Aircraft of World War II

Royal_Navy_Grumman_TBF_Avenger-1b

johnbr — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 23:22:58 -0400

by: johnbr

HS-129_30mm_Cannon

johnbr — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 23:20:19 -0400

by: johnbr

Description: HS-129 30mm Cannon 30-mm MK 103 Cannon-German attack aircraft Henschel Hs. 129. basic characteristics of air automatic gun MK 103: length: 2.45 m, weight: 143 lbs, rate of fire shut/min-425, the initial velocity (m/s)-710, weight of projectile: 0.44 lbs., weight -0.53 cartridge-0.778 -0.935 kg.

Loading_a_Tiny_Tim_on_PBJ_Mitchell

johnbr — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 22:15:40 -0400

by: johnbr

Description: Loading a Tiny Tim on PBJ Mitchell Ship-to-ship missile Tiny Tim is loaded on to a PBJ Mitchell belonging to Squadron VMB-612, United States Marine Corps on the island of Iwo Jima August 1945. Launch of "Tiny Tim" developed by the California Institute of technology, adopted in 1945, mass of 580 kg (1.280 pounds), flight speed 1.480 km/h (810 ft/s). Was used at the very end of the second world war at the battle of Okinawa. The Tiny Tim was an American air to ground rocket used near the end of the Second World War. One source states it was built in response to a US Navy requirement for an anti-shipping rocket capable of hitting ships outside of their anti-aircraft range, with a payload capable of sinking heavy shipping. However, according to the China Lake Weapons Digest, the Tiny Tim was designed by the Caltech-China Lake team as a bunker-buster, Tim was the first large aircraft rocket, and, although it saw only limited service in WWII, it helped form the foundations of many postwar developments in rocketry. For a warhead, Tiny Tim utilized a 500 lb semi-armor-piercing high explosive bomb. It had a maximum range of 1,500 meters (1,640 yards). They were used by the US Navy and US Marine Corps near the end of the war during the battle of Okinawa, and during the Korean war. A problem with the sheer power of the rocket motor causing damage to the firing aircraft was resolved by having the Tiny Tim drop like a bomb, and a lanyard attached to the rocket would snap, causing the rocket to ignite . Common targets included coastal defense guns, bridges, pill boxes, tanks, and shipping. An ambitious operation to use the Tiny Tim against German V-1 sites as part of Operation Crossbow, code-named Project Danny, was planned but cancelled before the squadrons assigned could be deployed to Europe. Common Tiny Tim delivery aircraft during the Second World War included the F4U Corsair, F6F Hellcat, TBM Avenger, and the SB2C Helldiver. After World War Two the US Navy's rocket laboratory at Inyokern, California developed an even larger version of the Tiny Tim, called "Richard", which was 14 inches in diameter and most likely the largest air to surface unguided rocket ever developed for the US military. While tested, it was never placed in production. The US Navy also experimented with a version of the Tiny Tim which was a two-stage rocket, with another Tiny Tim rocket motor mounted behind a complete Tiny Tim. Like the Richard it never moved beyond the R&D stage

U_S_Navy_Yard_Washington

johnbr — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 16:23:49 -0400

by: johnbr

Description: U.S. Navy Yard, Washington 1917. "U.S. Navy Yard, Washington. Sight shop, big gun section." Harris & Ewing Collection glass negative, Library of Congress.

Me410bk

johnbr — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 23:53:00 -0400

by: johnbr

XP-54_37mm_Gun

johnbr — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 07:19:00 -0400

by: johnbr

Description: Description - A specially designed Colt 37mm magazine for use in the prototype Vultee XP-54 aircraft. It has a capacity of 59 rounds and is designed to pass through the bulkhead of the plane for assembly within the aircraft. Magazine equipped with a Colt designed booster mechanism. Notes - Inscription on back: "Special 37 m/m magazine designed & built by Colt's/capacity 59 rounds/This magazine designed especially to pass through bulkheads of plane XP-54. Therefore, magazine made up in sections to facilitate assembly in plane. Plane mounted two 37 m/m guns firing through nose. Magazine equipped w/Colt designed booster mechanism."

Disney_Bomb_Diagram

johnbr — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 03:11:44 -0400

by: johnbr

Description: he first Disney attack was against the port of IJmuiden in the Netherlands. This was the site of two separate fortified pens used by the German navy to house their Schnellboote (fast torpedo boats, known to the Allies as "E-boats") and Biber midget submarines. The older structure, codename Schnellbootbunker AY (SBB1), was protected by a 10-foot (3.0 m) thick concrete roof. The newer one, codename Schnellbootbunker BY (SBB2), had 10�12 feet (3.0�3.7 m) of concrete, with a further 2�4-foot (0.61�1.2 m) layer separated by an air�gap. The E-boats laid up in the shelters during the day, safe from air�attack, and put to sea under cover of night to attack Allied shipping. The pens were priority targets as the torpedo boats they protected were a considerable threat to the supply lines serving Allied forces in western Europe. Since August 1944, the two bunkers had been attacked four times by No. 9 Squadron and No. 617 Squadron of the RAF, with a total of 53 of the five�ton, Tallboy earthquake bombs. There had been numerous other attacks from bombers carrying smaller, conventional bombs. Nine aircraft of the 92nd Bomb Group, carrying 18 Disneys, attacked Schnellbootbunker BY (SBB2) on 10 February 1945. Royal Navy intelligence learned the concrete had been penetrated, but the pens had been empty at the time of the attack. The 92nd therefore carried out an attack on the SBB1 pen, again with nine aircraft, on 14 March US Army newsreel, reporting on the first Disney attack on IJmuiden On 30 March, 36 aircraft from the US Eighth Air Force, including 12 from the 92nd Bomb Group, attacked with Disney bombs the Valentin submarine pens, a massive, bomb�hardened concrete shelter under construction at the small port of Farge, near Bremen in Germany (location: 53�13′00″N 8�30′15″E). The shelter was nearing completion and was to be a factory for the assembly of Type XXI U-boats.[38] Construction had been underway since 1943, using the forced labour of 10,000 concentration�camp prisoners, prisoners�of�war and foreign civilians (Fremdarbeiter) who suffered a high death�rate because of the horrific conditions they worked under. Valentin's 4.5-metre (15 ft)-thick roof had already been penetrated by two, 10-ton Grand Slam bombs dropped by the RAF three days earlier, on 27 March.] During the Eighth Air Force attack, more than sixty Disneys were launched but only one hit the target with little effect, although installations around the bunker received considerable damage. After the bombing, the Germans made limited attempts to carry out repairs before abandoning the complex; the area was captured by the British Army four weeks later. On 4 April 1945, 24 B-17s attacked fortified targets in Hamburg. The target was obscured by cloud so radar guidance was used to launch the bombs. A further mission in May 1945 was cancelled. A total of 158 bombs were dropped before the end of the war. No aircraft or aircrew were lost during the four Disney combat missions

