Disappearing bombs

[the_spud]

Is there a minimum altitude to drop your bombs so that they can arm or something? A lot of times when I'm flying a fighter-bomber loaded with bombs and I come swooping in and drop my load on a tank at 300 feet or so, the bombs will just disappear into the turf. It's like what happens when you drop your bombs while still on the runway, they just disappear, no explosion, nothing.

I'm a little bothered by this because I usually drop my bombs from my fb when the feet is measured in hundreds. And if I'm going to all the trouble to lug the bombs over there and then when I dive on my target and release my bombs, and then nothing happens, it's a little annoying to say the least. It works fine flying a level bomber or dropping from high altitude though.

[Coronado]

I believe it's a 1 k minimum, and be prepared to end up in tower when dropping that low.( explosion kills you too)

[Mustaine]

bombs must fly for 1000 feet before arming. that is 1000 feet any direction, up down, left, right, whatever.

if you are going fast and level (like in a fighter with a bomb underneath) it is possible to drop the bomb from less than 100 feet, have it sail forward, arm and hit the ground and detonate right beneath your own plane. it usually kills you also FYI.

[the_spud]

Thanks guys, that helps a lot. I still think this arming period is stupid though. Did real WW2 bombs have a arming delay? Maybe some of them did, but it's not really practical for fb's to have a delay, simply because the higher you have to drop your bombs, the less accurate you are.

[Mace2004]

Originally posted by the_spud
Thanks guys, that helps a lot. I still think this arming period is stupid though. Did real WW2 bombs have a arming delay? Maybe some of them did, but it's not really practical for fb's to have a delay, simply because the higher you have to drop your bombs, the less accurate you are.

All bombs have arming delays.  Prevents them from going off immediately after they're dropped due to bomb to bomb collisions.  As otherwise noted, if you drop so low that your bombs don't arm then you would have fragged yourself so it's saving you from yourself.  For very low altitude delivery they had/have various methods of slowing the bomb down (balutes, snakeyes, etc.) to allow you to clear the frag pattern.

Mace

[Softail]

1000 Feet?   I believe that is a negative.  The low ceiling for dive bombin somewhere between 400 and 600 feet on my FE.

If I drop in on a pazer/flak/mxx  my bomb goes off until the distance reaches almost 400.  Once it hits 400 the bomb will not go off.   So I hold my ord until the distance reads 600 on panzies and tiggers.   On flaks...I usually drop at 800 (cause thats close enough for me and you only need to take out their lihgthly armoured gun to make them pretty useless).   If they are driven by LTARS...I drop at 1.2K or higher cause....damn....they are like Borg when it comes to Flaks.

Now keep in mind that that is at a steep angle of attack.   Basically dive bombing.

As for heavy bombers, you can easily blow yourself outta the sky if you fly in at level @ 500' and drop a single salvo of 1K pounders.   The key there is to drop and bank/climb hard to get as much distance between you and the impact point.    The more level you fly...the further on the horizontal the bomb will fly before it impacts...hence you can drop  from very low alt and still have the bomb go off because its basically flying directly below you.  The danger is you kill yourself when the thing goes boom.

As for not seeing your bombs hit.   I have seen this bug in AH2 for a couple of months.   I have bombed bases/towns at 10K feet.  Look down in anticipations to see what kind of damage my 6 1K bombs are going to do and see....well....I see nothing.  Nada. Zip.  Zero.  Zed.  Zilch.    Its as if my bombs never hit the ground at all.

This happens on rare occasions, but it is very frustrating when it does.  

On one bomb run....I dropped from 12K.  Nothing...no crater..no boom..no nuttin...no damage reported.   Came back around....dropped again.  Nothing...no crater...no boom...no nuttin... no damage reported.   Came around a 3r time...dropped the rest of my ord on the VH.....FAWOOOM its blown all to bits.    I don't know why that happens...just know that sometimes it does.    

Happy Hunting.

Softail

[LTARokit]

Originally posted by Softail
If they are driven by LTARS...I drop at 1.2K or higher cause....damn....they are like Borg when it comes to Flaks.


Softail

Resistance is Futile..................You will be absorbed into the collective..............You will become one with the LTAR..............Resistance is Futile..........(lol)


Softail I've had the same thing happen to me during bombing runs, drop a salvo or 2 and the bombs just disappear..........no boom, no craters, no nothing.  As stated, it doesn't happen too often, and more times than any I find when this happens the next thing I know I'm getting the disco.  Re-log and all's good  


Rokit

[RSLQK186]

Icon ranges are in yards and are for 100+ or -. If you dive strait down on a GV and releace at d600 the bomb will travel between 1500 to 2100 feet before striking(you hope) the target.
Likewise, and air craft that is 1K above you is 3000 feet over you.

[Ghosth]

Bomb arm delay is greatly influenced by speed. Faster they are the shorter the arm distance required.

800 - 1k is a good place to start, besides, best to not drop too low anyway or you may blow your own tail off.

[LTARokit]

Originally posted by Ghosth
........ best to not drop too low anyway or you may blow your own tail off.

Been there done that!!  still own the tee shirt......prob will buy another one    Pretty sad when your sitting in the tower knowing the only thing that killed you was your own Bird Droppings


Rokit