German Explosive Ordnance - Containers (Part 5)

German Explosives

AB 500-1B Container

Overall Length: 80 inches

Tail Length: 29 inches

Tail Width: 17 inches

Diameter of Body: 18 inches

Filling: 28 SD 10 FRZ bombs

Colour and Markings: Markings on container - 28 SD 10 FRZ

Construction: The AB 500-1B container is similar to the AB 500-1.

The 28 SD FRZ bombs are accommodated in the central compartment of the container, 15 bombs being accommodated in the rear portion and 13 bombs in the forward portion.

Bombs are loosely packed nose to tail and are not secured by bands.






ABB 500 Container

Overall Length: 69.6 inches

Body Length: 25.2 inches

Body Diameter: 18.4 inches

Wall Thickness: 0.05 inches

Filling: 133 1-kg incendiaries, 2,200 "crow's feet"

Total Weight: 152.4 kilograms

Colour and Markings: Inside and outside of container is painted a dull slate grey.  There are two red bands; one is around the midsection of the bomb body, and the other is around the nose of the bomb.

Letters "ABB 500" are stenciled in black at center of bomb between the fuze pocket ad the suspension lug.

Letters "1941 bbZ 170 7" appear on tail fin.

Construction: The body is cylindrical shaped similar in appearance to a SC bomb except for the nose, which is more blunt.  The bomb is divided into two halves longitudinally and united by a rolled joint.  The vanes and other fittings are welded.  A loading hatch is screwed to the body just forward of the fuze pocket.  There is only one fuze pocket which is 7 and 3/4 inches in depth.  Fuze pocket contains one annular picric acid pellet fuze and a wooden cylindrical packing piece.


Operation: The aerial burst action of the fuze and picric acid pellet splits the case in half down a weak weld.


Suspension: Horizontal.


Remarks: The bomb container is a C 500 flam casing adapted to carry approximately 133 1-kg incendiary bombs.  Among the 1B's found, in one container were some chalk cement rods (with a wire core) 1.9 inches in diameter (possibly used as filling pieces.)






"Streubrand C 500" Container

No picture available

Overall Length: 69.5 inches

Body Length: 18.8 inches

Tail Length: 24.5 inches

Tail Width: 25 inches

Filling: 1,200 green celluloid incendiary boxes immersed in water.

Construction: The Container is similar in appearance and dimensions to the ABB 500 Container, with the exception that the loading hatch is absent as in the AB 500-1.

A 7/16 inch internal diameter steel tube, welded to the upper half of the casing directly above the longitudinal joint of the two halves of the container, connects at right angles to the side of the fuze pocket to which it is also welded.

A single length of green detonating fuze leads from this tube to turn along the longitudinal joint and run round the nose of the container, returning via the junction of the tail to enter the 7/16 inch tube.  At intervals along the longitudinal joint steel clips are placed to secure the detonating fuze firmly in position.

The two halves are hermetically sealed together by welding at the longitudinal seam.  Inside the container is a steel strut, which is used to give support to the two halves of the casing.  The strut is weakened in one place.

Screwed to the fuze in the normal way is a standard gaine projecting into a wood packing piece.  One end of the detonating fuze is housed in this packing piece to contact the side of the gaine.

On release of the container, the fuze is charged.  After a short delay, the fuze fires, firing the gaine which in turn detonates the detonating fuze.  Detonating wave travels round the seam of the container to separate the two halves.  The weak part of the internal supporting strut is broken and the two halves are parted.


Remarks: The Streubrand C 500 appears to have been an inefficient incendiary weapon, and the method of separating the two halves of the container may have been found to be unsatisfactory in practice since damage to exposed detonating fuze would result in failure.






Mark 500 Boden Container

Overall Length: 69.6 inches

Body Diameter: 18.4 inches
Wall Thickness: 0.05 inches
Tail Length: 24 inches
Tail Width: 2 inches

Filling: 9 or 15 single candle flares and 6 SD 2 bombs.


Color: Slate grey or black overall.  Stenciled between the fuze pocket and suspension lug:

Mark 500 Boden
6 SD

Construction: This container is similar to the AB 500.  The tenth flare normally carried in the ABB 500 has been replaced by a subsidiary container for 6 SD 2 bombs.  Instead of the usual opening device, the container is opened by means of a continuous strand of detonating cord (green with pink filling, thought to be penthrite) which circumscribes the container at the junction of the two halves.

The subsidiary container for the 6 SD 2 bombs is anchored by the double wire cable to the U-shaped bracket positioned in the lower half of the body to one side of the internal suspension strip.  The 6 SD 2 container is formed along the longitudinal axis in two halves, retained by the two steel female end caps drilled at the side to admit the thin container securing wire.  Secured to each end cap is a U-shaped bracket, a 0.25 inch round bar, to which is attached the double wire cable.

After the 6 SD 2 container falls free, it is arrested by the double wire cable.  The jerk is so applied to the end cap that it suffices to break the securing wire and the end cap is pulled off.  The bombs then are free to fall away.


Suspension: Horizontal.






AB 1000-2 Container

Overall Length: 123 inches

Body Diameter: 26 inches
Wall Thickness: 0.075 inches

Filling:
-620 1-kg 1Bs; or
-246 1-kg 1Bs and 234 2-kg B.2 EZs; or
-372 2-kg B.2 EZs

Color and Markings: Light khaki overall.

