M17 gas mask
The M17 gas mask ( M17 Protective Mask ) was manufactured from 1959 and was used by the entire US armed forces .
The respirator mask was replaced by newer models in the early 1990s. The United States Navy and the United States Air Force opted for the MCU-2 / P gas mask ; the United States Army switched to the M40 gas mask .
description
The M17 protects against chemical and biological warfare agents and the penetration of irradiated particles, but not against radioactivity and thus radiation damage itself. It is not suitable as a protective mask for fire fighting.
The mask consists of the mask body with two lenses, the straps and internal filters. Valves and a sealing frame in the mask body prevent harmful substances from getting into the mask and prevent the mask from fogging up. The M17 series includes three types of masks, the M17, M17A1, and M17A2. An experimental transparent silicone model called the XM27 was developed in late 1966, but was rejected in favor of the XM28E4. The design of the M17 has been copied in many countries. The Bulgarian PDE-1, the Japanese Type-3, the Polish MP-4 and the Czech OM10 or M10M are known.
The masks of the M17 series have built-in speech output systems that facilitate communication and the option of connecting a drinking water hose (A1 and A2). There were three types of viewing panes available: clear panes for general use, gray-tinted panes for bright surroundings, and green-tinted panes for protection against laser beams, which are primarily used in military applications for distance measurement.
The mask is delivered in a mask bag, which also includes other items of equipment. These include antidotes for nerve agents and an M-258A1 decontamination set. Also in this bag are a mask hood to protect the head and neck area from z. B. warfare agent droplets, a winter combat kit to prevent icing in cold weather and, if necessary, mask glasses for soldiers with visual impairments.
weaknesses
The clear lenses for general use have yellowed over time. In order to be able to recognize the sometimes only slight color changes in the detection kit for chemical warfare agents M256A1, however, precise color vision was required.
The fact that the mask does not have a filter attached to the outside, like the NBC protective mask used by the Bundeswehr, but has internal cheek filters, means that a filter change requires the mask to be removed. Filter changes are necessary when the filter is used up. At this moment, however, the affected soldier would be exposed to the weapons in his environment without protection. That was also the main reason for the US armed forces to return to the conventional mask design with an external filter.
The M17A1 was a mask that was intended to enable a soldier wearing this mask to artificially ventilate an unprotected soldier with a tube. However, the procedure was discarded relatively soon and also not resumed for the M17A2 because it deprived the soldier to be ventilated of his warfare agent protection and also entailed certain risks for the helper.
literature
- TM 3-4240-279-10, Operator's Manual for Mask, Chemical-Biological: Field; ABC-M17, M17A1 and M17A2; Headquarters Department of the Army, Washington DC, 9th May 1997
Web links
- TM 3-4240-279-10, Operator's Manual for Mask, Chemical-Biological: Field; ABC-M17, M17A1 and M17A2 [1]