Each unit has its own specified abilities and stats. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. How doesit compare with fighter interceptors for effectiveness? There are 4 types of Flak Cannon ammunition: Explosive: Base ammo. ", Oruzhiye Podvodnogo Udara (Underwater Weapons), "The Development of the Radio Proximity Fuze", Naval Historical Centre Radio Proximity (VT) Fuzes, The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Proximity_fuze&oldid=1141413451, It was important in defense from Japanese, It was an important part of the radar-controlled anti-aircraft batteries that finally neutralized the German, This page was last edited on 24 February 2023, at 23:27. From left to right: 90 mm shrapnel shell, 120 mm pig iron incendiary . Regular $49.99 (Save $15.00) Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Optical sensing was developed in 1935, and patented in the United Kingdom in 1936, by a Swedish inventor, probably Edward W. Brandt, using a petoscope. As most of the British heavy anti-aircraft guns were deployed in a long, thin coastal strip, dud shells fell into the sea, safely out of reach of capture. The Fabricated Sniper Rifle is a ranged weapon, a more advanced version of the Longneck Rifle. Images of CAD renderings can be found below. But what about people. The signals were in-phase one instant and out-of-phase a few hundred microseconds later. @JeremyECrawford already have a question. (in an allied country). Acting like a normal bullet in flight, then after a short delay, it will explode into 5 more bullets. As the war progress and the manpower shortage increased thousands of able-bodied flak men were transferred to the army. This is due to the same effect. The tests were to be conducted over two days, but the testing stopped when drones were destroyed early on the first day. Warpath Units. Flak proved a huge benefit to fighter pilots assigned to attack incoming raids. Additionally, targets with onboard electronics or computers can be damaged by metal fragments when they explode on the surface. The Hush-Kit Book of Warplanes will feature the finest cuts from this site along with exclusive new articles, explosive photography and gorgeous bespoke illustrations. There were a few that were specifically armoured like the Russian Il-2 and German Hs 129 ground attack aircraft to withstand light flak hits. Most of the official Allied histories downplayed its role. The distance between the fuze and the target was not constant but rather constantly changing due to the high speed of the fuze and any motion of the target. It was from the cannon shells and incendiary bullets that had hit my machineBullets were going between my legs, and I remember seeing a bright flash of an incendiary bullet going past my leg into the gas tankThen a little red tongue licked out inquiringly from under the gas tank in front of my feet and became a hot little bonfire in one corner of the cockpit.". You have to remember that the Luftwaffe flak arm played a dual role. [11] [12] Over 100 American companies were mobilized to build some 20 million shell fuzes. " Therefore, firing a +1 arrow from a +1 shortbow results in a +2 to the attack and damage rolls. First large scale production of tubes for the new fuzes[9] was at a General Electric plant in Cleveland, Ohio formerly used for manufacture of Christmas-tree lamps. This allowed for aiming at night and in bad weather.. When an 88mm projectile exploded at altitude, it sent out jagged Shrapnel wounds became so common that eventually any wound from a metal fragment tended to be called "shrapnel" in general: from hang grenades, from debris thrown by an explosion, etc. It would have never been used in action. Shorter barrel, a little less velocity, and a good bit more stress on hollow point performance through barriers. The 128mm FlaK 40 was one of the largest anti-aircraft weapon systems employed by the Germans in World War 2. [ 12 August 2002, 09:22 AM: Message edited by: Martin Bull ], [ 12 August 2002, 04:29 PM: Message edited by: Martin Bull ], [ 13 August 2002, 12:48 PM: Message edited by: Martin Bull ], (You must log in or sign up to reply here. They made the Allied heavy artillery far more devastating, as all the shells now exploded just before hitting the ground. They were not nearly as effective at puncturing bomber aircraft as armor-piercing bullets, but were far more effective than standard bullets because they could also ignite fuel if they came into contact with a fuel tank or pipeline. The Schmetterling, Enzian, Rheintochter and X4 guided missiles were all designed for use with the Kranich acoustic proximity fuze. I can't remember where I read it now but in the early days of World War Two, the British Air Ministry was deluged with well-meaning crackpot ideas. "[32], A key improvement was introduced by Lloyd