The easiest to create incendiary-type weapons can rightly be called a Molotov cocktail. Thanks to him, you can deal a serious blow to the enemy, both on people and on structures, structures, and equipment. In this regard, there is nothing inexplicable in the fact that even with the advent of more modern and high-tech weapons, this tool has remained popular and in great demand among extremists. The fact is that almost anyone can make it, without having experience in this matter.
1. How did this weapon come about?
For the first time, this unique weapon was made in 1939, when the Soviet troops invaded Finland. This country was included in the zone of influence of the Soviet Union, according to the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact. After the first few hours of the attack, bombs began to be dropped on Finland. These activities were multi-day. The target was strategic government facilities, but since the orientation was lost, the infrastructure of the civilian population also came under attack and this did not go unnoticed by the public with all over the world.
F. Roosevelt, being the head of the United States, appealed to the USSR command not to bomb peaceful cities. IN. Molotov, who was the people's commissar for foreign affairs, said that no bombs were dropped on Helsinki. Moreover, planes for the inhabitants of the city, suffering from hunger, drop food. This is how the expression "Molotov's bread box" came to life.
When the Red Army began to advance, it was faced with a new type of weapon - liquid flammable grenades. They were made by the Finns at their Alko distillery. The novelty was not left without a name. She was dubbed the "Molotov Cocktail".
The Finns used this weapon in the fight against Soviet military equipment. First of all, the blow was inflicted on the tanks. During the three-month period of hostilities, the Soviet Union lost about 2,000 combat vehicles. The exact number is unknown, as historians are still arguing about this. Someone calls a smaller number, others - a large one. In fact, it's not that important. One thing is clear - the military conflict, and a short one, led to serious losses in the ranks of the Soviet side.
As for the name that we know well now, "Molotov Cocktail", it appeared a little later, during the Second World War. Incendiary mixtures were widely used by the troops of the USSR and this brought excellent results. Stalin at the very beginning of the war approved the instructions for the use of these weapons. Soviet gunsmiths even developed a kind of mortar that allows you to throw bottles with this substance at a distance of up to eighty meters.
The sappers also used the Molotov cocktail. They approached the issue in a comprehensive manner. That is, a bottle with a mixture was additionally installed on one anti-personnel mine, twenty bottles on an anti-tank mine. As a result, if the enemy was blown up, then several damaging factors acted on him at once, namely the shock wave, a lot of fragments from an exploding mine and a combustible liquid. The effect was always there: a person received injuries, often incompatible with life, and it was also psychologically very difficult for him, and for those who saw this picture, too. The damage was severe.
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2. Composition and effectiveness
Indeed, the Molotov cocktail is not only the easiest flammable weapon to create, but also quite effective. To make it, you will need a glass bottle and a special incendiary mixture, which is based on gasoline. A homemade wick is inserted into the bottle neck. It can be a piece of any fabric.
The mechanism of action is very simple. The fuse is set on fire, and the structure with all its contents is thrown at the chosen target. On contact with the target, the glass breaks, and the mixture ignites on contact with the flame. The level of effectiveness is high, since this mixture is not so easy to put out. Water in this case will not save, and the temperature during combustion is too high, in addition, the duration of combustion is also high.
3. Conclusion
From all the above it follows that V. Molotov has an indirect relation to the creation of this weapon, since it was invented to fight him and the Soviet army. But having seen the result, the USSR took this invention into service and did not lose, especially during the Second World War. Today, despite many new developments and technologies, these weapons remain in demand and widely used throughout the world.
Continue reading on the topic why did the Soviet Union need to make a 45 mm gun so unsightly.
A source: https://novate.ru/blogs/041121/61145/