David Martin (1887-1919)

 Any interesting trip to Salisbury Plain on Wednesday with the VMGCRA team.

After presentations that included the interception and destruction of drones, it was an odd co-incidence that we passed through Shrewton, the final resting place of Royal Flying Corps/RAF Sgt Major David Martin MSM MM MiD(x3).

Martin took up the forward gun position in a Vickers FB4 on Christmas Day 1914, flying from the former Vickers airfield at Joyce Green to intercept a German Naval Air Service FF.29 that was attempting to drop bombs on London.

No radar, so a mix of visual and accoustic tracking of the intruder.

Surviving the war, Martin succumbed to Spanish flu in a London hospital in February 1919. Buried in Shrewton by the vicar who officiated at his marriage in 1918.

Not 100% sure if Martin was firing a Vickers Maxim or a Vickers machine gun at the time of this encounter. The odds are for a Vickers Maxim as the British Army at the start of WW1 only had a small number of Vickers.

With the Russian made 1910 Maxims we see being used by Ukrainians against drones, I can't help but wonder if the Vickers Maxims/Vickers could be used in a similar role and what changes might be needed to make this work.

Twin config on the back of a truck. Left and right feeding ammunition; large sight fitted.

100 Year Old Maxim Gun Destroys Shahed Drone!

Twin config on the back of a truck. Left and right feeding ammunition; no additional sights :

How an Old Maxim Gun Still Counters Russian Drones

Three gun config on a lorry?. No sights. Disintegrating links. Shoulder stock.

Triple Maxim machine guns used by Ukrainian troops for drone defense. (2023)