Disney_bomb

johnbr — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 03:08:54 -0400

by: johnbr

Description: Development and testing A rocket�bomb destroys a U-boat pen in the Disney animated film Victory Through Air Power (1943) According to an anecdote, the idea arose after a group of Royal Navy officers saw a similar, but fictional, bomb depicted in the 1943 Walt Disney animated propaganda film Victory Through Air Power,[Note 10] and the name Disney was consequently given to the weapon.[16] The Royal Navy developed the bomb[17] even though the Fleet Air Arm operated no aircraft capable of carrying it.[Note 11] The navy's interest in a concrete penetrating weapon can be explained by the German navy's extensive use of fortified submarine pens to protect their U-boats and E-boats from air attack while docked. The Disney bomb was devised by a British naval officer, Captain Edward Terrell[18] of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, who served in the Directorate of Miscellaneous Weapons Development.[19] Before the war, he had been a lawyer and the Recorder of Newbury.[20] However, he was also an enthusiastic inventor and had filed several patents pre-war, including ones for a vegetable peeling knife[21] and a bottle for fountain pen ink.[22] The Disney bomb on the cover of Terrell's book Admiralty Brief: The Story of Inventions that Contributed to Victory in The Battle of the Atlantic (1958) The bomb's development began in September 1943. Although there was support for the idea at the highest levels within the Admiralty, production of the weapon would have to come under the Ministry of Aircraft Production (MAP). The Road Research Laboratory[Note 12] provided theoretical formula for penetration from US data on the performance of 15-inch (381 mm) shells against reinforced concrete and the Chief Engineer of Armament Development at Fort Halstead prepared a preliminary design to present to the MAP. In the face of opposition, the First Sea Lord prepared a memorandum for the Anti-U-Boat Committee of which Churchill was the Chairman. Terrell visited Churchill's scientific adviser Lord Cherwell to convince him that it was feasible technically. Due to the Prime Minister's absence through illness, it was not until January 1944 that Churchill expressed a desire that the bomb should be considered by the committee. Due to the number of departments involved there were meetings involving large numbers of technicians and scientists to confirm the technical feasibility.[23] Through the Air Technical Section of the USAAC, Terrell received support and was able to show the Admiralty a mockup under the wing of a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress. The Air Ministry was still opposed to its development on several technical grounds and it took a meeting of the War Cabinet in May (which Terrell attended) to decide in its favour giving it "P plus" priority. A side effect of the meeting was it focused attention on the issue of the U-boat shelters and the RAF were directed to make attacks on them � dropping 26 Tallboys in August that year.[24] American ground crew loading a Disney bomb onto a B-17 bomber[1] Despite being a British weapon, Disneys were only used by the United States Army Air Force, with the bombs becoming a joint project between the American Eighth Air Force and the British Royal Navy; they were never used by RAF Bomber Command.[Note 13][Note 14] The 92nd Bombardment Group was initially tasked with their use. The bombs would also be dropped by the 305th Bombardment Group and 306th Bombardment Group. The 94th Bombardment Group prepared to use the bombs, but flew no operations with them before the war in Europe ended.[25] The B-17 Flying Fortresses operated by these units carried the bombs in pairs; one was slung under each wing as they were too long to be carried in the B-17's bomb bay. The Disneys were carried from the same external mounting that was used for the Aeronca GB-1 glide bomb.[26] Cameras were also fitted to the aircraft so the bombs' trajectory and effect could be recorded.[27] Testing of the Disney bombs began in early 1945. Bombs were initially dropped on a bombing range near Southampton[clarification needed] to photographically record their trajectory and calibrate bombsights. This was necessary as the flight-path of a rocket-accelerated bomb differed considerably from that of a free�falling bomb.[11] Test drops were then conducted on the Watten bunker, German codename Kraftwerk Nord West (now known as the Blockhaus d'�perlecques), a large German concrete bunker near Watten in northern France. This was ideal for the purpose as the area had been captured by Allied forces in September 1944, so damage to the structure could be inspected after bomb tests.[11] Four bombs, carried by two B-17s, were used and two hits scored on the target. The resultant damage was considered satisfactory by Royal Navy observers on the ground

B-29_with_Grand_Slam_Internal_Closeup

johnbr — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 02:40:12 -0400

by: johnbr

Description: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-Mm-zFW_nA

B-29_with_Grand_Slam_Exterior_Closeup

johnbr — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 02:40:08 -0400

by: johnbr

Description: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-Mm-zFW_nA

Periscope_Sight_PV_8

johnbr — Sat, 30 Mar 2013 21:44:23 -0400

by: johnbr

yb-40_Guns

johnbr — Sun, 24 Mar 2013 21:09:41 -0400

by: johnbr

BT_006

johnbr — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 05:40:16 -0500

by: johnbr

BT_002

johnbr — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 05:40:15 -0500

by: johnbr

BT_003

johnbr — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 05:40:15 -0500

by: johnbr

BT_005

johnbr — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 05:40:15 -0500

by: johnbr

type5-30mm-machinegun

johnbr — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 11:09:27 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: Japanese aircraft guns: top - 37nun Ho-203, middle (front) - 20mm Type 99-1 flexible (note perforated barrel casing and forward-sloping grip), middle (rear ) = 20mm Type 99-2, bottom - 30mm Ho-155 II http://www.bevfitchett.com/heavy-machine-guns/the-japanese-miscellany.html

-75mm-type88-gun

johnbr — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 11:01:52 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: Japanese 40mm Ho-301 ease/ess. Note projectile standing on magazine (Courtesy: MoD Pattern Room) (Myrt) - two Type 99-2; or one 30mm Type 5, D4Y (Judy) - one Type 99-2; and J2M (Jack) - two Type 99-1, as well as the IJAs Ki-84 (Frank) - three 20mm Ho-5. Twin-engined naval aircraft with upward-firing guns included the J1N1 (Irving) -two Type 99, and P1Y1 (Frances) - four Type 99. The 1JA aircraft were the Ki-45 (Nick) - two 20mm Ho-5; Ki-46 (Dinah) - one 37mm Ho-204; and Ki-102 (Randy) - two Ho-5. The J1N1 -S (Irving) actually had four obliquely mounted 20mm cannon in the fuselage - two firing upwards, two downwards. Complete information about which models of Type 99 were used in upward-firing installations is not available. The most common weapon was probably the Type 99-1 Model 3, which was fitted with a 100-round drum, but the belt-fed Model 4 and the Type 99-2 were used where there was space for them. Perhaps the most remarkable armament fit belonged to the twin-engined Kawasaki Ki-45-Kai-C (Nick), which reportedly mounted one forward- firing 37mm Ho-203 (with a fifteen-round belt feed) in the nose, a forward-firing Ho-3 in a ventral tunnel, two upward-firing Ho-5 inside the cockpit, and an RCMG for the observer! Other reports state that the Ho-3 was in practice removed when the Ho-5s were fitted. The UN also experimented with obliquely mounted guns for ground attack. The P1Y (Frances) was fitted with up to seventeen downward-firing Type 99 guns in the bomb bay, twelve angled forwards, five rearwards. Thirty of these aircraft were being prepared for attacking B-29 bases and for sweeping landing craft during amphibious assaults, but the war ended before they could see service.

