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Westland Wasp
- kebecker
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20 Mar 2020 18:13 #1
by kebecker
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Westland Wasp was created by kebecker
The Wasp from HMS Endurance
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21 Mar 2020 19:59 #2
by Bloodhound1949
Replied by Bloodhound1949 on topic Westland Wasp
Seeing the Wasp just jogged my memory.....In the nineteen- eighties(after the Falklands War) I worked for a well known gas turbine manufacturer and had occasion to visit a type 21 frigate to investigate some engine control problems-spurious engine shutdowns due to faulty overspeed engine probes...Lucas LTD strikes again...On the ship was its Wasp helicopter and I broached the subject of it being rumoured to carry the WE177 nuclear depth bomb,they were very tight lipped about it and gave nothing away..It has since been confirmed that the Wasp could deliver the 600 lb weapon,quite a load for the tiny chopper!
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- canberra
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19 Aug 2020 10:14 #3
by canberra
Replied by canberra on topic Westland Wasp
Ah now was it the WE177 that it could carry or a nuclear depth charge? I cant really see the point of a helicopter carrying a nuclear bomb, it would probably get caught in the blast.
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19 Aug 2020 12:19 #4
by PETERTHEEATER
Replied by PETERTHEEATER on topic Westland Wasp
I think the intention was to use the weapon to reach target subs at great depth. The yield would have been a few kilotons with most of the energy contained below. It is likely the warhead had a yield that could be selected before drop to take into account target depth.
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19 Aug 2020 14:34 #5
by Peter Kirk
No Amount Of Evidence Will Ever Persuade An Idiot (probably not Mark Twain)
Replied by Peter Kirk on topic Westland Wasp
I seem to recall reading a speculative piece on the impact of a nuclear bomb detonation (size not recalled) at the bottom of the Marianas Trench. The theory was not much on the surface apart from a slight increase in swell and bubbles. I wonder if the same applied to a nuclear DC at submarine depth (300m?), assuming it was a low yield type?
No Amount Of Evidence Will Ever Persuade An Idiot (probably not Mark Twain)
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19 Aug 2020 16:58 - 19 Aug 2020 16:59 #6
by netcompsys
A Wasp carrying the WE177A Depth Bomb
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kevin
Replied by netcompsys on topic Westland Wasp
Seeing the Wasp just jogged my memory.....In the nineteen- eighties(after the Falklands War) I worked for a well known gas turbine manufacturer and had occasion to visit a type 21 frigate to investigate some engine control problems-spurious engine shutdowns due to faulty overspeed engine probes...Lucas LTD strikes again...On the ship was its Wasp helicopter and I broached the subject of it being rumoured to carry the WE177 nuclear depth bomb,they were very tight lipped about it and gave nothing away..It has since been confirmed that the Wasp could deliver the 600 lb weapon,quite a load for the tiny chopper!
A Wasp carrying the WE177A Depth Bomb
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Last edit: 19 Aug 2020 16:59 by netcompsys.
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19 Aug 2020 22:28 #7
by Bloodhound1949
Replied by Bloodhound1949 on topic Westland Wasp
What a wopper!
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20 Aug 2020 11:32 #8
by canberra
Replied by canberra on topic Westland Wasp
So what is the difference between a depth bomb and a depth charge?
Must admit I always thought that the WE177 was either an air burst or ground burst weapon.
So was this the nuclear weapon that Nimrods carried?
Must admit I always thought that the WE177 was either an air burst or ground burst weapon.
So was this the nuclear weapon that Nimrods carried?
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20 Aug 2020 12:29 - 20 Aug 2020 12:30 #9
by netcompsys
The WE177A Depth Bomb could be set to either 0.5 or 10 Kt depending on the depth of water and the proximity of allied shipping
The Nimrod never carried the WE177 but used an American depth bomb, the B57 I think
Bomb from an aircraft, charge from a ship ??
kevin
Replied by netcompsys on topic Westland Wasp
So what is the difference between a depth bomb and a depth charge?
Must admit I always thought that the WE177 was either an air burst or ground burst weapon.
So was this the nuclear weapon that Nimrods carried?
The WE177A Depth Bomb could be set to either 0.5 or 10 Kt depending on the depth of water and the proximity of allied shipping
The Nimrod never carried the WE177 but used an American depth bomb, the B57 I think
Bomb from an aircraft, charge from a ship ??
kevin
Last edit: 20 Aug 2020 12:30 by netcompsys.
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20 Aug 2020 12:37 - 20 Aug 2020 12:40 #10
by PETERTHEEATER
Replied by PETERTHEEATER on topic Westland Wasp
In simple terms a DC was surface launched and a DB air dropped
A depth charge can be considered a shallow reach device operated by hydrostatic pressure at a depth preset before launch. The yield of the charge being HE was fixed dependent on the depth at which it actually detonated. Good for diesel/electric subs with limited speed and depth limit
A depth bomb such as WE177 could be programmed before drop to function at any depth up to its maximum and the yield (power) preset over a range up to several hundred kilotons.(IIRC) Good against nuclear/steam powered subs capable of high-speeds at great depths.
I think the preferred load on Nimrod was a nuclear armed homing US torpedo not a depth bomb.
A depth charge can be considered a shallow reach device operated by hydrostatic pressure at a depth preset before launch. The yield of the charge being HE was fixed dependent on the depth at which it actually detonated. Good for diesel/electric subs with limited speed and depth limit
A depth bomb such as WE177 could be programmed before drop to function at any depth up to its maximum and the yield (power) preset over a range up to several hundred kilotons.(IIRC) Good against nuclear/steam powered subs capable of high-speeds at great depths.
I think the preferred load on Nimrod was a nuclear armed homing US torpedo not a depth bomb.
Last edit: 20 Aug 2020 12:40 by PETERTHEEATER. Reason: Add comment re Nimrod.
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