S6 NBC Respirator

S6 NBC Respirator
S6 NBC Respirator
	A S6 respirator with a filter
Type	Gas mask
Place of origin	United Kingdom
Service history
In service	1966–1986 (British military)
Used by	See Users
Production history
Designer	Defence Science and Technology Laboratory
Manufacturer	Leyland and Birmingham Rubber Company; Avon Rubber; Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation (Turkey)

The Service Respirator No. 6 (S6), also known as Respirator NBC S6 No. 1 Mark 1 was a protective gas mask issued to the British Armed Forces. It was developed in the 1950s and issued for general service from 1966 to 1986, when it was replaced by the S10. Currently, the S6 is not used by the British military.

It's usually worn in conjunction with the NBC No. 1 Mk III CBRN protective suit.^[2]

History

The S6 was developed by the Chemical Defence Experimental Establishment (CDEE) from the 1950s and manufactured by Avon Rubber in Melksham, Wiltshire and the Leyland and Birmingham Rubber Company.^[1]^[3] Although made obsolete by the introduction of the S10, production of the S6 continued in Turkey after the adoption of the new mask by British forces. During the widely documented Iranian Embassy Siege of 1980, the S6 is the mask seen being worn by SAS troops.

The Turkish military adopted its own version of the S6 in 1990 with the name SR10 under license by MKEK.^[4] SR10 and its newer version the SR10-ST with a D12 drinking tube attached.^[5]

Design

The S6 respirator provided protection to the face, eyes, lung and throat of the wearer against all known chemical agents of that time. The S6 features an innovative air seal around the inside of the face piece to improve the fit and comfort of the mask; a tap inside the nose cup was to allow the equalisation of pressure inside the air seal, in different climatic conditions.

A left-handed version put the filter canister on the right which allowed left-handed wearers to shoulder, aim and fire their rifle as usual.

Variants

S6: Original gas mask made in the 1960s-1980s.
SR6M: Modernised copy of S6 by MKEK MAKSAM.
SR10: Turkish-made version by MKEK MAKSAM. The SR10-ST is a S6 with a drinking tube.

Users

Turkey: Known to be used by the Turkish General Directorate of Security.^[6]
United Kingdom: British military (Replaced by S10 NBC Respirator).^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "S6 Respirator". Archived from the original on 2013-03-12. Retrieved 2010-08-10.
^ "NBC". Crusader80.co.uk. Retrieved 2020-02-27.
^ "British S6". Gas Mask King. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
^ "Turkish SR10". Gas Mask King. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
^ "US embassy cable - 04ANKARA4119". Archived from the original on 2017-09-25. Retrieved 2020-02-27.
^ "Polisin gaz maskesi MKEK'dan" [Police Gas Mask from MKEK] (in Turkish). Hurriyet. 18 June 2006. Retrieved 27 February 2020.

[Forces-1] "S6 Respirator". Archived from the original on 2013-03-12. Retrieved 2010-08-10.

[Crusader-2] "NBC". Crusader80.co.uk. Retrieved 2020-02-27.

[3] "British S6". Gas Mask King. Retrieved 27 February 2020.

[4] "Turkish SR10". Gas Mask King. Retrieved 27 February 2020.

[5] "US embassy cable - 04ANKARA4119". Archived from the original on 2017-09-25. Retrieved 2020-02-27.

[6] "Polisin gaz maskesi MKEK'dan" [Police Gas Mask from MKEK] (in Turkish). Hurriyet. 18 June 2006. Retrieved 27 February 2020.

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