Berkner, who developed a system using separate transmitter and receiver circuits. Alternate Ammunition is the generic name for special munitions launched from LRM, SRM, and MMLs. [47] Similarly for example the word tank for an armored fighting vehicle was used to pretend plausibly that a carrier of water for troops on the battlefield was being developed. Is Wolfram|Alpha just an online equation solver. Flak is defined as the bursting shells shot at aircraft from enemy guns on the ground, or criticism or opposition. The British shared a wide range of possible ideas for designing a fuze, including a photoelectric fuze and a radio fuze, with United States during the Tizard Mission in late 1940. Observers may not be practical in many situations, the ground may be uneven, and the practice is slow in any event. Proximity fuzes are also useful for producing air bursts against ground targets. . The idea of a proximity fuse had long been considered militarily useful. Luckily the much higher altitude B-17s ( which were designed to fly around 30,000 ft and above and a bomb sight that was supposed to work at that level) were friendlys to land at the airbase. To work in shells, a fuze needed to be miniaturized, survive the high acceleration of cannon launch, and be reliable. The tank chosen was Germany's own Leopard Main Battle Tank (MBT). High explosive with a pressed in pyrotechnic tracer self destruct cap, hexogen filled, impact only fuze. [68], During WW2, pressure activated fuzes were developed for sticks (or trains) of bombs to create above ground airbursts. Flak is an acronym/initialism forthe German word, Flugabwehrkanone, meaning aircraft-defence cannon. amtifo backup camera troubleshooting. [4], Belgian inventor de Wilde, who was living in Switzerland, invented a new bullet in 1938. Although flak jackets offered some basic protection against small caliber bullets and shell fragments (which was valued by their users), ultimately they proved to be less effective than hoped. This gun served as the main armament of the Tiger I heavy tank. US Navy development and early production was outsourced to the Wurlitzer company, at their barrel organ factory in North Tonawanda, New York.[49]. The front shows an 88 flak artillery gun in the center. Others, such as the Czechoslovak 37 mm and 47 mm guns and the Russian . Why dont we use flak on people. [33] Later, the Ordnance Development Division of the National Bureau of Standards (which became the Harry Diamond Laboratories and later merged into the Army Research Laboratory in honor of its former chief in subsequent years) developed the first automated production techniques for manufacturing radio proximity fuzes at a low cost. navigation search. "[27] The critical work of adapting the fuze for anti-aircraft shells was done in the United States, not in England. Most, if not all, of the histories deal with the great air battles strictly in terms of aircraft vs. aircraft; the great fighter aces and how many bombers were shot down by Spitfires, Bf 109s, Fw 190s and Me 110 and Ju 88 night-fighters. [67] [68]. The story of flak in World War II is one of those forgotten stories of World War II. Their light and medium flak over the battlefield was also highly effective and took a great toll on Allied fighter bombers. university of phoenix alumni license plate frame. What were the big innovations in AAA in WW2? Flak can refer to criticism or worse, explosive shells from an antiaircraft weapon. The amplitude of the reflected signal corresponded to the closeness of the target. Protective vests called flak jackets were first used in World War II; the word flak comes from the abbreviated form of the German word Flugabwehrkanone, a type of antiaircraft gun. [44] One tube was an oscillator connected to an antenna; it functioned as both a transmitter and an autodyne detector (receiver). [64] [66], During WW2, the National Defense Research Committee (NDRC) investigated the use of acoustic proximity fuzes for anti-aircraft weapons but concluded that there were more promising technological approaches. Shortly after D-Day the Luftwaffe transferred 140 heavy batteries and 50 light flak batteries to Normandy. As early as September 1939, John Cockcroft began a development effort at Pye Ltd. to develop tubes capable of withstanding these much greater forces. Which nation was best at using AAA and why? Image courtesy the German Federal Archive. Note here that the amplitude of this low frequency 'beat' signal corresponds to the amplitude of the signal reflected from the target. A timer fuze can be set to explode a few meters above the ground but the timing is vital and usually requires observers to provide information for adjusting the timing. L/4.5 (Kz.) The blast from the first bomb was used to trigger the fuze of the second bomb which would explode above ground