Quote (Ghot @ 13 Dec 2017 22:01)
Lol, a P-38 and P-51 are airplanes not can openers. :D
/e But I realize those two things in the pic ARE can openers.
Yeah I know those are airplanes but that is also the name of the can openers.
Quote
Official military designations for the P-38 include "US ARMY POCKET CAN OPENER" and "OPENER, CAN, HAND, FOLDING, TYPE I". As with some other military terms, e.g., "jeep", the origin of the term is not known with certainty; the P-38 opener coincidentally shares a designation with the Lockheed P-38 Lightning fighter plane, which could allude to its fast performance, additionally the P-51 can opener also has an aircraft namesake in the North American P-51 Mustang.[1]
One technical explanation for the origin of the name is that the P-38 is approximately 38 millimetres long. This explanation also holds for the P-51, which measures approximately 51 mm (2.0 in) in length. However, use of the metric system in the US was not widespread at this point, and United States Army sources indicate that the origin of the name is rooted in the 38 punctures around the circumference of a C-ration can required for opening.[1]