Carl Norden

Carl Lucas Norden (April 23, 1880 – 1965) was a Dutch-born American engineer, born in Semarang, Java and educated at the ETH Zurich in Switzerland. Norden emigrated to the United States in 1904.

Along with Elmer Sperry, he worked the first gyrostabilizing equipment for US ships, and became known for his contributions to military hardware. In 1913, he left Sperry and formed his own company. In 1920, he started work on the Norden bombsight for the United States Navy. The first bombsight was produced in 1927. The device was used to drop bombs accurately from an aircraft, supposedly accurate enough to hit a 100 foot circle from and altitude of 21,000 feet—but under actual combat situations, such an accuracy was never achieved.

Norden died in Switzerland in 1965.

External links

* [http://www.nordenretireesclub.org/norden_bio.htm Biography at Norden Retirees Club]