800mm_Railroad_Gun_Gustav

johnbr — Tue, 01 Jan 2013 15:47:11 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: Development In 1934 the German Army High Command (OKH) commissioned Krupp of Essen, Germany to design a gun to destroy the forts of the French Maginot Line which were then nearing completion. The gun's shells had to punch through seven meters of reinforced concrete or one full meter of steel armour plate, from beyond the range of French artillery. Krupp engineer Erich M�ller calculated that the task would require a weapon with a calibre of around 80 cm, firing a projectile weighing 7 tonnes from a barrel 30 meters long. The weapon would have a weight of over 1000 tonnes. The size and weight meant that to be at all movable it would need to be supported on twin sets of railway tracks. In common with smaller railway guns, the only barrel movement on the mount itself would be elevation, traverse being managed by moving the weapon along a curved section of railway line. Krupp prepared plans for calibres of 70 cm, 80 cm, 85 cm, and 1 m. Nothing further happened until March 1936 when, during a visit to Essen, Adolf Hitler enquired as to the giant guns' feasibility. No definite commitment was given by Hitler, but design work began on an 80 cm model. The resulting plans were completed in early 1937 and approved. Fabrication of the first gun started in the summer of 1937. However, technical complications in the forging of such massive pieces of steel made it apparent that the original completion date of spring 1940 could not be met. Krupp built a test model in late 1939 and sent it to the Hillersleben firing range for testing. Penetration was tested on this occasion. Firing at high elevation, the 7.1 tonne shell was able to penetrate the specified seven meters of concrete and the one meter armour plate.[3] When the tests were completed in mid-1940 the complex carriage was further developed. Alfried Krupp, after whose father the gun was named, personally hosted Hitler at the R�genwald Proving Ground during the formal acceptance trials of the Gustav Gun in the spring of 1941. Hitler was so awestruck that he commanded that the 11-tonne[citation needed] shell could only be used at his discretion. As he never gave permission, it was never deployed. An 800 mm shell next to a Soviet T-34-85 tank at the Imperial War Museum, London Two guns were ordered. The first round was test-fired from the commissioned gun barrel on 10 September 1941 from a makeshift gun carriage on the Hillersleben firing range. In November 1941 the barrel was taken to R�genwald, where 8 further firing tests were carried out using the 7,100 kilogram armor-piercing (AP) shell out to a range of 37,210 meters. In combat, the gun was mounted on a specially designed chassis, supported by eight bogies on two parallel sets of railway tracks. Each of the bogies had 5 axles, giving a total of 40 axles (80 wheels). Krupp christened the gun Schwerer Gustav (Heavy Gustav) after the senior director of the firm, Gustav Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach. The gun could fire a heavy concrete-piercing shell and a less heavy high-explosive shell. A super-long-range rocket projectile was also planned with a range of 150 km, that would require the barrel being extended to 84 meters. In keeping with the tradition of the Krupp company, no payment was asked for the first gun. However, they did charge seven million Reichsmark for the second gun Dora, named after the senior engineer's wife. Schwerer Gustav Schwerer Gustav (black) compared to an SS-21 SRBM launcher (red) with human figures for scale. Type Super-Heavy Railway Gun Place of origin Nazi Germany Service history In service 1941�1945 Used by Wehrmacht Wars World War II Production history Designer Krupp Designed 1934 Manufacturer Krupp Unit cost 7 million Reichsmark Produced 1941 Number built 2 Specifications Weight 1,350 tonnes (1,490 short tons; 1,330 long tons) Length 47.3 metres (155 ft 2 in) Barrel length 32.5 metres (106 ft 8 in) L/40.6 Width 7.1 metres (23 ft 4 in) Height 11.6 metres (38 ft 1 in) Crew 250 to assemble the gun in 3 days (54 hours), 2,500 to lay track and dig embankments. 2 Flak battalions to protect the gun from air attack. Caliber 80 centimetres (31 in) Elevation Max of 48� Rate of fire 1 round every 30 to 45 minutes or typically 14 rounds a day Muzzle velocity 820 m/s (2,700 ft/s) (HE) 720 m/s (2,400 ft/s) (AP) Effective range about 39,000 metres (43,000 yd) Maximum range 47,000 metres (51,000 yd) (HE) 38,000 metres (42,000 yd)

Finnish-305mm-coastal-gun

johnbr — Fri, 14 Dec 2012 02:45:44 -0500

by: johnbr

Mk-1081

johnbr — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 00:17:26 -0500

by: johnbr

Ohka_-_Model_11

johnbr — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 02:18:27 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: Design and development The MXY-7 Navy Suicide Attacker Ohka was a manned flying bomb that was usually carried underneath a Mitsubishi G4M2e "Betty" Model 24J bomber to within range of its target; on release, the pilot would first glide towards the target and when close enough he would fire the Ohka's three solid-fuel rockets, one at a time or in unison,[4] and fly the missile towards the ship that he intended to destroy. The design was conceived by Ensign Mitsuo Ohta of the 405th Kokutai,[5] aided by students of the Aeronautical Research Institute at the University of Tokyo. Ohta submitted his plans to the Yokosuka research facility. The Imperial Japanese Navy decided the idea had merit and Yokosuka engineers of the Yokosuka Naval Air Technical Arsenal (Dai-Ichi Kaigun Koku Gijitsusho, or in short Kugisho[6]) created formal blueprints for what was to be the MXY7. The only variant which saw service was the Model 11, and it was powered by three Type 4 Mark 1 Model 20 rockets. 155 Ohka Model 11s were built at Yokosuka, and another 600 were built at the Kasumigaura Naval Air Arsenal.[4] The final approach was almost unstoppable because the aircraft gained high speed (403 miles per hour (649 km/h) in level flight and 576 miles per hour (927 km/h) or even 650 miles per hour (1,050 km/h) in a dive). Later versions were designed to be launched from coastal air bases and caves, and even from submarines equipped with aircraft catapults, although none were actually used in this way. It appears that the operational record of Ohkas includes three ships sunk or damaged beyond repair and three other ships with significant damage. Seven US ships were damaged or sunk by Ohkas throughout the war. The USS Mannert L. Abele was the first Allied ship to be sunk by Ohka aircraft, near Okinawa on 12 April 1945.[7][8] The Ohka pilots, members of the Jinrai Butai (Thunder Gods Corps), are honored in Japan at Ohka Park in Kashima City, the Ohka Monument in Kanoya City, the Kamakura Ohka Monument at Kenchō-ji Kamakura, and the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo. Disarming the bomb Thermojet powered Model 22, note the jet intake The only operational Ohka was the Model 11. Essentially a 1,200 kg (2,646 lb) bomb with wooden wings, powered by three Type 4 Model 1 Mark 20 solid-fuel rocket motors, the Model 11 achieved great speed, but with limited range. This was problematic, as it required the slow, heavily-laden mother aircraft to approach within 37 km (20 nmi; 23 mi) of the target, making them very vulnerable to defending fighters. There was one experimental variant of the Model 11, the Model 21, which had thin steel wings manufactured by Nakajima. It had the engine of the Model 11 and the airframe of the Model 22.[9] The Ohka K-1 was an unpowered trainer version with water ballast instead of warhead and engines, to provide pilots with handling experience. 45 were built by Dai-Ichi Kaigun Koku Gijitsusho.[10] The Model 22 was designed to overcome the short standoff distance problem by using a Campini-type thermojet engine, the Tsu-11. This engine was successfully tested, and 50 Model 22 Ohkas were built at Yokosuka to accept this engine. The Model 22 was to be launched by the more agile Yokosuka P1Y3 Ginga "Frances" bomber, necessitating a shorter wing span and much smaller 600 kg (1,320 lb) warhead. None appear to have been used operationally, and only three of the experimental Tsu-11s engines are known to have been produced. The Model 33 was a larger version of the Model 22 powered by an Ishikawajima Ne-20 turbojet with a 800 kg (1,760 lb) warhead. The mothership was to be the Nakajima G8N Renzan. Model 33 was cancelled due to the likelihood that the Renzan would not be available.[11] Other unbuilt planned variants were the Model 43A with folding wings, to be launched from submarines, and the Model 43B, a catapult/rocket assisted version, also with folding wings so that it could be hidden in caves.[9] A trainer version was also under development for this version, the two-seat Model 43 K-1 Kai Wakazakura (Young Cherry), fitted with a single rocket motor. In place of the warhead, a second seat was installed for the student pilot. Two of this version were built.] Finally, the Model 53 would also use the Ne-20 turbojet, but was to be towed like a glider and released near its target

