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V1 Light Sites. V1 Light Sites The Term Light Site refers to smaller construction and resources needed to launch a V1.

V1 Light Sites

The Allies called them modified sites, but in reality they were a new concept. The Fieseler Fi-103 (V-1) The Fieseler Fi-103 (V-1) On 22nd August, 1942 an object had crashed in a turnip field on the island of Bornholm in the Baltic, roughly half-way between Germany and Sweden.

The Fieseler Fi-103 (V-1)

It was a small pilotless aircraft bearing the number V83, and it was promptly photographed by the Danish Naval Officer-in-Charge on Bornholm, Lieutenant Commander Hasager Christiansen. He also made a sketch, and noted that the warhead was a dummy made of concrete. At first, it was not certain what he had found. From his sketch it was about 4 metres long, and it might have been a rather larger version of the HS 293-glider bomb that KG100 was now using against Allied warships in the Mediterranean.

British Military intelligence eventually discovered that the V-1 missile was being built at Peenemünde and in May 1943, Winston Churchill ordered Operation Crossbow, a plan to destroy V-1 production and launch sites. Germany launched its new weapon from Pas-de-Calais on the northern coast of France, on 13th June 1944. Planes of Fame Airshow-Chino, California, May,2002. V-1 (flying bomb) The V-1 flying bomb (German: Vergeltungswaffe 1,[a])—also known as the buzz bomb, or doodlebug[b]—was an early pulse-jet-powered predecessor of the cruise missile.

V-1 (flying bomb)

The British operated an arrangement of defences (including guns and fighter aircraft) to intercept the bombs before they reached their targets as part of Operation Crossbow, while the launch sites and underground V-1 storage depots were targets of strategic bombing.[5] Design and development[edit] In late 1936, while employed by the Argus Motoren company, Fritz Gosslau began work on the further development of remote-controlled aircraft; Argus had already developed a remote-controlled surveillance aircraft, the AS 292 (military designation FZG 43).

On 31 May, Rudolf Bree of the RLM commented that he saw no chance that the projectile could be deployed in combat conditions, as the proposed remote control system was seen as a design weakness. Description[edit] V-1 cutaway Power plant[edit] Guidance system[edit] The Web Site of the 225th AAA Searchlight Battalion: The AAA War Against the Buzz Bombs. A major assignment of the 50th AAA Brigade, Antwerp X was the name given to the heroic defense of the port of Antwerp against V-1 flying bombs by 22,000 antiaircraft artillerymen from three nations.

The Web Site of the 225th AAA Searchlight Battalion: The AAA War Against the Buzz Bombs

(The V-1s qualify as the world's first cruise missile.) That sound you're hearing is the tell-tale "buzz" of the V-1 as it passes overhead. When that sound stopped ... the bomb would fall to Earth. (Reload this page to replay the sound if you missed it!) Second World War: Bomb Census Survey 1940-1945.

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Second World War: Bomb Census Survey 1940-1945

Why use this guide? This research guide will help you to find air raid reports, bomb census maps and sometimes photographs of bomb damage sustained during air raids in the Second World War. The information relates mostly to damage to domestic, industrial and commercial properties in London but also covers the rest of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. You might also find it useful to look at the Bomb Sight project which is mapping the London WW2 bomb census. 2. In September 1940 the government started to collect and collate information relating to damage sustained during bombing raids. Its purpose was to provide the government with a complete picture of air raid patterns, types of weapon used and the damage caused - in particular to strategic services and installations such as railways, shipyards, factories and public utilities. 1.

London (region 5) was sub-divided into groups and further sub-divided by borough. 3. Total V1 and V2's by Borough. The 13th of June 1944 AD, First V1 Rocket hits London, famous dates in History. Bethnal Green, London The 13th of June 1944 AD The Blitz between September 1940 and May 1941 had a huge impact on British morale, and on effectiveness, as civilian life, industry, and administration were all hit by the rain of German bombs.

The 13th of June 1944 AD, First V1 Rocket hits London, famous dates in History

A further mini-Blitz was started in the early part of 1944, when it was increasingly obvious that the war could not be won by Germany, in an attempt to disrupt allied plans and to press the allied leaders to seek a peaceful end to the conflict. This attack on British morale was intensified when the Germans began launching V1 flying bombs from sites in Northern France, the weapon proving to be both devastating and extremely difficult for the allies to counter. The V1 was a pulse-jet powered drone aircraft, unmanned, with a simple but effective guidance system using gyroscopes and timers to bring the 2,000lb bomb to its target. It was a very difficult weapon for the allies to defend against. V1 missile Buzz Bomb Doodlebug Vergeltungs Waffen FZG76 German flying bomb.

War Damage Map 1939-45. Albion Triangle Flying Bomb The London County Coucil Bomb Damage Maps, 1939-45 These invaluable maps were made by the London County Council immediately after the Second World War.

War Damage Map 1939-45

It became the basis for the Abercrombie Plan for the Rebuilding of London. Coloured areas show the widespread bomb damage while the different colours indicate its severity. Some houses were repaired; others patched up temporarily. This map and other smaller sections reproduced elsewhere, are taken with permission, from The London County Council Bomb Damage Maps 1939-1945. Comparing these coloured Bombing Maps with my original back and white photo-copies. Over forty years ago I found these maps in the lower basement at County Hall, where the sharks now swim. However, I now realise that my maps can tell a false story. Dark Red Seriously damaged; doubtful if repairable Light Red Seriously damaged, but repairable at cost, Obituary: Constance Babington Smith.

In late spring 1943, Frank Whittle, the inventor of the jet engine, was detailed to the Royal Air Force staff college.

Obituary: Constance Babington Smith

The most interesting time of his ensuing "war course", he told his biographer John Golley, was a visit to the photographic reconnaissance unit (PRU) at Medmenham, Buckinghamshire. There, in the enemy aircraft interpretation section, he met Constance Babington Smith, who has died aged 87. WW2 People's War - The 'Bug' on a Mission. French fighter who located Doodlebug launch sites. Interesting Projects.