The Service Respirator No. 6 (S6), also known as Respirator NBC S6 No. 1 Mark 1 was a protective
gas mask
A gas mask is a mask used to protect the wearer from inhaling airborne pollutants and toxic gases. The mask forms a sealed cover over the nose and mouth, but may also cover the eyes and other vulnerable soft tissues of the face. Most gas mask ...
issued to the
British Armed Forces
The British Armed Forces, also known as His Majesty's Armed Forces, are the military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests, s ...
. It was developed in the 1950s and issued for general service from 1966 to 1986, when it was replaced by the
S10 S10 may refer to:
Automobiles
* Chevrolet S-10, a pickup truck
* Nissan Silvia (S10), a sports car
* Toyota Crown (S10), a luxury car
Aviation
* Lake Chelan Airport, in Chelan County, Washington, United States
* Letov Š-10, a Czech trainer ...
. 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.
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.
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
SAS or Sas may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''SAS'' (novel series), a French book series by Gérard de Villiers
* ''Shimmer and Shine'', an American animated children's television series
* Southern All Stars, a Japanese rock ba ...
troops.
The
Turkish military adopted its own version of the S6 in 1990 with the name SR10 under license by MKEK. SR10 and its newer version the SR10-ST with a D12 drinking tube attached.
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.
;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
* : Known to be used by the
Turkish General Directorate of Security.
* : British military (Replaced by
S10 NBC Respirator
The S10 CBRN Respirator is a military gas mask that was formerly used within all branches of the British Armed Forces. Following the mask's replacement by the General Service Respirator in 2011, the S10 is now widely available to the public on th ...
).
References
{{Gas masks
British Army equipment
Gas masks of the United Kingdom