- GB-4
Infobox Weapon
name= GB-4
caption=
origin=United States
type=anti-ship missile /guided bomb
is_ranged=
is_bladed=
is_explosive=
is_artillery=
is_vehicle=
is_missile=yes
is_UK=
service= Never used operationally
used_by=
wars=World War II
designer=
design_date=
manufacturer=
unit_cost=
production_date=
number=
variants=
weight= 2535 lbs (1150 kg)
length= 12 ft 2 in (3.71 m)
part_length= 12 ft (3.66 m) wingspan
width=
height=
diameter=24 in (0.61 m)
crew=
filling=amatol explosive
filling_weight= 2000 pounds (907 kg)
detonation=
yield=
armour=
primary_armament=
secondary_armament=
engine= none
engine_power=
transmission=
payload_capacity= 2000 lbs (900 kg)
fuel_capacity=
pw_ratio=
suspension=
clearance=
vehicle_range= 17 mi (27 km)
speed=
guidance= Television and radio commandGB-4 was a
precision guided munition developed by the United States duringWorld War Two . It was one of the precursors of modernanti-ship missiles .Following German success with the Hs-293 and
Fritz-X , the U.S. began developing several similar weapons, such as Felix, Bat, Gargoyle,GB-8 , and GB-4.GB-4's development began in 1944 as clear weather, good visibility weapon to attack heavily-defended targets; it was only useful against objectives readily identifiable on the crude CRT screens of the period. It featured a
plywood airframe with twin booms and fins with a single elevator. The warhead was a 2000 pound (900 kg) general purpose (GP) bomb.The target was acquired by a
television camera beneath the warhead, with afield of view 18° high and 14° wide, and the bomb was steered byradio command guidance , the operator tracking it by means of flares in the tail. It was intended to be carried externally, under the wing of a B-17 or B-25. Release was at about 175 miles per hour (280 kph) and 15,000 feet (4575 m) altitude, giving a range of 17 miles (27 km), with an average flight time of four minutes. Its accuracy was 200 feet (60 m).The
Pacific War ended before it entered combat.ources
*
ee also
*
Fritz X
*GB-8
* Azon
*Razon
*VB-6 Felix
*List of anti-ship missiles External links
* [http://www.vectorsite.net/twbomb_04.html Allied & German guided weapons of WW2]
* [http://www.ausairpower.net/WW2-PGMs.html The Dawn of the Smart Bomb]
* [http://www.1jma.dk/articles/1jmaarticleshardware.htm Guided weapons of WW2]
* [http://www.designation-systems.net/dusrm/app1/gb.html GB series weapons]
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