The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1918-09-07
AERIAL BOMBING.
EXACT SCIENCE.
FAILURES FEW,
PICTURES SHOW
Progress in Workmanship
Of Air Fighters Very
Great Since War

Behind British Lines In France,
Sept. 6.-(Correspondence Of The
Associated Press. aerial bombing
is today far more Of an exact science
than was supposed possible q year
and q, half ago. In the early days
of the war. dropping bombs was
largely a matter OF luck, and the
straight eye Of the aviator was the
only factor relied upon for success.
Today however matters are en-
tirely different. Accurate bomb
sights have been produced which
carefully used. are q guarantee OF
the bomb falling on the object aimed
at, within very small margin Of
error. OF course, In the. case Of all
such instruments, the human ele-
ment is sometimes responsible for
errors Of calculation and q small err
ror on bomb -sight at $4,000 feet
viii send a bomb far out OF its
course. In the words Of an Ameri"
can airman who has done some
splendid raiding work In France:
TT is wonderful what you can miss
with a bomb"
Few Miss the Marx
From this lit must not be thought
that the majority of Allied bombs do
not reach, their billets in Germany
or In the German lines; for aerial
photographs taken after raids have
ehown that they do. But emphasis
is laid on the importance OF the
personal factor in bombing. In the
excitement Of work of this kind
often in the midst OF heavy shell
dre-a very cool head Is required to
manipulate an instrument as delicate
as a, bomb sight. British airmen for
training In bombing before they are
allowed to proceed overseas, and
must obtain g. certain number OF
hits before they can graduate.
II is thought that quite lot OF
the wanton and useless destruction
OF private property in England by
German raiders is due to sheer bad
bombing. Undoubtedly the Central
Powers are behind the allies In re-
gard 20 bombing gear, for on a large
German twin engined bombing air.
plane recently captured was found
q crude copy OF an English bomb
sigth which was introducede more
than two years ago.
Two Glasses of Bombs.
Aerial bombs in size from 10
pounds up to so or so times that
weight and are roughly Of two kinds,
ancendiary and high explosive. They
are generally laid on their sides in
racks underneath the sirplane; but
sometimes they are carried in cells
specially fitted in the fuselage Tor
body of the machine. In either case
they are fused and released by levers
placed convenient to the pilot or OBJ
server. the bombs themselves being
far out of reach.
When a. bomb is released IL DOES
not fall directly downwards but
takes a forward path as 1t drops,
in the direction in which the ma
chine Is travelling. This is due to
the momentum impaired to 1t by the
speed Of the aircraft,
Time Great Factor.
IA factor of great Importance in
Fbombing is the time-length of the
fuse. For example, If q railway
junction was being attacked, g. bomb
which exploded on contact would do
far more damage than one with a
delay fuse; for the former would
have a wide. low radius of action
smashing UP the railway lines-while
the latter would during the delay
bury itself In the ground and mere
ly make deep crater OF small
AREA.
The reverse, however, would ap~
ply In the case OF a munttion factory.
A bomb exploding on contact would
20 off as soon as it touched the
roof, doing little or no damage to
the remainder OF the building; but
an appropriately timed delay fuse
would give the bomb time to crash
through to the middle or ground
/, floors, where It would be Intimately
more destructive.