and in this turn would detonate the third bomb with the process repeated all the way till the last bomb in the string. Flak can refer to criticism or worse, explosive shells from an antiaircraft weapon. Regular $179.99 (Save $50.00) $129.99. What are Lock Patterns for Android phones? That means the fuse was outperforming traditional rounds three to one in routine combat conditions. [41] In addition to extreme acceleration, artillery shells were spun by the rifling of the gun barrels to close to 30,000 rpm, creating immense centrifugal force. Measures 1 5/8 inches wide by 2 1/8 inches tall. It's hard to hit a fast moving target with a bullet, which is why they use shotguns with shot ammo with a lot of small pellets inside to hunt birds, to basically have the bird fly through a rain of pellets, ensuring that at least one hits it. Many postwar histories accepted the testimony of leading figures within the Luftwaffe that ground based AA defences achieved limited success in destroying Allied bombers. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. It was so important that it was a secret guarded to a similar level as the atom bomb project or D-Day invasion. Acting like a normal bullet in flight, then after a short delay, it will explode into 5 more bullets. Despite intense work by the Germans to finish the project, it was finally put out of action by a raid on 6 July 1944 before a single shell . [10], In September 1940, the Tizard Mission travelled to the US to introduce their researchers to a number of UK developments, and the topic of proximity fuses was raised. Physicorium: good all-rounder against unarmored targets, has almost twice the standard damage. With the invention of Jet fighters, he explained to me that the flak guns had become obsolete so they had to be repurposed. NOTE: Click on images to view larger size. U.S. General George S. Patton credited the introduction of proximity fuzes with saving Lige and stated that their use required a revision of the tactics of land warfare. [2] The British Royal Flying Corps forbade the use of incendiary ammunition for air-to-air combat with another airplane, as their use against personnel was at first considered to be a violation of the St. Petersburg Declaration. Flak damaged tens of thousands of bombers. June 14, 2022; can you shoot someone stealing your car in florida . Ammunition is used by Weapons, Vehicles, and player manned defenses. How effective was it in WW2? Any analysis that does not examine all components of the system, and acknowledge that interference with any part of it can sharply reduce its effectiveness, is incomplete. Fuze assembly was completed at General Electric plants in Schenectady, New York and Bridgeport, Connecticut. Was armour speed a better defence from flak? Bullet 50 feet from the plane? World War I. That is exac. . However, the phase relationship between the oscillator's transmitted signal and the signal reflected from the target varied depended on the round trip distance between the fuze and the target. [3], During World War II, incendiary bullets found a new use: they became one of the preferred types of ammunition for use in interceptor fighters. Measures 1 13/16 X 2 9/16 inches. So the changing phase relationship between the oscillator signal and the reflected signal complicated the measurement of the amplitude of that small reflected signal. Not surprised there is a lot of misinformation about the flak, is there is about how the bombing raids and their escorts worked. Items that can be anointed include weapons, shields, and grenade mods. All of the units in Warpath are the real units from World War II, from infantry units to rocket artillery. Eine andere -Site. [13], The proximity fuze was one of the most important technological innovations of World War II. Getting that right was harder than you would think with the limited means of getting the planes altitude and speed right and they would only have a few minutes at most to do so. (LogOut/ At the start of The Blitz, it was estimated that it took 20,000 rounds to shoot down a single aircraft, [6] other estimates put the figure as high as 100,000[7] or as low as 2,500. Flak in World War II takes the reader from the invasion of Poland in 1939 right to the last Japanese aircraft shot down by AA fire in August 1945. By 1942 the standard loading for fixed .303s was half loaded with AP and half with incendiary bullets. Procurement contracts increased from $60 million in 1942, to $200 million in 1943, to $300 million in 1944 and were topped by $450 million in 1945. The details of the British experiments were passed to the United States Naval Research Laboratory and National Defense Research Committee (NDRC). It uses Advanced Sniper Bullet for ammo. Make a 1:1 scale print and you will shurely understand why this cartridge type deserves all