The Really Bad Ideas Thread

[Snowtrooper]

What's even worse than a using part of the hangar deck of an aircraft carrier as a flight deck?

Hangar deck catapults for launching fighters (not enough power to launch a bomber) athwartship (to the sides). Sure, battleships and cruisers had such contraptions, but they on the top and were used to launch Shagbat and the like (which, like the Stringbag, could fly backwards in a stiff breeze), not Hellcats and Corsairs... and these were built on Essex-class carriers of all things.

[AS.12]

Bad Nuclear Bombers.
What's the daftest thing you can think of to hang a nuke from, i.e. something that can barely get out of it's own way, never mind the shockwave of the nuke it just dropped?

I'm pretty sure the Westland Wasp was cleared for WE.177A


Also, nuclear dive-bombing was an 'approved' delivery method for the Skyraider and Skyhawk! 

[Rheged]

Bad Nuclear Bombers.
What's the daftest thing you can think of to hang a nuke from, i.e. something that can barely get out of it's own way, never mind the shockwave of the nuke it just dropped?

I'm pretty sure the Westland Wasp was cleared for WE.177A

Wasp was indeed cleared for WE.177 as a nuclear depth charge.  Max speed 110kts loaded.    Stringbag could carry a much heavier weight, max speed 140 kts loaded.   I think on balance the 1930's technology is marginally less inappropriate!!

[Snowtrooper]

Also, nuclear dive-bombing was an 'approved' delivery method for the Skyraider and Skyhawk!

Wasn't the Skyraider (and Skyhawk) supposed to use "toss bombing" as was the doctrine of the time (laydown delivery had not been invented yet)? Dive bombing with nukes in a Spad would have been a certain suicide, toss bombing would in theory have given a however slight chance to get a piece of terrain between the plane and the insta-sunshine.

[AS.12]

Wasn't the Skyraider (and Skyhawk) supposed to use "toss bombing" as was the doctrine of the time

Indeed, however there were five delivery profiles for the Mk. 7 weapon; low-loft, medium-loft, over-shoulder, laydown and... dive.

The dive-bombing method differs from conventional dive-bombing only in the higher altitude of the release in order to permit the pilot to escape from the weapon's effects

There are various training videos on YouTube that mention this.  None of them mention the likelihood or not of escaping.

[Rick Lowe]

wasn't there a suggestion of rubberized carrier decks and undercarriage  less aircraft

Yep the RN played with it in the late '40s/early '50s. Even got as far as full scale trials using a Sea Vampire as the test aircraft. On it's own terms it worked (i.e. the aircraft landed and took off successfully, but the wider problem was that, without undercarriage, you couldn't land at, or take off from, any normal airfield that didn't have a 'rubber runway', and with undercarriage to allow that, there was no advantage. Tad limiting.....

As used in 'Thunderball' - by a Vulcan...! 

[zenrat]

The dive-bombing method differs from conventional dive-bombing only in the higher altitude of the release in order to permit the pilot to escape from the weapon's effects

Higher?  Like 20,000 feet higher maybe.

[Rick Lowe]

The dive-bombing method differs from conventional dive-bombing only in the higher altitude of the release in order to permit the pilot to escape from the weapon's effects

...


Higher, like 20,000 feet higher...

[Snowtrooper]

There are various training videos on YouTube that mention this.  None of them mention the likelihood or not of escaping.

Well that's hardly a surprise.

Back in 2004 in the conscription we were everyone (irrespective of the service branch) given the "soldier's handbook" that instructed in various stunts (usually involving anti-tank work) that were unlikely to succeed but very likely to get you killed anyway, neither of which was mentioned of course (pulling a string of AT mines attached to a rope at the last minute into the front of an advancing enemy tank especially comes to mind). At least in actual training some of this was presented in a more realistic form.

[NARSES2]

Here you go: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7Lu6LEQ0zo

TomZ

Cheers Tom

[zenrat]

I'm currently reading a book about WW1 aviation and have been trying to decide what was the worst aircraft idea of that war.
There were a few options but I think the Spad A2 takes the bikky.


I wonder how many Observers/Gunners fell for the old "pass me a cigarette" trick...

[Rheged]

An offering from the Kreigsmarine:-

The Focke-Achgelis Fa 330 Bachstelze (English: Wagtail) was a type of rotary-wing kite, known as a gyroglider or rotor kite. They were towed behind German U-boats during World War II to allow a lookout to see further.

https://uboat.net/technical/bachstelze.htm

If/when the towing u boat  had to crash dive, the pilot could jettison the blades and rotor hub. When the rotor assembly separated, it automatically opened a parachute attached to both the machine and the pilot. The pilot then released his safety belt and the aircraft dropped into the sea, leaving the pilot descending alone by parachute.  At this point, in the words of a British Admiralty report, "the pilot then drowns in the traditional manner"

[PR19_Kit]

I've got a kit of one of those, it's almost all etched brass and came in an envelope, flat as can be.

Very, very weird. 

[Weaver]

An offering from the Kreigsmarine:-

The Focke-Achgelis Fa 330 Bachstelze (English: Wagtail) was a type of rotary-wing kite, known as a gyroglider or rotor kite. They were towed behind German U-boats during World War II to allow a lookout to see further.

https://uboat.net/technical/bachstelze.htm

If/when the towing u boat  had to crash dive, the pilot could jettison the blades and rotor hub. When the rotor assembly separated, it automatically opened a parachute attached to both the machine and the pilot. The pilot then released his safety belt and the aircraft dropped into the sea, leaving the pilot descending alone by parachute.  At this point, in the words of a British Admiralty report, "the pilot then drowns in the traditional manner"

Not sure that that's really a bad idea. My understanding is that these things were actually quite effective, and at least the parachuting pilot survives hitting the water, thus at least giving him a chance, however slight, of being picked up.

[NARSES2]

Not sure that that's really a bad idea. My understanding is that these things were actually quite effective, and at least the parachuting pilot survives hitting the water, thus at least giving him a chance, however slight, of being picked up.

Absolutely Harold. As long as you can give the guy a minimal chance of survival it makes him feel far better ( we always assume we will be that 1%) and makes the guy sending him up there feel better.