Picture of the day
- Thread starter jwhc
- Start date
The Brit heavy bombers were 'purpose built' to carry maximum load and to hell with crew protection and comfort. The only armour provided was for the pilot.
It was considered that the .303 armament was inadequate, but upgrading to .50 was dismissed due to the added weight and the time required to redesign the power turrets.
I was surprised to read in the book that there was consideration given to a diversionary raid by Mosquitoes of the nearby town of Soest to draw attention away from the dams.
There is a 3/4 size replica of the Cologne Cathedral in Soest that never got hit despite repeated raids on the rail marshalling yards. After the war, officials thanked Bomber Command for their accuracy. In fact, they never knew it was there!
My German ex-wife was born and raised in Ahlen, a town mentioned as a reference point in the book. My oldest daughter was born in the hospital at Korbecke just east of the Mohne dam. I wish I had taken the opportunity at the time to visit the sites of the other dams hit in the raid.
I had no idea at the time of the enormity of the operation, it's sacrifice and the impact it had on the German war machine at a time when it could ill afford it. I think the Army should have conducted guided tours, but that would not have enhanced Anglo-German relations.
It was considered that the .303 armament was inadequate, but upgrading to .50 was dismissed due to the added weight and the time required to redesign the power turrets.
I was surprised to read in the book that there was consideration given to a diversionary raid by Mosquitoes of the nearby town of Soest to draw attention away from the dams.
There is a 3/4 size replica of the Cologne Cathedral in Soest that never got hit despite repeated raids on the rail marshalling yards. After the war, officials thanked Bomber Command for their accuracy. In fact, they never knew it was there!
My German ex-wife was born and raised in Ahlen, a town mentioned as a reference point in the book. My oldest daughter was born in the hospital at Korbecke just east of the Mohne dam. I wish I had taken the opportunity at the time to visit the sites of the other dams hit in the raid.
I had no idea at the time of the enormity of the operation, it's sacrifice and the impact it had on the German war machine at a time when it could ill afford it. I think the Army should have conducted guided tours, but that would not have enhanced Anglo-German relations.
Kermit Weeks has one of these in his Florida operation. he told me he planned on flying it off a lake he has on the property. Up close it is not a "pretty" airplane, but it is, at least "plane" and not fugly like the other Short creations.
Bubba Yugga
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Midwestern Ontario
The Shorts 360 was a prettied up version of the butt ugly 330, which was kinda like putting a Tapco stock on an SKS.
I remember when Bombardier got a contract to provide several 330's to the US army national guard.
They built a bunch of 330 tail ends at the Toronto site, shipped them down to Virginia, where they butchered undelivered 360's back to 330 equivalents.
It's like manufacturing brand new birch stocks and bayonets to de-Bubba SKS's.
But hey, government contracts carry good coin.
Where else could you be handsomely rewarded for taking lipstick OFF the pig? LOL
I remember when Bombardier got a contract to provide several 330's to the US army national guard.
They built a bunch of 330 tail ends at the Toronto site, shipped them down to Virginia, where they butchered undelivered 360's back to 330 equivalents.
It's like manufacturing brand new birch stocks and bayonets to de-Bubba SKS's.
But hey, government contracts carry good coin.
Where else could you be handsomely rewarded for taking lipstick OFF the pig? LOL
Dark Alley Dan
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Darkest Edmonton
You HAD to bring up Rita, dincha? Thanks very much for that.
Keeping to the wartime theme of the thread...
Damn shame. She had one of the best set of bumpers around in her time.
Dark Alley Dan
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Darkest Edmonton
Ms. Hayworth was NOT pleased that her likeness and character's name in her most famous film had been put on the Crossroads Able device, the first atomic weapon used at Bikini Atoll.
But what would cause someone to name a devestaing incindiary device, as hot as the surface of the sun, after a Rita Hayworth character? Brother, if you don't know, let me help you with that:
[youtube]e-LO9Ay6v_M[/youtube]
That girl does more with one glove than most modern peelers do with a whole wardrobe of dental floss and platform shoes.
But what would cause someone to name a devestaing incindiary device, as hot as the surface of the sun, after a Rita Hayworth character? Brother, if you don't know, let me help you with that:
[youtube]e-LO9Ay6v_M[/youtube]
That girl does more with one glove than most modern peelers do with a whole wardrobe of dental floss and platform shoes.
I did not say it was not a good plane or that it was not well designed to do a particular job. I would say that compared to other Short creations, it is gorgeous.