Ohka_Baka

johnbr — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 02:14:34 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: The Yokosuka MXY7 Ohka was used mostly against American ships invading Okinawa, and if launched from its mothership, could be extremely effective due to its high speed in the dive.[13] In the first two attempts to ship the Ohkas to Leyte Gulf through aircraft carriers, the carriers Shinano and Unryu were sunk by the US submarines USS Archer-Fish and USS Redfish, preventing their presence at the Battle of Leyte Gulf. On 21 March 1945, 16 Ohka-carrying "Betty" bombers were to be escorted by 55 Zeros to attack Task Group 58.1 (Hornet, Bennington, Wasp, and Belleau Wood). Another two "Bettys" were to escort and provide navigation and observation. Due to technical problems, 25 Zeros had to turn back or could not take off. The Ohka attack force was intercepted by 16 US Navy Grumman F6F Hellcat fighters and the Ohkas were immediately jettisoned by the "Bettys," some 113 km (70 mi) from the target. None of the "Bettys" returned, no ships were attacked and 16 of the Jinrai Butai were killed, with only 15 damaged Zeros making it back to their base. Attacks intensified in April 1945. On 1 April 1945, six "Bettys" attacked the U.S. Fleet off Okinawa. At least one made a successful attack, with its Ohka thought to hit one of the 406 mm (16 in) turrets on the battleship West Virginia, causing moderate damage. Postwar analysis indicated that no hits were recorded and that a near-miss took place.[14] The transports Alpine, Achernar, and Tyrrell were also hit by kamikaze aircraft, but it is unclear whether any of these were Ohkas from the other "Bettys". None of the "Bettys" returned. The American military quickly realized the danger and concentrated on extending their "defensive rings" outward to intercept the "Betty"/Ohka combination aircraft before the suicide mission could be launched.[14] On 12 April 1945, nine "Bettys" attacked the U.S. Fleet off Okinawa. The destroyer Mannert L. Abele was hit, broke in two, and sank, witnessed by LSMR-189 CO James M. Stewart. Jeffers destroyed an Ohka with AA fire 45 m (50 yd) from the ship, but the resulting explosion was still powerful enough to cause extensive damage, forcing Jeffers to withdraw. The destroyer Stanly was attacked by two Ohkas. One struck just above the waterline just behind the ship's bow, with the charge punching completely through the other side of the hull before splashing into the sea and detonating like a depth charge, causing little damage to the ship, and the other Ohka narrowly missed (likely due to the pilot being killed by anti-aircraft fire) and crashed into the sea, knocking off the Stanly's ensign in the process. One Betty returned. On 14 April 1945, seven "Bettys" attacked the U.S. Fleet off Okinawa. None returned. None of the Ohkas appeared to have been launched. Two days later, six "Bettys" attacked the U.S. Fleet off Okinawa. Two returned, but no Ohkas hit their targets. Later, on 28 April 1945, four "Bettys" attacked the U.S. Fleet off Okinawa at night. One returned. No hits were recorded.[14] May 1945 saw another series of attacks. On 4 May 1945, seven "Bettys" attacked the U.S. Fleet off Okinawa. One Ohka hit the bridge of a minesweeper, Shea, causing extensive damage and casualties. Gayety was also damaged by a near-miss by an Ohka. One "Betty" returned. On 11 May 1945, four "Bettys" attacked the U.S. Fleet off Okinawa. The destroyer Hugh W. Hadley was hit and suffered extensive damage and flooding. The vessel was judged beyond repair. On 25 May 1945, 11 "Bettys" attacked the US Fleet off Okinawa. Bad weather forced most of the aircraft to turn back, and none of the others scored hits. On 22 June 1945, six "Bettys" attacked the U.S. Fleet off Okinawa. Two returned, but no hits were scored. Postwar analysis concluded that the Ohka's impact was negligible with no US Navy capital ships actually hit during their attacks due to an extremely effective set of defensive tactics that were employed. Variants Model 43 K-1 Kai rocket assist trainers, note the landing skid [edit] Operational variants Kugisho/Yokosuka MXY-7 "Ohka" Model 11 Rocket Suicide Attacker. 755 built. [edit] Non-operational variants Kugisho/Yokosuka "Ohka" Model 21 Rocket Suicide Attacker. Steel wings; one built. Kugisho/Yokosuka "Ohka" Model 22 Motorjet Suicide Attacker. 50 built. Kugisho/Yokosuka "Ohka" Model 33 Turbojet Suicide Attacker. Renzan drop launch. Kugisho/Yokosuka "Ohka" Model 43A Ko Turbojet Suicide Attacker. Submarine launched. Kugisho/Yokosuka "Ohka" Model 43B Otsu Turbojet Suicide Attacker. Cave launched. Kugisho/Yokosuka "Ohka" Model 53 Turbojet Suicide Attacker. Towed launch. [edit] Trainer variants Kugisho/Yokosuka "Ohka" K-1 Suicide Attack Trainer Kugisho/Yokosuka "Ohka" Model 43 K-1 Kai Suicide Attack Trainer General characteristics Crew: One Length: 6.06 m (19 ft 11 in) Wingspan: 5.12 m (16 ft 9� in) Height: 1.16 m (3 ft 9⅓ in) Wing area: 6 m� (64.583 ft�) Empty weight: 440 kg (970 lb) Loaded weight: 2,140 kg (4,718 lb) Powerplant: 3 � Type 4 Mark 1 Model 20 rocket motors Solid propellant, 2.60 kN (587 lbf) each Performance Maximum speed: 804 km/h in dive (576 mph in dive) Range: 36 km (23 mi) Wing loading: 356.7 kg/m� (73.1 lb/ft�) Thrust/weight: 0.38 Dive speed (3� Rocket motors Full-Boost): 1,040 km/h (650 mph) Armament 1,200 kg (2,646 lb) Ammonal warhead

German_Particle_accelerator_ww2

johnbr — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 01:51:31 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: The Nazi weapons appeared to utilise Uranium 233 harvested from particle accelerators as Protactinium 233. This device is often referred to as the Nazi Bell. It was a device developed under Dr Walter Dallenbach by the German Army Ordnance research team Forschungstelle D. Several such synchrotron type centrifuges were built by the Berlin firm BAMAG Meguin, under contract to C.H. Muller, at Dessau where Junkers also built aircraft engines. Special flights by Junkers Ju-290 aircraft carrying crates of aircraft engines are said to have occurred during 1944, flown by aircraft with civilian pilots and Deutsch Luft Hansa markings. Could these cargoes in fact have been carried duplicates of the Nazi particle accelerator, or plans for one�s construction? Albert Speer in his memoirs wrote of a Ju-390 flight from Bardufoss Norway to Tokyo via the �Polar Route� in 1945, flown by civilian test pilots. Two wartime test pilots who flew the giant Junkers Ju-390 also referred after the war to the Ju-390′s Polar flight to Japan.[18] Conventional cyclotrons are extremely heavy equipment and unsuited to long range flights because of the extreme weight of their magnets. The German particle accelerator device for production of Uranium 233 described by Dr Rolf Wideroe however appears from descriptions to have been lighter than a conventional Cyclotron and more like a centrifugal synchrotron. Successful testing of Japan�s A-bomb? An article appeared in World War II Magazine (July 1995) by Al Hemingway that indicates indeed, that Japan may have exploded an atomic bomb on a tiny islet in the Sea of Japan on August 12, 1945. Hemmingway refers to a test also involving a cave. David Snell reported that Kempetai Captain Tsetusuo Wakabayashi told him the test occured just after Hiroshima was bombed. Wilcox gives an account from Snell that on 10 August 1945 an Atomic bomb was removed from a cave above Konan, transported to a robot launch. It is reported that at dawn 12 August 1945 the launch carrying the A-bomb device called Genzai Bakudanbeached itself on a tiny island in the sea of Japan. The location of these islets is north of Wonsan in the Gulf of Yonghung-Man. Unfortunately the name of the individual island where the test occurred is not recorded. It is known that a Japanese plan for an Atomic Bomb was drawn up in July 1943 and came into possession of the OSS. These plans were rediscovered in 2002 and were returned to Japan where the Japanese government now controls them. [19] A US Army surgeon based in Japan in 1947 with the 237th Medical Disp. to examine after effects of Atomic Bombs on the victims, Leon Thompson wrote to the Millitary Magazine on 9 November 1996, claiming to have seen the Japanese bomb�s blueprint in the OSS offices at Tokyo. At this time OSS was known as the SSU and was about to become the CIA. Radio operator of U-234 Wolfgang Hirschfeld also wrote in an account for the website Sharkhunters, in which he caimed that Japan had alreadysuccessfully tested an atomic bomb in 1943. Conceivably Hirschfeld may be wrong that there was a test in 1943, but it is also interesting to note he was somehow informed about Japan�s nuclear project before leaving Germany implying some degree of co-operation between these countries during the War years. Capt. Wakabayashi asserted to Snell that bomb laboratories hidden in caves above Konan along with a number of completed Atomic weapons were demolished to prevent their capture. Soviet paratroops captured the city unexpectedly on 24 August 1945 whilst fighting was occurring much further north along Korea�s coast. This sudden attack led to the capture of six key scientists responsible for F-NZ. A chemical engineer in the F-NZ project Otogoro Natsume agreed to work for his Soviets captors and in October 1946 used the trust gained to steal a small fishing boat and escape to American forces further south. Natsume was interrogated through an interpreter by the Americans. He had also heard of the nuclear test whilst at Konan before the Soviets arrived. Natsume revealed that decomposition of Hydrogen Peroxide was part of the process involved in construction of the Atomic weapon implying that it had a thermonuclear aspect. He revealed that there were 700 university graduates working at two Factories for F-NZ. Three hundred of these graduates worked at Konan. One factory was at Konan, the other at Honbu. Natsume said Soviets arrived so quickly that they captured seven key scientists. Russians tortured the scientists by thrusting burning slivers under their fingertips and pouring water into their noses. One scientist managed to escape to the American zone but the others he learned were taken back to Moscow where they were tortured further for their secrets.[20] Japan�s intended use of the Atomic Bomb Japan�s biggest problem in 1945 was delivery systems. Twelve V-2 rockets had been imported by U-boat before the collapse of Nazi Germany.[21] The correct beach in Kyushu had been identified for the intended Allied invasion in 1946. It seems conceivable that underground lunch silos would have been prepared to fire these V-2 rockets at the Allied beach head and the fleet offshore. Had these been nuclear tipped an invasion of Japan could have been carnage. Bomber missions to mainland USA were a goal but as the war dragged into it�s closing sequences this became less important. Japan was slow to grasp strategic bombing. The distances involved were immense. Honshu Island to Los Angeles was 4,720 nautical miles one way. Seattle was approximately 4,100nm. On the outbound trip a heavily laden bomber would have to climb to 30,000 feet to hitch a ride on Jetstreams and take advantage of higher ground speeds at altitude. The return journey however was against prevailing winds. The shortest possible route was from Paramushiro in the northern Kuril Group. During WW2 the island had four air bases, most with 4,000 ft runways. Had these heavily laden aircraft been able to take off from such runways then the distance to attack Seattle was an acceptable 3,040nm. It is rumored amongst Nazi veterans that the third Ju-390 prototype was not destroyed but rather completed and flown to Japan. The claim is completely unverifiable, but possible and such an aircraft would have permitted raids on cities along the western USA seaboard. Such an aircraft would have looked something like this:

Mauser_MG-213c

johnbr — Sun, 09 Dec 2012 14:34:39 -0500

by: johnbr

hs2931

johnbr — Sat, 08 Dec 2012 22:32:53 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: History The Hs 293 project was started in 1940, based on the "Gustav Schwartz Propellerwerke" pure glide bomb that was designed in 1939. The Schwartz design did not have a terminal guidance system - it used an autopilot to maintain a straight course. The intention was that it could be launched from a bomber at sufficient distance to be out of range of anti-aircraft fire. Henschel developed it the following year by adding an HWK 109-507 rocket motor underneath it, possessing a 600 kg (1,320 lb.) thrust of ten second duration, to allow it to be used from lower altitude and to increase the range. The first flight attempts took place between May and September 1940, with unpowered drops from Heinkel He 111 medium bombers used as carrier aircraft, with the first Walter rocket motor-powered tests occurring by the end of 1940. The weapon consisted of a modified standard 500 kg bomb called SZ, with a thin metal shell and a high explosive charge inside, equipped with a rocket engine under the bomb, a pair of wings, and an 18-frequency-capability Strassburg radio receiver, named for the 1st century BCE-founded city on the French/German border, getting its signals from a Kehl transmitting set (named for a German suburb of the two-millennia-old city) in the carrier aircraft. Only the elevator, operated with an electrically powered jackscrew as the only proportional control, with the ailerons operated with solenoids provided flight control through the Kehl-Strassburg radio link, with the Hs 293's control setup having no movable rudder on the ventral tailfin. The rocket provided for only a short burst of speed making range dependent on the height of launch. From a height of 1400 meters the Hs 293 had a range of about 12 km. The Hs 293 was intended to destroy unarmoured ships, unlike the Fritz X that was intended for use against armoured ships. The operator controlled the radio-guided missile with the Kehl transmitter's joystick. Five colored flares were attached to the rear of the weapon to make it visible at a distance to the operator. During nighttime operations flashing lights instead of flares were used.[1] One drawback of the Hs 293 was that after the missile was launched the bomber had to fly in a straight and level path at a set altitude and speed parallel to the target so as to be able to maintain a slant line of sight and could thus not manoeuvre to evade attacking fighters without aborting the attack.[2] The Allies also went to considerable effort to develop devices which jammed the low-VHF band (48.2 MHz to 49.9 MHz) radio link between the Kehl transmitter aboard the launching aircraft and the Strassburg receiver embedded in the missile. Early jamming efforts by the United States Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) produced the XCJ jamming transmitter installed aboard the destroyer escorts USS Herbert C. Jones and Frederick C. Davis in late September 1943. The XCJ was ineffective because the frequencies selected for jamming were incorrect. This was updated in time for Operation Shingle at Anzio (Italy) with the XCJ-1 system, installed aboard the two destroyer escorts mentioned above as well as the destroyers USS Woolsey, Madison, Hilary P. Jones and Lansdale. These six ships rotated service at Anzio, with three deployed at any time. This system met with some success, though because of its manual interface, it was cumbersome to use and easily overwhelmed if large numbers of missiles were engaged. On balance, the probability that a Hs 293 launched (and seen as responding to operator guidance) would actually strike a target (or achieve a damage-inflicting near miss) was about the same at Anzio as it was during Operation Avalanche at Salerno, Italy. Meanwhile, as attacks were taking place at Anzio, the United Kingdom began to deploy its Type 650 transmitter which employed a different approach. This system jammed the Strassburg receiver's intermediate frequency of 3 MHz, and appears to have been quite successful, especially as the operator did not have to attempt to find which of the 18 Kehl/Strassburg command frequencies were in use and then manually tune the jamming transmitter to one of those frequences. This system automatically defeated the receiver regardless of which radio frequency had been selected for an individual Luftwaffe missile. Following several intelligence coups, including a capture of an intact Hs 293 at Anzio and recovery of important components of the Kehl transmitter from a crashed Heinkel He 177 on Corsica, the Allies were able to develop far more effective countermeasures, all in time for the Invasion of Normandy (starting with Operation Neptune, D-Day) and Operation Dragoon in Southern France. This included an updated XCJ-2 system from the Naval Research Laboratory (produced as the TX), the modified airborne AN/ARQ-8 Dinamate system from Harvard's Radio Research Laboratory, NRL's improved XCJ-3 model (produced as the CXGE), the British Type 651 and the Canadian Naval Jammer. Perhaps most impressive of all was AIL's Type MAS jammer which employed sophisticated signals to defeat the Kehl transmission and to take over command of the Hs 293, steering it into the sea via a sequence of right-turn commands. Even more sophisticated jammers from NRL, designated XCK (to be produced as TY and designated TEA when combined with the upgraded XCJ-4) and XCL, were under development but were never deployed as the threat had evaporated before they could be put into service. In contrast to the experience at Anzio, the jammers seemed to have had a major impact on operations after April 1944, with significant degradation observed in the probability that a Hs 293 launched at a target (and responding to operator guidance) would achieve a hit or damage-causing near miss.[3] To improve the control of the weapon and reduce vulnerability of the launching aircraft a television-guided variant (Hs 293D) was planned but was not made operational before the war ended. Over 1,000 were built, from 1942 onwards. Variants Hs 293A (later Hs 293A-1), the original version. Hs 293B was wire-guided to prevent jamming; it was never put into production, because jamming was never serious enough to prevent the radio-guided version from being effective. Hs 293C (production version designated Hs 293A-2) had a detachable warhead. Hs 293D was television-guided. Twenty were built and tested, but it was never used operationally as the television equipment was unreliable. Hs 293E, an experimental model to test spoiler controls as a replacement to ailerons; never put into series production. This modification was put into the final version of the Hs 293A-2 but by then the Luftwaffe had no aircraft available for anti-shipping operations and it was never deployed. Hs 293F, a tailless variant; never got further than the design phase. Hs 293H, an experimental variant designed to be launched from one aircraft and controlled from another. Abandoned because allied air superiority had reached the point where it was felt that the second aircraft would be unable to remain in the vicinity of the ship for long enough. Hs 293 V6, the sixth prototype airframe of the entire Hs 293 series, designed for launching from the Arado Ar 234 jet bomber at 720 km/h. The main change was reducing the wing span of the missile to allow it to be carried within the aircraft. The missile did not proceed past the design stage.

