| A flare gun is literally a gun that shoots flares. They | | | | and other types of messages at sea or from the |
| have been around for quite some time. They are | | | | ground to an aircraft. But throughout history, they |
| commonly used to send distress signals and for | | | | have also been used as emergency weapons. For |
| sending other messages at sea or between an air | | | | instance, a duty pilot in Pembrey Airfield, Wales was |
| craft and the people on the ground. They were | | | | known to have captured a German pilot who |
| standard components of rescue kits during wartime. | | | | mistakenly landed on the field with the use of a very |
| These guns where originally used before telephone | | | | pistol. At that time, Sgt. Jeffreys didn't have any |
| lines were established so that signals can be sent to | | | | other conventional weapon with him so the pistol |
| troops World War 2. | | | | came as a court of last resort for him. Army pilot |
| History | | | | Alex Kimball relates how he killed an armed attacker |
| Popularly known as the 'very pistol', the invention of | | | | with a Very pistol in his autobiography, Think Like a |
| the flare gun is attributed to Edward Wilson Very in | | | | Bird. According to his book, the man's clothes caught |
| 1877. He came out with a signaling tool that was to | | | | fire after Kimball shot the flare gun at him thus |
| be used by the US Navy in 1882. By the year 1900, | | | | causing his death. |
| the very pistol has attained popularity and was used | | | | These days, it's advisable to take a very pistol as a |
| all over the world. | | | | precautionary measure, especially when you're going |
| Uses | | | | on a boating trip. |
| Very pistols are normally used to send distress signals | | | | |