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[M@X 2.1]

Comments on a Bullet's Travel in Water

A question we are sometimes asked is, how far will a bullet travel in water and are objects underwater really safe from rifle fire?

The answer to this question depends on many factors, such as angle of fire, bullet shape, bullet nose construction and muzzle velocity. Full-jacketed military bullets give better penetration in water than soft-nose bullets. Soft-nose bullets often expand or break up. Bullets fired at a steep angle will enter the water while bullets fired at shallow angles may glance from the surface and fly off in unpredictable directions.

Near the end of World War II instances were reported of navy survivors, adrift in the ocean, being strafed by enemy aircraft. When attacked, the natural defense was to submerge. But did the few feet of water actually give any protection against machine gun fire?

The Bureau of Ordnance conducted a series of tests to determine depths of water required to give protection against .50 caliber and .30 caliber AP bullets fired from a few inches above the surface of the water. A target of 1-inch pine boards was suspended at various depths with their surface at right angles to the line of fire. The Complete penetration of a board was considered a lethal impact.

When the .50 caliber bullet was fired vertically downward, the critical distance for complete penetration was found to lie between 4 ft. and 5 ft. Firing at oblique angles of 45 to 60 degrees from the vertical position reduced the lethal bullet travel by approximately 1 ft. When the .30 caliber bullet was fired vertically downward, complete penetration was observed at 1 ft., but not at 2 ft. Based on these observations a person must be submerged at least 5 ft. to feel reasonably safe from .50 caliber machine gun fire and at least 2 ft. for .30 caliber machine gun fire.

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