i1622_1_

johnbr — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 20:49:25 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: Type single stage ballistic missile Place of origin Germany Service history In service 1944�1952 Used by Germany United Kingdom (post-war) United States (post-war) Soviet Union (post-war) Production history Manufacturer Mittelwerk GmbH (development by Army Research Center Peenem�nde) Unit cost 100,000 RM January 1944, 50,000 RM March 1945[1] Produced 16 March 1942 Specifications Weight 12,500 kg (28,000 lb) Length 14 m (45 ft 11 in) Diameter 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Warhead 1,000 kg (2,200 lb) Amatol ------------------------------------------------------------- Wingspan 3.56 m (11 ft 8 in) Propellant 3,810 kg (8,400 lb) of 75% ethanol and 25% water + 4,910 kg (10,800 lb) of liquid oxygen Operational range 320 km (200 mi) Flight altitude 88 km (55 mi) maximum altitude on long range trajectory, 206 km (128 mi) maximum altitude if launched vertically. Speed maximum: 1,600 m/s (5,200 ft/s) 5,760 km/h (3,580 mph

light-tanks-07

johnbr — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 15:05:08 -0500

by: johnbr

A-4_or_V-2

johnbr — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 13:43:48 -0500

by: johnbr

topedo-E7-1

johnbr — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 13:14:16 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: The various types of the German torpedoes T1 - (G7a) Diameter : 53.34 cm Length : 7.163m Weight : 1538 kg Propulsion : Thermic energy Power : 350 hp Range & Speed : 44 knots to 5,000m / 40 knots to 7,500m / 30 knots to 12,500m Warhead : 280 kg Guidance system : Direct firing Fat or LUT Description : The prewar issue torpedo T I was propelled by a steam engine (Compressed air). It was quite reliable and could make up to 12.5 kilometers. Anyway this torpedo type left a stream of bubbles after it, because of its propulsion, giving the targeted ship a chance of seeing it coming. Therefore the T I was to be used at night. T1 - (G7ut K. But Type) Diameter : 53.34 cm Length : 7.163m Weight : 1309 kg Propulsion : Walteer Turbine Power : 425 hp Range & Speed : 45 knots to 2,800m Warhead : 280 kg Guidance system : Direct firing Description : T1 - (G7a Type) Diameter : 53.34 cm Length : 7.163m Weight : 1352 kg Propulsion : Thermic energy Power : 280 hp Range & Speed : 34 knots to 2,500m Warhead : 280 kg Guidance system : Direct firing Description : T2 - (G7e) Diameter : 53.34 cm Length: 7.163 m Weight: 1608 kg Propulsion: Electric motor Power : 100 hp Range & Speed: 30 knots at 5,000m Warhead : 280 kg Guidance system : Direct firing Description : The standard issue German torpedo of W.W.II. This all battery powered torpedo type left no trails on the surface and was suitable for attacks in daylight. A great improvement! However the electric torpedo could not make as good range as the steam powered ones and it had to be looked after, getting serviced, every three or four days. Before the Norwegian campaign the T II had problems with its depth keeping equipment as well as with its firing pistol. T3 - (G7e) Diameter : 53.34 cm Length : 7.163 m Weight : 1608 kg Propulsion : All electric propulsion system Power : 100 hp Range & Speed : 30 knots at 5,000m Warhead : 280 kg (TNT - Trinitrotoluene) (HND - hexanitrophenylamine) Guidance system : Direct firing or Fat Description : T III was "the same" as the T II though it was fitted with an influence fuse! T3a - FAT (G7e) Length: Weight: Propulsion: Range & Speed: Warhead: 7.163 m ? Electric motor 7.5 km at 30 kts 274 kg (280 kg ?) The FAT (Flachenabsuchender torped = area searching torpedo) was a pattern running torpedo made especially for convoy attacks. The torpedo was pre set to run in a zig zag pattern! First it went straight, turned over to left or right and proceeded for 800 or 1600 meters making the next turn opposite. A lethal weapon getting inside a convoy. T3b - (G7a) Length: Weight: Propulsion: Range & Speed: Warhead: 7.163 m 1352 kg Electric motor ? km at 18.5 kts 280 kg Made for the midget sub "Marder". T3c - (G7a) Length: Weight: Propulsion: Range & Speed: Warhead: 7.163 m 1352 kg Electric motor ? km at 18.5 kts 280 kg Made for the midget sub "Seehund". T3d - (G7e) Length: Weight: Propulsion: Range & Speed: Warhead: 11.0 m 2200 kg Electric motor ? km at 9 kts 280 kg This torpedo was also named "Dackel". Made for special operations. T4 - (G7es) Falke Diameter : 53.34 cm Length: 7.163 m Weight: 1400 kg (approx.) Propulsion: Electric motor Power : 32 hp Range & Speed: 7.5 km at 20 kts Warhead: 274 kg (280 kg ?) Guidance system : Acoustical self-guidance Description : Also known as the "Falke" this type was the first homing torpedo as It was fitted with a passive acoustic homing device and made to be launched against escort vessels. Its slow speed and the fact that it had no magnetic detonator made it to be a small help in the warfare.A very small number of the T IV were used, when the next generation of this type was at hand. T5 - (G7es) Zaunk�nig type Diameter : 53.34 cm Length: 7.163 m Weight: 1495 kg (approx.) Propulsion: Electric motor Power : 55 hp Range & Speed: 5.7 km at 24 kts Warhead: 274 kg Guidance system : Acoustical self-guidance Description : Also known as "Zaunk�nig 1" This torpedo type was (as the "Falke") an acoustic homing torpedo to be searching for the propeller noise of the target (actually searching for the largest noise in the area). The development for creating accurate homing torpedoes had started as early as in the mid 30s but made slow progress. The T V was an improved version of the acoustic torpedo. It was faster and had both a magnetic and a contact detonator. The Zaunkonig had even better detection equipment with better sensitivity locating the propeller sounds. But this torpedo also had its weak points. In hard weather conditions it was detonating to early as well as it could detonate far behind or beyond a ship. The allied forces soon found out that the active range of its detection gear was only sensitive to ships sailing at about 15 knots! Skippers got to know that if they either lowered the speed or went faster than 14-16 knots the torpedo would get serious problems spotting them. They also developed anti "GNAT" (as the allies called the torpedo) devices dragged after an escort vessel making a loud noise to attract possible homing torpedoes in the area. T8 - G7ut Steinbutt Type Diameter : 53.34 cm Length: 7.163 m Weight: 1730 kg Propulsion: Walteer turbine Power : 430 hp Range & Speed: 8 km at 45 kts Warhead: 280 kg

topedo0203

johnbr — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 13:11:30 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: Type V Acoustic Torpedo