due respect. In December of that year the British Air Ministry purchased the design. Notes. And when I started digging deeper, the number of aircraft shot down by flak was astonishing. The Flakpanzer 341 is armed with 2 37mm FlaK 44 cannons side by side in the turret. [26][27], Looking for a short-term solution to the valve problem, in 1940 the British ordered 20,000 miniature tubes from Western Electric Company and Radio Corporation of America that were intended for use in hearing aids. ARTICLES. Front shows a flak 88 artillery gun in the center with a German eagle clutching a swastika in his talons at the top. Tanks and armor couldnt maneuver through the forest, and the Germans had secured all the roads. This process continued for the last 10 months of the war, robbing German cities of vital flak defences. Both are surrounded by an oval oak leaf wreath. A proximity fuze (or fuse[1][2][3]) is a fuze that detonates an explosive device automatically when the distance to the target becomes smaller than a predetermined value. The 3D kit is a Sondernhnger Sd. Garrisoned defenses do not need ammunition. Listed is also some of the guns captured from other countries and used by the German armed forces. Flak-damaged bombers were forced out of formation, making them easy prey (for both Allied and Axis fighter forces) for marauding fighters. This pattern changes with shrinking distance: every half wavelength in distance (a half wavelength at this frequency is about 0.7meters), the transmitter is in or out of resonance. Armor Penetration Table. Flak guns were actually used against the Soviets in the defense of Berlin. For a side-by-side comparison of all weapons, see the Weapons page! | Latest News India It had a low muzzle velocity and was only accurate to about 200 yards, assuming ammunition was available to fire - which was rarely. How many shells does a flak gun fire per minute? Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. This is particularly dangerous when they strike flammable substances or dry brush. As long as you do not have any new information, there were no apcr shots for the 3,7 cm Flak 43. 4. Due to their specialist nature they tend to be more expensive and larger than their standard counterparts. Thanks for reading my nosense about the flak cannon. Same principle is used for special types of shrapnel ammo in the Carl Gustav recoilless rifle. Check out the main categories below. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. As the shell approaches a reflecting object, an interference pattern is created. It examines heavy flak defences, flak over the battlefield, the failure of ship AA defences early in the war; specifically the Bismarck and the sinking of the Prince of Wales and Repulse in 1941, AA . They lacked the guns, effective radar, and the cooperation between the Army and Navy was terrible. Sign upfor our newsletterhere. In December 1940, Tuve invited Harry Diamond and Wilbur S. Hinman, Jr, of the United States National Bureau of Standards (NBS) to investigate Berkner's improved fuze and develop a proximity fuze for rockets and bombs to use against the German Luftwaffe. The first time incendiary ammunition was widely used was in World WarI, more specifically in 1916. There are two basic ways to do that, make the shell explode at the time when it is near the target, or make it explode when the shell is simply near the target. To shoot in flans mod you need your weapon and specific ammo (M249 SAW and M249 ammo) To load press R and the ammo should transfer to your gun. After so many seconds, the shell would detonate like a times bomb. The shell detonates and sends a flurry of ball bearings and shrapnel in all directions. These are enough to make up for its cons. AA shrapnel also killed and wounded tens of thousands of aircrew, significantly reducing the overall efficiency and morale.. It was justifiably feared by Allied airmen, tankers, and foot soldiers because of its accuracy, lethality, and versatility. [9] Tuve's group was known as Section T, not APL, throughout the war. Before the invention of the proximity fuze, detonation was induced by direct contact, a timer set at launch, or an altimeter. This led me to thinking of how AA guns and defences played a role in the air war over Europe and the Pacific. This meant a total of 80 rounds for M1 Garand riflemen. After so many seconds, the shell would detonate like a times bomb. How many shells are fired to down an aircraft? Feb 19, 2014 Jack Beckett, Guest Author. After so many seconds, the shell would detonate like a times bomb. German flak defenses were responsible for more than half of all Allied aircraft losses. The probability of a direct hit on a small moving target is low; a shell that just misses the target will not explode. Magnetic sensing can only be applied to detect huge masses of iron