Quote:
Originally posted by T. A. Gardner:
The 20mm Hispano was drum fed as designed. The drum wouldn't fit in the wing upright as it was designed to be used. When the gun was turned partially on its side to make it fit in the wing it jammed frequently. The lump on the top of the Spitfire's wing is for the drum which still stuck up a bit even turned on its side.
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That's part of the answer, but even right-way up the RAF found constant problems with making the gun work reliably. The reason was that it was designed to be bolted firmly to an engine block, and relied on the stiffness that provided. Wings are much less stiff...
Tony Williams: Military gun and ammunition
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