ExplodingRat

johnbr — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 12:08:31 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: Exploding Rats By 1941, Germany had already subjugated half of Europe, the Luftwaffe was raining bombs down on the cities of Britain, and U-boats were inflicting terrible losses all along the Allied shipping routes. Britain needed a new weapon, a way to hinder the increasingly threatening Germans in any way possible. The cat bomb had failed. The bat bomb had not yet been dreamt up. What other wonder-weapon might slow the German onslaught? Under the leadership of Charles Fraser Smith � a man often cited as the inspiration for Ian Fleming�s James Bond creation, Q � SOE had a section known as Section XV whose job it was to create special tools for very secret work. In a moment of startling originality, the team proposed a new chaos-inducing gadget: the rat bomb. The mechanics were as simple as the concept was bizarre, and are nicely summed up in this extract from a diagram: A rat is skinned, the skin being sewn up and filled with PE to assume the shape of a dead rat. A Standard No.6 Primer is set in the PE. Initiation is by means of a short length of safety fuse with a No.27 detonator crimped on one end and a copper tube igniter on the other end. The rat is then left amongst the coal beside a boiler and the flames initiate the safety fuse when the rat is thrown on to the fire, or, as in the case of the Pencil Time Fuse, a time delay is used. So a rat�s carcass is stuffed with plastic explosives and deposited within the German coal supply in the hope that the rats would be shovelled into boilers along with the coal, where the intense heat would light the fuse and detonate the explosives. German infrastructure would be totally dismantled, military bases would be crippled, and steam engines destroyed. Supplies would run short, panic would spread, and Britain would win the war. Or at least, that is how the pitch must have sounded. The Time-pencil was a delay fuse used to ignite explosives like the limpet mine, the clam mine, and the exploding rat. It worked via use of a corrosive acid which would burn through the wire holding the striking cap in place. The device was a clever if unpredictable one, as the acid would act differently depending on the temperatures it was exposed to. Time-pencils were colour coded and had varying fuses. In reality, things did not go too well for the rat bomb�s maiden mission. The first batch of primed vermin bodies was seized by the Germans in what must have been one of oddest discoveries their army ever made. The secret was blown and the mission had failed � though this did not stop the Germans from organising mass searches among the coal piles for any stiff, strangely-shaped rat bodies. The Germans became fascinated by the idea of these devices, and the deactivated rats were exhibited at military schools around the country. Who knows the devastating effects these explosive rodents would have had on the German war-machine had they slipped unchecked into the scuttles of Germany. Instead, like cats and bats, weaponised rats were never given the chance to realise their full potential, and were to be confined to history lessons and books about unusual SOE weapons.

Sea_Mine

johnbr — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 22:56:50 -0400

by: johnbr

Kettering Aerial Torpedo "Bug"

johnbr — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 19:29:32 -0400

by: johnbr

12_Gun

johnbr — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 20:21:30 -0400

by: johnbr

Description: Installing a 12"/45 gun in a battleship gun turret. This is probably Turret # 3 of either Delaware (BB-28) or North Dakota (BB-29). The view may have been taken while the ship was under construction, circa 1909-1910. The original image is printed on post card ("AZO") stock. A handwritten inscription penciled on its reverse ("Franklin") has no obvious bearing on the subject of the photo.

0e

johnbr — Sun, 10 Jun 2012 19:21:39 -0400

by: johnbr

cutawaynew

johnbr — Sun, 10 Jun 2012 18:40:25 -0400

by: johnbr

depth_chg_dia

johnbr — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 00:29:00 -0400

by: johnbr

Description: The Allies' answer: the depth charge. These weapons were developed under the orders of Adm. Jellicoe at the demand of his captains in the North Atlantic for a sort of portable mine. Metal oil drums filled with 300 lbs of TNT (136 kg) detonated by a hydrostatic pistol, depth charges were developed as a desperation measure and first deployed widely at the end of 1916 -- a crude, inaccurate, but terrifying weapon. The hydrostatic pistol (2) is in the charge's axis to the left. Water entering a bellows chamber (1) forced the plunger down until it met the primer (3) at a preset depth. Kaboom! The weapon's effectiveness was enhanced by the deployment of a thrower or "Y" gun in 1918. In WWII a pattern of smaller charges could be thrown automatically from a device known as a Hedgehog. Rendering by John Batchelor; copyright � 1979 by Time-Life Books - The Seafarers.

PL41036

johnbr — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 18:56:33 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: Rockets on a Canadian Bristol Beaufighter

PL41048

johnbr — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 18:48:50 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: Rockets on a Canadian Bristol Beaufighter

PL41006

johnbr — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 18:45:41 -0500

by: johnbr

PL41004

johnbr — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 18:43:31 -0500

by: johnbr

aircraft_ohka17

johnbr — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 18:37:43 -0500

by: johnbr

Ho_301_Canon_shell

johnbr — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 22:44:10 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: Type Aircraft Autocannon Place of origin Japan Service history Used by Japan Wars Second World War Specifications Weight 49 kg (108 lb) Length 148 cm Barrel length 78 cm -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cartridge 40 mm caseless Caliber 40 mm (1.57 in) Action API blowback Rate of fire 475 rounds/min Muzzle velocity 245 m/s (805 ft/s) Effective range 150 meters (490 ft) Feed system 10 round box

122-V2_grouping

johnbr — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 01:08:40 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: Technical details The A-4 used a 75% ethanol/water mixture for fuel and liquid oxygen (LOX) for oxidizer.[22] At launch the A-4 propelled itself for up to 65 seconds on its own power, and a program motor controlled the pitch to the specified angle at engine shutdown, from which the rocket continued on a ballistic free-fall trajectory. The rocket reached a height of 80 km (50 mi) after shutting off the engine.[23] The fuel and oxidizer pumps were steam turbines, and the steam was produced by concentrated hydrogen peroxide with sodium permanganate catalyst. Both the alcohol and oxygen tanks were an aluminium-magnesium alloy.[1] The combustion burner reached a temperature of 2500�2700 �C (4500 � 4900 �F). The alcohol-water fuel was pumped along the double wall of the main combustion burner. This regenerative cooling heated the fuel and cooled the chamber. The fuel was then pumped into the main burner chamber through 1,224 nozzles, which assured the correct mixture of alcohol and oxygen at all times. Small holes also permitted some alcohol to escape directly into the combustion chamber, forming a cooled boundary layer that further protected the wall of the chamber, especially at the throat where the chamber was narrowest. The boundary layer alcohol ignited in contact with the atmosphere, accounting for the long, diffuse exhaust plume. By contrast, later, post-V2 engine designs not employing this alcohol boundary layer cooling show a translucent plume with shock diamonds. Vanes at exit of exhaust The V-2 was guided by four external rudders on the tail fins, and four internal graphite vanes at the exit of the motor. The LEV-3 guidance system consisted of two free gyroscopes (a horizon and a vertical) for lateral stabilization, and a PIGA accelerometer to control engine cutoff at a specified velocity. The V-2 was launched from a pre-surveyed location, so the distance and azimuth to the target were known. Fin 1 of the missile was aligned to the target azimuth.[24] Some later V-2s used "guide beams", radio signals transmitted from the ground, to keep the missile on course, but the first models used a simple analog computer that adjusted the azimuth for the rocket, and the flying distance was controlled by the timing of the engine cut-off, "Brennschluss", ground controlled by a Doppler system or by different types of on-board integrating accelerometers. The rocket stopped accelerating and soon reached the top of the approximately parabolic flight curve. Dr. Friedrich Kirchstein of Siemens of Berlin developed the V-2 radio-control for motor-cut-off (German: Brennschluss).[15]:28,124 For velocity measurement, Professor Wolman of Dresden created an alternative of his Doppler[25]:18 tracking system in 1940�41, which used a ground signal transponded by the A-4 to measure the velocity of the missile.[2]:103 By 9 February 1942, Peenem�nde engineer de Beek had documented the radio interference area of a V-2 as 10,000 meters around the �Firing Point�,[26] and the first successful A-4 flight on 3 October 1943, used radio control for Brennschluss.[14]:12 Although Hitler commented on 22 September 1943, that "It is a great load off our minds that we have dispensed with the radio guiding-beam; now no opening remains for the British to interfere technically with the missile in flight",[15]:138 about 20% of the operational V-2 launches were beam-guided.[14]:12 The Operation Pinguin V-2 offensive began on 8 September 1944, when Lehr- und Versuchsbatterie No. 444[25]:51�2 (English: Training and Testing Battery 444) launched a single rocket guided by a radio beam directed at Paris.[26]:47 Wreckage of combat V-2s occasionally contained the transponder for velocity and fuel cutoff.[13]:259�60 The painting of the operational V-2s was mostly a camouflage ragged pattern with several variations, but at the end of the war a plain olive green rocket also appeared. During tests, the rocket was painted in a characteristic black-and-white chessboard pattern, which aided in determining if the rocket was spinning around its longitudinal axis. A U.S. Army cut-away of the V-2. The original German designation of the rocket was "V2", unhyphenated, but U.S. publications such as LIFE magazine were using the hyphenated form "V-2" as early as December 1944.[27] This hyphenated form has now become common usage.

