Posted on 10/27/2011 4:44:47 PM PDT by Free ThinkerNY
...since it's a GP Bomb the explosive over time does become less stable, depends on how much may have exuded, ..might even be a delay type fuse was used....and that fuse was defective..it would get a good looking over before they get it removed, I'm sure these guys have seen it before
USNV, that is an amazing stat. Is there a theory on why so many bombs missed the target? Was it nascent technology, or maneuvering by the pilot to try to keep from getting shot?
Thanks Doogle, for the excellent information. Now I’m praying for the safety of the defusers, if that’s the right word. Sounds like a VERY dangerous situation.
Honestly, my first reaction was a Bart Simpson-esque: “Cooool!”
Its a miracle more of it doesnt result in casualties (unless it does, and I just havent heard about it).
all kinds of ordinance was droppedin Delaware Bay after the war...alot of it is not mapped. they find some interesting things dredging. One guy in Delaware had a contractor order a load of gravel for his driveway, ended up with a front yard full of hand grenades.
A Richmond VA Civil War relic collector was killed a few years ago by one of his finds -- a civil war cannon shell loaded with black powder.
Jack
all kinds of ordinance was droppedin Delaware Bay after the war...alot of it is not mapped. they find some interesting things dredging. One guy in Delaware had a contractor order a load of gravel for his driveway, ended up with a front yard full of hand grenades.
A Richmond VA Civil War relic collector was killed a few years ago by one of his finds — a civil war cannon shell loaded with black powder.
Or perhaps Col. Breen: Five Million Years to Earth
“I wouldnt bet my life.”
That makes two of us! Hats off to the people who are retrieving this bomb—may their mission end safely and successfully.
Sobering. You don’t get up one day and imagine a Civil War era cannonball will do you in. I hope he had his spiritual house in order.
TNT is a stable explosive. No indication what the explosive was in this bomb but all explosives in the TNT class are stable and are intended to not explode just because of sudden deceleration.
The fuze is what makes the bomb go boom and for whatever reason, the fuze failed to function. So yes, the bomb was a dud.
I wonder what the intended target was of such a large bomb?
Three of four years ago, there was a thread here on FR about someone in Virginia area who was killed by a civil war shell that exploded.
UXO is hard on European farmers.
Large sections of WWI battlefield such as Verdun are cordoned off due to so much UXO laying about.
Here’s a good one.
...the numbers quoted before are accurate.....the percentage of bombs actually hitting the target were very small compared to today’s “smart” bombs. A lot of time it was due to weather and other times due to navigational “errors”....even guessing...once you loaded back then, you never wanted to bring them back....running the gauntlet of German fighters loaded was a one way deal...when you got there...you let em go...specific targets were usually covered by massive bombing raids to insure a better percentage of hits....
Pilot maneuvering was getting them there with straight approach ...the bombing run was done by the bombardier. The pilots of the planes back then along with the crews were a special breed indeed
You might find this site interesting loads of good stuff here:
http://www.b24.net/stories/annette.htm
The other one is still down there someplace.
Interesting case.
More great info; thanks. I love educational threads. I hope there’s a follow-up, letting us know they got the bomb out of there intact.
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