Markings on body:

AB 1000-2
B.1.3 EZ
B 2 EZ



Construction: The body is T-shaped in cross section.  The longitudinal axis of the container is formed by two sheet steel plates 26 and 1/2 inches by 70 inches.  Indented together with circular spot welded pressings and welded along their greater dimensions to two U-shaped girder pieces.  Two circular sheet steel plates form the nose and tail bulkheads.  A slightly domed sheet steel nose is welded to the nose bulkhead and is reinforced by a tubular steel sheet approximately 8 inches long welded to both the bulkhead and the domed nose.  A sheet steel top plate is welded to the upper U-shaped girder to form an arc-line canopy extending 13 and 1/2 inches on either side of the girder.  The top plate is recessed to receive the H-type suspension lug and to accommodate the fuze pocket.

The central support for the tail unit is a steel bar welded to a square plate which in turn, is riveted to the tail bulkhead.  A flanged circular sheet steel plate is spot welded to the tube and tail cone for added support.  The tail fins consist of two layers of sheet steel pressed together, each layer being part of the adjoining quadrants of the tail cone.  Fuzes are housed in a thin sheet steel box inside the tail cone and are welded to the tail bulkhead.  An inspection hatch in the tail gives access to the fuzes.

On the under side of the fuze box are two steel clips which accommodate the 4 ounce penthrite charge provided to destroy the electromagnet generating units attached to the bottom end of the fuze.  Five sections containing incendiary bombs can be arranged in each side of the center bulkhead of the container.  Each section is separated by semicircular sheet steel separator plates.  The bombs are held in place by five sheet steel retaining bands which are drawn tightly around the bomb and container by turnbuckles.  Each strap is held in position at the lower edge of the vertical position by a large split pin anchored to a bracket support which carries a small charge consisting of two detonators.  Two rectangular steel plates near the nose hinge outward when the forward band is severed and form air brakes.

The fuze pocket accommodates the charging head from which six orange colored cables are led to the fuzes.  Two of the cables are connected by a fuze charging attachment to the head of the (89) B fuze; the remaining for cables are connected in pairs to two bayonet joint charging attachments housing the (69) D fuzes.  Six leads pass from the fuzes to a junction box in the tail unit.  Leading from the junction box are three cables for each of the six points (five retaining bands and the destroying charge on the steel fuze box), plus six black colored cables, all of which are enclosed in a green cover.  Four of those leads branch off to each of the five retaining bands (two wires to each det.) and four leads branch off to the self-destroying charge.

All detonators on the (89) B fuze circuit are instantaneous while the detonators on the (69) D fuze circuits have delays varying from 1 to 6 seconds, the variance between detonators being 1 second.  They are so placed that the 1-second delay is on the band nearest the tail unit, the 2-second delay is next, etc.  The 6-second delay detonator is used on the self-destroying charge of the fuze box.  On release, an electrical charge is imparted to one of the plungers of the charging head, depending on which of the fuzes is to be used.

The fuze functions and ignites a black powder pellet which drives a piston forward.  A projection of the piston strikes a soft iron core in the center of a coil of copper wire enclosed within a magnetic sheath.  The rapid displacement of this iron core induces an electric current in the coil which is passed to the junction box and then to the detonators which sever the bands.

Containers can be dropped from low altitudes with the (89) B fuze and instantaneous detonators used to secure a heavy concentration of bombs, or containers can be dropped from high altitude with the (69) D fuze and varying delay detonators used.  This would give a wide dispersion of the bombs.



Suspension: Horizontal.







Message Tubes (Sea and Land)

Sea

Overall Length: 14.75 inches

Body Diameter: 2.6 inches
Total Weight: 2.25 pounds

Land

Overall Length: 15.75 inches

Body Diameter: 2.0 inches
Total Weight: 1.5 pounds


Color: Yellow overall

Markings:
Meldebusche (land)
                Unegefahrlich (not dangerous)
                              Wechtige Moldung (important message)
                         Sofort Weitergeben (forward at once)

Construction: The sea message tube is made of aluminum and is painted yellow.  The top is closed by a disc with a friction igniter through it.  The igniter has a red top and a delay pellet giving a delay of 1 second.  The aluminum smoke container is below the igniter.  It contains a reddish brown powder, the surface of which has a black powder charge to start the burning of the smoke mixture.  The container is made watertight by tightening the wing nut.

The smoke container is 5.4 inches in length, has a diameter of 1.75 inches and weighs 0.75 pounds.

The land message tube is made of aluminum and is painted red.  The top cover holding the red-topped friction igniter (1-second delay) is a push fir over the container.  Through a hole in the cup-shaped aluminum piece near the cover protrude the ends of four strands of quickmatch.  These strands run down the side of the smoke container and meet several pieces of fire quickmatch below the smoke container.

When ignited, the reddish brown powder gives off a very bright yellow smoke.  The smoke container is 5 inches in length, has a diameter of 1.75 inches, and a weight of 10.3 ounces.

Next Time: Rockets - Introduction and Part 1

Source: German Explosive Ordnance Vol. 1: Bombs, Rockets, Grenades, Mines, Fuzes & Igniters