quote:

Originally posted by sigmonkey:
The aircraft came in, pulled up and released the shape while in the vertical, pulled over the top and then continued pulling through and on the downleg rolled right and departed from the diregtion of ingress.

The procedure was to give maximum stand off release and the fastest exit by combining continued "forward motion" and the dive to put distance and time from the detonation. A loop, and Immelmann or "dash-drop-dash" all would result in less time an distance, than the half eight.

A few facts to add clarity:
1. A bomb released while the aircraft is in the vertical means the bomb will go up, then come back straight down on the target. This also means the delivery aircraft is climbing through vertical directly over the target as well.
2. The video indicates the altitude gained by the B-47 during the delivery maneuver was in the neighborhood of 8500'. Add the maneuver entry altitude to get the total height over the target (approx 12,000' - 15,000' above ground level).
3. Any target worth nuking will be heavily defended by AAA and SAMs.
4. A B-47 at the top of the delivery maneuver will be at it's slowest airspeed over the target approximately 15-30 seconds after announcing it's arrival. At that time it will also be in the heart of the envelope for many SAM and most AAA systems.

I'm not going to say delivering nukes this way was a stupid idea. But I will say that's not how we did it in the Navy.

I figured most would understand that the aircraft is in a continual arc from the pull up until the release, not that the aircraft is in a vertical climb, but during the point where the aircraft is optimal for angular momentum and before the airspeed/energy is bled off, the bomb released and then it would climb upward and in an arc, both giving height, and time in it's arc to provide the greatest "throw" and still give the aircrew the greatest opportunity to be as far distanced as possible.

Standoff of several miles makes ringing AAA and SAM threats a greater depreciation with increased distance.

It's all a gamble, and considering the time that these tactics were being developed post WWII and during Korea vs what was learned in Vietnam ten years later.

A lot of surprises.

Most of what I learned was almost 40 years ago, and it was pretty much a given that a lot of guys knew it was likely a one way trip, and that if it was down to jets making those runs, bad things were happening and no one was having a good day.

I was trying to not to pile on a lot of words but a true vertical release would be a bad tactic.

Later JCS approved delivery: Hit designated IP, take up heading to target, pull-up with needle centered on g-meter(mounted at 45 degree angle for this maneuver)and toss bomb at target. Delivery aircraft were B-57s. Accuracy proven after documented test drops on S. Korean island. Dropped 120 "shapes" ref: Nuke dummies, personally. Accuracy more than adequate for nuke. As stated: probably one-way mission.

Big horseshoes.