FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1955
1955 - 0122.PDF
Martin rotary bomb door being loaded for fitment to a B-57 (Canberra). Bat radar-guided glide-bomb as used by the U.S. Navy. r MISSILES AND PROJECTILES . . . America with the Roc television-guided bomb, wherein the "eye"of the TV was fitted in the nose and radio impulses controlled the trajectory. Another remarkable feature was the use of anannular aerofoil amidships. Among the pilotless radio-controlled Grumman Hellcat bombersused against targets in Korea were a number fitted with television "eyes," but although success was achieved, it is clear that jammingcould, in any future warfare, foil accurate aiming. Limited use was also made in the Korean war of Tarzon radio-controlled bombs. Weighing some six tons, and 27ft long, these U.S.A.F. weapons are directed by the bomb aimer by means ofradio signals picked up by a receiver in the bomb itself. As on the Roc, the aerofoil is of annular form. "Special Weapons". The so-called "tactical" atomic bomb,as carried externally by the Republic F-84F Thunderstreak, F-84G Thunderjet, and certain fighters and attack aircraft of the U.S.Navy, notably the Douglas AD-4 Skyraider and A4D Skyhawk, is reported to weigh about 1,300 lb. A "special store"—presumedto be a weapon of the same character—has been officially specified for the North American F-100A Super Sabre, and a model inadver-tently revealed in the Pentagon has represented this as a cylindrical object. Specific details of atomic and hydrogen bombs remain entirelysecret. Torpedoes. The last British pattern of air-launched torpedoof which mention is permissible is now many years old. It is the 18in Mk XII, weighing some 1,850 lb and fitted with the "Mat 4"tail, designed to ensure directional stability in the air. A standard U.S. Navy torpedo, as carried by the Douglas Skyraider andLockheed Neptune, weighs 2,165 lb. The French Navy have experimented with a delta-winged air-launched torpedo which Martin rotary bomb door being raised into position on a B-57. glides towards its target and sheds its wings on contact with the water. Homing torpedoes are known to be standard items of armament on the Grumman S2F twin-engined anti-submarine aircraft. Sea Mines. Understandably, nothing has been disclosed con-cerning the latest air-laid sea-mines and their fusing systems (mag- netic, acoustic or pressure), though the U.S. Navy attaches suffi-cient importance to such weapons to have ordered a prototype of the Martin XP6M-1 SeaMaster, a very fast four-jet mine-layingflying-boat. The mine bay has Martin rotary doors and is located aft of the pressurized area, immediately forward of the mine-loading compartment, into which the mines are taken through a large hatch in the top decking. The existence was disclosed after the war of British air-droppedsea mines designated 500 lb Mk 8, 1,000 lb Mk 7, 1,500 lb Mk 4, and 1,850 lb Mk 6; a possible load for the British-built EnglishElectric Canberra bomber is known to be two 2,000 lb parachute mines. The Fairey Firefly will take two mines of 1,000 1b. A2,000 lb sea-mine is a standard U.S. Navy store, and is carried on the Lockheed Neptune. Similar mines will be laid by the newDouglas A3D, to be operated from the Forrestal-class carriers. Depth Charges. Standard patterns of British depth charge areof 250 lb and 500 lb nominal weight. The U.S. Navy uses a 325-pounder (twelve of these can be carried internally by theLockheed Neptune), and a 1,600-pounder, two of the latter being carried by the Grumman AF-2S Guardian. Napalm. Notwithstanding its successes in Korea, napalm(jellied petrol) has a distinctly limited effect. It produces an intense, but short-lived, flash heat, sufficient to deprive humansof oxygen and to consume cloth and paintwork. A truck not carrying an inflammable cargo would be stopped, but not neces-sarily destroyed, and it has been found that a man lying in a slit (Concluded on p. 129) Tarzon radio-con- trolled bomb of the U.S.A.F., as used on Korean targets. Length is 27ft, weight about six tons.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