Even their modern planes are "plain", at best.
But the Irish do make good beer and whisky.
Manitoba boy.
Shot down by Fw. Hermann Wishnewski, who survived the war, having been shot down and wounded 29 July 1944. Sh!tty deal, war. In other times, these boys and the man who was directly responsible for their deaths might have gotten along very well.
I live at Rivers right now and grew up in the area. Of course the air base here hasn't been operational for decades. After it shut down it was bought with the hangers being turned into hog barns. It has since been resold with some of the buildings being used by a metal fabrication company. The same family also does agricultural areal spraying, so the runway is being used once again. They are also drag racing enthusiasts with races being held there this year. "Baseline Dragway". Yes... they are busy brothers. Most interesting is that they have stripped one of the old WWII era hangers and are planning to restore it back to it's original glory.
Donny Fenn1
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- East Kootenays
Yep, I've been up close. I'm sure if his guys return it sub hunting shape it'll be pretty enough.
And instinct, or if you prefer "intuition".
Ettore Bugatti had no formal engineering training. He also drew from instinct, but combine the formal training and knowledge with that sort of instinctive brilliance and out of the box thinking and you get someone like Barnes-Wallis.
Conversely we see all kinds of crap designed by people who have engineering degrees, but little design common sense and even less "instinct".
The Wizard
CGN Regular
- Location
- Colorado Springs, Colorado USA
Ms. Hayworth was NOT pleased that her likeness and character's name in her most famous film had been put on the Crossroads Able device, the first atomic weapon used at Bikini Atoll.
But what would cause someone to name a devestaing incindiary device, as hot as the surface of the sun, after a Rita Hayworth character? Brother, if you don't know, let me help you with that:
[youtube]e-LO9Ay6v_M[/youtube]
That girl does more with one glove than most modern peelers do with a whole wardrobe of dental floss and platform shoes.
"Every man I knew went to bed with Gilda ... and woke up with me." Rita Hayworth
Dream versus reality!
Dark Alley Dan
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Darkest Edmonton
At risk of wandering off topic, Ms. Hayworth was one of those women for whom beauty (and such beauty) was a curse. Sad, sad life.
Anyhow, something else. If we're talking beauty, I've always thought there was a sort of utilitarian handsomeness to the TA-152:
Kurt Tank had "the eye". That aircraft looks right and did what he wanted it to do. There is exactly one left in the world, at the Garber in Washington, in storage. Happier times:
Anyhow, something else. If we're talking beauty, I've always thought there was a sort of utilitarian handsomeness to the TA-152:
Kurt Tank had "the eye". That aircraft looks right and did what he wanted it to do. There is exactly one left in the world, at the Garber in Washington, in storage. Happier times:
When I was in New Zealand in 1966-67, I got a chance to go aboard a commercial passenger Short Sutherland Flying Boat.
They had an air service to the Pacific Islands.
http://flight-engineers-air-nz.########.ca/p/friends-of-solent-flying-boat.html
https://www.google.ca/search?q=shor...sAQIMA&biw=1920&bih=971#imgrc=vPnNARzc7TCBFM:
They had an air service to the Pacific Islands.
http://flight-engineers-air-nz.########.ca/p/friends-of-solent-flying-boat.html
https://www.google.ca/search?q=shor...sAQIMA&biw=1920&bih=971#imgrc=vPnNARzc7TCBFM:
IIRC the P-47 Thunderbolt usually had a ground crewman riding on the wing directing the pilot during taxiing as that huge Pratt & Whitney rotary engine made it impossible for the pilot to see in front of the plane on the ground......
Armstrong Whitworth Whitley.Rodney Dangerfield of British medium bombers.Everyone knows of Wellington,some know Hampden and very few know Whitley.
Even less people know of Vickers Wellesley but that's understandable.By the 1939 it was being replaced yet it still did a good job in Africa until 1942 alongside of other semi obsolete types.
This machine proved concept of geodesic airframe on aircraft (previously used on airship).A bit later that concept was used to produce Vickers Wellington and Warwick.All of them are children of Barnes Wallis.
Even less people know of Vickers Wellesley but that's understandable.By the 1939 it was being replaced yet it still did a good job in Africa until 1942 alongside of other semi obsolete types.
This machine proved concept of geodesic airframe on aircraft (previously used on airship).A bit later that concept was used to produce Vickers Wellington and Warwick.All of them are children of Barnes Wallis.
