What exactly did 'Glide Torpedoes' do? Where they different from other torpedoes?
Warthog
This is the GT-1 Glide Torpedo that was operationally combat tested in the last couple of weeks of the war in the Pacific.
After the torpedo attacks by B-26s in Midway and Alaska, the USAAF came to the conclusion that using medium level bombers as torpedo attack planes left them too vulnerable on their attack runs by ship AAA and fighters and was considered to be a waste of valuable resources, so the practice stopped. After this, no more B-26 crews or other medium bomber crews were trained how to drop torpedoes.
By developing a glide torpedo, it would allow bomber crews to drop the torpedo outside of effective range of ship AAA guns. The bomber would drop the glide torpedo at 10,000ft and glide towards the target. Once the glide torpedo would hit the water, explosive bolts would blow off the paravane and the torpedo would then execute a pre-programmed search pattern to locate and strike the target. Because it was used during the last couple of weeks of the war, it was not possible to determine its effectiveness as the USAAF never saw the results of their attacks.
B-25J with a GT-1 glide torpedo.
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