ORDNANCE IDENTIFICATION AND MARKING Identification of ammunition is extremely important    when    handling    ordnance.    Identification provides  working/safety  information,  such  as  service (live)/nonservice (training) ammunition, class of explosives, and color codes representing the explosive hazards.   Identification   also   provides   administrative information,    such    as    mark,    modification,    and    lot numbers. Color codes contain the most important information of the identification system! Color codes identify   the   explosive   hazards   contained   within   the ordnance.  Regardless  of  your  rating,  you  will  work around     ordnance-handling     crews.     Therefore,     you should be familiar with the color code identification of ordnance. Table 8-1 gives the color codes used to identify the hazards    contained    in    ordnance.    It    also    gives    the meaning for each color code. These colors are normally painted  on  the  ordnance  during  manufacturing.  The colors may be stripes painted around the body or down the side of the item. You can use the color codes shown in table 8-1 to identify ordnance explosive hazards. For example, you are approaching an aircraft and there is a bomb loaded on a wing station. The bomb is painted an olive drab (overall)  color  and  has  a  yellow  band  painted  around the  nose.  The  olive  drab  color  has  no  identification color-coding significance; but, the yellow band means that    the    bomb    contains    high    explosives.    Another example is a missile. A missile is painted white with a yellow band around the warhead section and a brown band around the rocket motor section. The white color on     a     missile     has     no     identification     color-coding significance. The yellow band means that the warhead contains high explosives. The brown band means that the rocket motor contains low explosives. Knowing the color codes and the type of ordnance loaded on the aircraft give you vital information in an emergency   such   as   a   fire.   For   example,   an   aircraft loaded  with  ordnance  is  engulfed  in  a  fire.  All  the ordnance  on  the  aircraft  is  a  light  blue  color  with  no other   identification   color   codes   visible.   From   this visual information, you can determine that none of the ordnance  contains  explosives.  Thus,  the  fire  can  be fought much closer to the aircraft than if the ordnance contained high explosives. Q8-4. What  is  the  difference  between  an  explosive and an explosion? Q8-5. What are the two general classes of military explosives? Q8-6. High  explosives  are  not  used  in  ammunition and gun systems for what reason? Q8-7. Define low explosives. Q8-8. What    type    of    information    is    provided    by ordnance identification? Q8-9. In   the   ordnance   identification   system,   the color codes provide what information? AIRCRAFT WEAPONS AND AMMUNITION LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Identify the types,  uses,  and  basic  characteristics  of aircraft weapons and ammunition. Aircraft weapons and ammunition are designed to reduce   and/or   neutralize   an   enemy's   war   potential. Several  different  types  are  discussed  in  the  following text. AIRCRAFT BOMB-TYPE AMMUNITION Bomb-type   ammunition   is   carried   either   in   the bomb  bay  of  an  aircraft  or  externally  on  the  wing  or fuselage    stations.    Because    of    safety    requirements, some  bomb-type  ammunition  is  shipped  and  stowed without the fuzes or arming assemblies. Ordnancemen must assemble these types of ammunition before they are   used.   Other   types,   such   as   cluster   bomb   units (CBUs), are shipped and stowed as complete assemblies. Only the general characteristics and basic principles of operation for bomb-type ammunition and associated components are discussed in this chapter. 8-3