A1 and qualified expert with it out to 75 meters. As an Aviator (aircrew member) they seemed to think the piddling-weak "Mil-spec" .38 special round in a Model 10 was suitable. Glad I was never shot down!

Losing a mortar and reverting to sidearm is much cheaper then losing a Cobra . It was your incentive to not lose the bird.

 

[DWalt]

I see a lot of complaints about the M41 .38 Special round being so weak. It's really not much different from any standard .38 Special round in muzzle velocity, but it does have a lighter 130 grain FMJ bullet. It's not nearly as "weak" as most assume it to be.

One of the main functions of issuing revolvers for naval flight crews was for use as an emergency signaling device using tracer bullets, sort of a mini-flare gun.

 

[Chubbs103]

I retired Navy in 2012 and after the Navy converted to the Berretta 92FS as the service weapon pilots started carrying SIG P226 as an issued weapon in hostile situations.

I never saw a P226 carried by an aviator. By the late '90s just about all the airwings had switched over to the P228 / M11, though.

Take care,
Chubbs

 

[ImprovedModel56Fan]

Joe, welcome aboard!
When I was deployed on the carrier (F-14s) and we were carrying sidearms, the pilots pretty much carried their own. The ordies never issued anything to us. Many carried their own 1911's. I saw all manner of sidearms stuck into vests...Pythons, 686s, BHPs, Berettas, etc. The guns were also locked in the little safes each officer had in his stateroom. Probably not according to regulations, but you know how that goes.

This sounds similar to my observations in the late sixties. West Coast carrier pilots seemed to carry about what they wanted to. In the early eighties, I served in a squadron on the Ike, and all the pilots in my squadron carried either M&P or Chief's Special revolvers, Navy issue. Not sure where they kept them, but at least for a couple of years of my tour, it was within regulations to keep them in the stateroom safe. That may have changed at some time during my tour.

BTW, during the sixties, I kept three guns in a locked Pachmayr box in the ship's armory, checking them out whenever I found a place to shoot. No problems. I was enlisted at the time, and happy enough just to find the space for them!

 

[rhinoh]

I remember my career Marine father, now 84, complaining about the crappy .38 revolver he was issued flying H-53's out of Marble Mtn Vietnam around 1966/67 or so....

 

[Gearhead Jim]

I was told once that revolvers were preferred because, if bobbing around in your life vest, you could drain the water out through the flash gap simply by pointing the gun up in the air, and then fire the gun for signaling. An autoloader had to be pointed downward, not so practical.

No personal experience...

 

[CatboatWilly]

Joe; I flew L-23, RU-8D and RU-12 for the US Army- Army Security Agency, doing airborne electronic surveillance. We pretty much carried our own side arms. I carried a Browning High Power in 9mm.

The 'Crazy Cats' flew a modified P2V and when they flew 'over the fence' in Nam there were not supposed to carry anything that said 'Made in the USA'. Took off their dog tags, carried blood chits and most carried the Belgian made B.H.P in 9mm. I still have mine.

 

[Doc TH]

Naval aviation pistols

Lots of memories from the above stories. 1965-69 Atlantic fleet mostly S&W 38 special w. tracer ammo.

 

[safearm]

I have an acquaintance who is an FBI agent and flew S-3s during ODS. We were both in the same theater but on opposite sides of the Saudi peninsula; he was in the Persian Gulf and I was in Jeddah on the Red Sea. According to him, he was issued a S&W fixed sight M&P revolver with 4 inch barrel, maybe a Model 10, perhaps a Victory model, and FMJ .38 Special ammo. The finish was a matte black, maybe parkerized. Grips were wood.
For us Air Force guys, we deployed carrying S&W Model 15s, in a mixed of 2 and 4 inch barrels. Once we got to Saudi Arabia, we traded in our revolvers for M9s.