SD 250

Last updated
SD 250
SD250.jpg
Type Fragmentation bomb
Place of originFlag of Germany (1935-1945).svg  Nazi Germany
Service history
Used by Luftwaffe
Wars World War II
Production history
VariantsParachute
Specifications
Mass250 kg (550 lb)
Length1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)
Diameter368 mm (14.5 in)
Warhead Amatol
TNT
Warhead weight79 kg (174 lb) [1]

The SD 250 (Sprengbombe Dickwandig 250) or thick walled explosive bomb in English was a fragmentation bomb used by the Luftwaffe during World War II.

<i>Luftwaffe</i> Aerial warfare branch of the German military forces during World War II

The Luftwaffe was the aerial warfare branch of the combined German Wehrmacht military forces during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the Luftstreitkräfte of the Army and the Marine-Fliegerabteilung of the Navy, had been disbanded in May 1920 as a result of the terms of the Treaty of Versailles which stated that Germany was forbidden to have any air force.

World War II 1939–1945 global war

World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The vast majority of the world's countries—including all the great powers—eventually formed two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. A state of total war emerged, directly involving more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. The major participants threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. World War II was the deadliest conflict in human history, marked by 50 to 85 million fatalities, most of whom were civilians in the Soviet Union and China. It included massacres, the genocide of the Holocaust, strategic bombing, premeditated death from starvation and disease, and the only use of nuclear weapons in war.

Contents

History

The second most used category of bombs was the SD series which were high-explosive bombs but with thicker casings which meant their charge to weight ratio was only 30 to 40% of their total weight. At first glance, they were difficult to distinguish from the SC series of bombs, but the two series were color-coded the SC series having yellow tail stripes, while the SD series had red tail stripes. Bombs in this series were the SD 1, SD 1 FRZ, SD 2, SD 10 A, SD 10 FRZ, SD 10 C, SD 15, SD 50, SD 70, SD 250, SD 500, SD 1400, and SD 1700. The number in the bombs designation corresponded to the approximate weight of the bomb. [2]

The SD series was used primarily in two roles that were determined by the type of fuze and accessories fitted to the bomb. The first was as a fragmentation bomb with instantaneous fuze and when the bombs exploded above ground the case created large fragments which would kill enemy personnel and destroy unarmored vehicles. The second role was as a general-purpose or armor-piercing role. In this role, the bombs were fitted with a time delay fuze which detonated the bomb after it had pierced a target destroying it with a combination of its blast and fragments. [2]

General-purpose bomb type of air-dropped bomb

A general-purpose bomb is an air-dropped bomb intended as a compromise between blast damage, penetration, and fragmentation in explosive effect. They are designed to be effective against enemy troops, vehicles, and buildings.

Armor-piercing shell type of ammunition designed to penetrate armor

An armor-piercing shell, AP for short, is a type of ammunition designed to penetrate armor. From the 1860s to 1950s, a major application of armor-piercing projectiles was to defeat the thick armor carried on many warships. From the 1920s onwards, armor-piercing weapons were required for anti-tank missions. AP rounds smaller than 20 mm are typically known as "armor-piercing ammunition", and are intended for lightly-armored targets such as body armor, bulletproof glass and light armored vehicles. The classic AP shell is now seldom used in naval warfare, as modern warships have little or no armor protection, and newer technologies have displaced the classic AP design in the anti-tank role.

Design

The body of the SD 250 was of three-piece welded construction with a nose piece, center section, and tail sections. The tail cone was of sheet steel construction with four braced tail fins. The SD 250 had a transverse fuze pocket in the nose section, a dummy fuze pocket near the tail, and there was a central exploder tube which ran through 2/3 of the Amatol or TNT filling. The SD 250 was filled through the base and was fitted with a welded sheet steel tail cone with ribbed tail fins. A 38 cm (15 in)dinort rod could be added to obtain pre-penetration detonation for anti-personnel use. The SD 250 could also be fitted with a Hohlladung shaped charge that could be added to the nose of the bomb to increase its armor piercing capabilities. This attachment weighed 4 kg (8.8 lb) and was detonated by its own nose fuze. To prevent damage to the bomb a cap made from cement and sawdust separated the explosive charge from the nose of the bomb. When fitted with this attachment the bomb used a delay fuze to explode the bomb after it had penetrated the target. The SD 250 could be vertically or horizontally suspended in a bomb bay or horizontally mounted on a wing or fuselage hardpoint. The SD 250 was painted dark green, sky blue, or aluminum. The tail cone was striped with red and blue. [1]

Amatol Explosive

Amatol is a highly explosive material made from a mixture of TNT and ammonium nitrate. The British name originates from the words ammonium and toluene. Similar mixtures were known as Schneiderite in France. Amatol was used extensively during World War I and World War II, typically as an explosive in military weapons such as aircraft bombs, shells, depth charges, and naval mines. It was eventually replaced with alternative explosives such as composition B, torpex, and tritonal.

TNT chemical compound

Trinitrotoluene (; TNT), or more specifically 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. This yellow solid is sometimes used as a reagent in chemical synthesis, but it is best known as an explosive material with convenient handling properties. The explosive yield of TNT is considered to be the standard measure of bombs and the power of explosives. In chemistry, TNT is used to generate charge transfer salts.

Anti-personnel weapon

An anti-personnel weapon is a weapon primarily used to maim or kill infantry and other personnel not behind armor, as opposed to attacking structures or vehicles, or hunting game. The development of defensive fortification and combat vehicles gave rise to weapons designed specifically to attack them, and thus a need to distinguish between those systems and ones intended to attack people. For instance, an anti-personnel landmine will explode into small and sharp splinters that tear flesh but have little effect on metal surfaces, while anti-tank mines have considerably different design, using much more explosive to effect damage to armored fighting vehicles, or use explosively formed penetrators to punch through armor plating. Note that while the stereotypical tank is effectively invulnerable to anti-personnel, a lightly armored vehicle will still take damage. Take humvees for example. They have light armor and will take severe damage from say, a claymore. The issue has been patched by the add-on armor, but it can still be pierced by this type in some areas

See also

Related Research Articles

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PC 1600

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AB 500-3A

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AB 500-1B

The AB 500-1B(Abwurfbehälter) was a cluster bomb used by the Luftwaffe during World War II.

AB 500-1

The AB 500-1(Abwurfbehälter) was a cluster bomb used by the Luftwaffe during World War II.

AB 250-3

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References

  1. 1 2 United States War Office (1953). German explosive ordnance : (bombs, fuzes, rockets, land mines, grenades and igniters). United States Government Printing Office. OCLC   713755660.
  2. 1 2 Visingr, Lukáš. "Německé letecké bomby: Smrticí arzenál Luftwaffe". Vojsko.net (in Czech). Retrieved 2019-03-07.
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