120-V2_grouping

johnbr — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 01:08:38 -0500

119-V2_grouping

johnbr — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 01:08:37 -0500

095-BAKA_sheet

johnbr — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 00:35:04 -0500

by: johnbr

German_WW2_MP-44_Erstes_Sturmgewehr_44_in_Kaliber

johnbr — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 00:11:25 -0500

by: johnbr

Description: The father of all semiautomatic guns. MP 43, MP 44, StG 44 Grenadiers operating in the area of Aachen, Germany in 1944 As work moved forward to incorporate this new firing system, development temporarily came to halt when Hitler suspended all new rifle programs due to administrative infighting within the Third Reich, ordered that more, newer submachine guns were to be built and strongly disagreed with the use of the new ammunition. To keep the MKb 42(H) alive, the Waffen Amt (Armament Office) re-designated it into the Maschinenpistole 43 (MP 43) and making a few improvements, billed as an upgrade to existing submachine guns. This deception was eventually discovered by Adolf Hitler who again had the program halted. In March 1943, he permitted it to recommence for evaluation purposes only. Running for six months until September 1943, the evaluation produced positive results and Hitler allowed the MP 43 program to continue and in order to make mass production possible. The first MP 43 were distributed to the Waffen-SS, and in October 1943, some especially to the 93rd Infantry Division on the Eastern Front when war was raging. Production and distribution continued to different troops until April 1944, where Hitler ordered it re-designated MP 44 with adding minor updates after taking some interest in the weapon tests. In July 1944, at a meeting of the various army heads about the Eastern Front, when Hitler asked what they needed, a general exclaimed, "More of these new rifles!". This caused some confusion (Hitler's response is reputed to have been "What new rifle?"), but once Hitler was given a chance to see and test-fire the MP 44, he was impressed and gave it the title Sturmgewehr. Seeing the possibility of a propaganda gain, the rifle was again renamed as the StG 44, to highlight the new class of weapon it represented, translated "Storm (Assault) rifle, model 1944", thereby introducing the term.[9] Seeking to enhance the propaganda value of the new weapon, Hitler ordered it re-designated StG44 (Assault Rifle, Model 1944), giving the rifle its own class. Production soon began with the first batches of the new rifle being shipped to troops on the Eastern Front. A total of 425,977 StG44s were produced by the end of the war and work had commenced on a follow-on rifle, the StG45. Among the attachments available for the StG44 was the Krummlauf, a bent barrel that permitted firing around corners. These were most commonly made with 30� and 45� bends. By the end of the war, some 425,977 StG 44 variants of all types were produced. The assault rifle proved a valuable weapon, especially on the Eastern front, where it was first deployed. A properly trained soldier with a StG44 had an improved tactical repertoire, in that he could effectively engage targets at longer ranges than with an MP 40, but be much more useful than the Kar 98k in close combat, as well as provide covering fire like a light machine gun. It was also found to be exceptionally reliable in the extreme cold of the Russian winter. The StG44's rate of fire varied between 500 and 600 rpm. The StG 44 was an intermediate weapon for the period; the muzzle velocity from its 419 mm (16.5 in) barrel was 685 m/s (2,247.4 ft/s), compared to 760 m/s (2,493 ft/s) of the Karabiner 98k, 744 m/s (2,440.9 ft/s) of the British Bren, 600 m/s (1,968.5 ft/s) of the M1 carbine, and 365 m/s (1,197.5 ft/s) achieved by the MP40. One unusual addition to the design was the Krummlauf; a bent barrel attachment for rifles with a periscope sighting device for shooting around corners from a safe position. It was produced in several variants: a "I" version for infantry use, a "P" version for use in tanks (to cover the dead areas in the close range around the tank, to defend against assaulting infantry), versions with 30�, 45�, 60� and 90� bends, a version for the StG 44 and one for the MG 42. Only the 30� "I" version for the StG 44 was produced in any numbers. The bent barrel attachments had very short lifespans � approx. 300 rounds for the 30� version, and 160 rounds for the 45� variant. The 30� model was able to achieve a 35x35 cm grouping at 100 m.[10] StG 44 equipped Volksgrenadiers fighting in the Ardennes. The Sturmgewehr was also at times fitted with the Zielger�t 1229 infrared aiming device, also known by its codename Vampir ("vampire"). This device consisted of a large scope, rather like modern starlight scopes, and a large infra-red lamp on top, the scope being able to pick up the infra-red that would be invisible to the naked eye. A primary use of the MP44/StG44 was to counter the Soviet PPS and PPSh-41 submachine guns, which used the 7.62x25mm Tokarev round. These cheap, mass-produced weapons used a 71-round drum magazine or 35-round box magazine and though shorter-ranged than the Kar98k rifle, were more effective weapons in close-quarter engagements. The StG 44, while lacking the range of the Kar 98k, had a considerably longer range than the PPS/PPSh submachine guns, a comparable rate of fire, an ability to switch between a fully automatic and a default semi-automatic fire mode and surprising accuracy. Furthermore the StG44's inline design gave it controllability even on full-auto. In short the StG44 provided the individual user with unparalelled firepower compared to that of all earlier handheld firearms, waranting other countries to soon embrace the assault rifle concept. [edit] Late prototypes The Ger�t 06 ("instrument or device 06") prototype. An attempt to further simplify the MP 43/44 and StG 44 series of weapons. The pictured example is incomplete; captured and evaluated at Aberdeen Proving Ground after the war. In a somewhat unrelated development, Mauser continued design work on a series of experimental weapons in an effort to produce an acceptable service-wide rifle for the short cartridge system. One of these prototypes, a product of the engineers at the Light Weapon Development Group (Abteilung 37) at Oberndorf, was the MKb Ger�t 06 (Maschinenkarabiner Ger�t 06 or "machine carbine instrument 06") first appearing in 1942. This gun used a unique gas piston-delayed roller-locked action derived from the short recoil operation of the MG 42 machine gun but with a fixed barrel and gas system. It was realized that with careful attention to the mechanical ratios, the gas system could be omitted. The resultant weapon, the Ger�t 06(H) was supposedly slated for adoption by the Wehrmacht as the StG 45(M). The operating principle lived on in postwar designs from CEAM/AME, CETME, and most famously, Heckler & Koch. Towards the end of the war, there were last-ditch efforts to develop cheap so-called Volksgewehr rifles in the 8x33mm caliber. One of these, the VG 1-5 (Volkssturmgewehr 1-5), used a gas-delayed blowback action based on the Barnitzke system, whereby gas bled from the barrel near the chamber created resistance to the rearward impulse of the operating parts, which ceases when the projectile leaves the muzzle, allowing the operating parts to be forced rearward by the residual pressure of the cartridge case. This principle has been used most successfully in the P7 pisto

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johnbr — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 00:06:03 -0500

by: johnbr