such as ships. All of these suffered from the large size of pre-WWII electronics and their fragility, as well as the complexity of the required circuitry. Aircraft shot down or damaged was a bonus. Allied AA guns were equally effective. [9] Their system involved a small, short range, Doppler radar. To shoot right click with the loaded gun in your hand and it should shoot. I was wondering how such weapon could possibly work, how would cycling ammo work with such a shape and configuration, how does the weapon remove used cartridges from the barrel, how the heck does fresh ammo get in the barrel in the first place (you just see a new shot move magically into the firing chamber). How did flak guns work in WW2? The gun is the most visible part, but the whole system must work well to make the gun effective. However, British scientists were uncertain whether a fuze could be developed for anti-aircraft shells, which had to withstand much higher accelerations than rockets. US $63.98 Scale 1/35 Resin parts - 130 pcs WWII Item 3518 German 88mm FLAK 36 ammo & ammo box Resin Kit. This is due to the same effect. In his words, "The one outstanding characteristic in this situation is the fact that success of this type of fuze is not dependent on a basic technical idea all of the ideas are simple and well known everywhere. Incendiary ammunition is a type of ammunition that contains a chemical that, upon hitting a hard obstacle, has the characteristic of causing fire/setting flammable materials in the vicinity of the impact on fire. Berlin has repeatedly lobbied Bern to shift policy after requests for permission to send Ukraine Swiss-made ammunition acquired by Germany decades ago were denied. The versatile 88mm cannon was Nazi Germany's main heavy anti-aircraft gun, also known as the Flugabwehrkanone (meaning "aircraft defense cannon"), which was soon shortened to "flak." I know that UT weapons aren't supposed to be something realistic, but if someone wanted to analyze for example the flak cannon, how would it do all the stuff it is supposed to do? Some modern air-to-air missiles (e.g. These included planar electrodes and packing the components in wax and oil to equalize the stresses. Low and medium level flak was even more effective. As the missile cruises towards its target the laser energy simply beams out into space. While it doesn't do as much damage per shot as the Longneck (165 damage compared to the Longneck's 280) it can be fired 8 times before needing to be reloaded. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Due to the forward speed of the bomber, bombs fitted with pressure detonators would all explode at about the same height above ground along a horizontal trajectory. Press J to jump to the feed. Having a flexible doctrine, the Germans used their anti-aircraft pieces in ground support . The proximity fuze makes the problem simpler than the previous methods. The most developmentally advanced of the German acoustic fuze designs was the Rheinmetall-Borsig Kranich (German for Crane) which was a mechanical device utilizing a diaphragm tone filter sensitive to frequencies between 140 and 500Hz connected to a resonating vibratory reed switch used to fire an electrical igniter. Answer (1 of 7): > how and why does a plane still go down if the flak missed? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dick_Cheney_hunting_incident. But that number is misleading. Flak is basically a cannon that launches a shell up in the air, in the path of the airplane, and the shell explodes when it gets up there, sending pellets in all directions, hopefully hitting the airplane nearby, like in that graphic. It was a game changer and fortunately for the US Navy they had it when the kamikaze appeared. The weapon was deployed on German tanks, as an antitank gun, an assault gun, and for antiaircraft purposes.Mar 8, 2016. Automatic fuze setters were used as an 88 could fire 15-20 shells per minute and even the 128mm could manage 12 per minute. For sale: 88mm - $100,000 - $150,000. [43] The design had four or five tubes. it's only used against airborne targets a cloud of tiny pellets "Shrapnel" shells, named for their inventor, are used to kill people with bits of metal even when those people are hiding behind walls, in a trench, etc. [14][15][16] Adm. Lewis L. Strauss wrote that, .mw-parser-output .templatequote{overflow:hidden;margin:1em 0;padding:0 40px}.mw-parser-output .templatequote .templatequotecite{line-height:1.5em;text-align:left;padding-left:1.6em;margin-top:0}, One of the most original and effective military developments in World War II was the proximity, or 'VT', fuze. A German artillery crew relaxes next to their 88 mm gun. A ship's propeller rotating in water produces a powerful hydroacoustic noise which can be picked up using a hydrophone and used for homing and detonation.