During WWI, how did the guns mounted on planes not chew through the front propeller?
Early models had propellers that had steel backing to prevent them from being damaged. Later models Incorporated timing mechanisms that timed the firing of the guns to allow them to shoot between the propellers. Edit: The steel plates had the same ‘pitch’ as the propellers which caused the projectiles to ricochet off the blades at odd angles. But there was still some risk of injury to the pilot, that was one of the ‘hurry up’ factors to developing the timing device. Added help for muzzle velocity…typical .303 British was 2200 to 2600 FPS depending on bullet weight, 8MM X57 Mauser about the same, and a .30/06 Springfield would be 2400 to 2900 FPS , again, depending on the bullet weight.
