The Mark 13 torpedo was the U.S. Navy's most common air-launchedtorpedo of World War II. It was designed from the onset as an aircraft torpedo, with unusually squat dimensions for its type: diameter was 22.4 in (569 mm) and length 13 ft 5 in (4.09 m). In the water, the Mark 13 could reach a speed of 33.5 knots (39 mph) for up to 6,300 yards (5,760 m).[1] The United States Navy (USN) is the branch of the United States armed forces responsible for naval operations. ... A bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground targets, primarily by dropping bombs. ... A modern torpedo, historically called a self-propelled torpedo, is a self-propelled guided projectile that (after being launched above or below the water surface) operates underwater and is designed to detonate on contact or in proximity to a target. ... World War II was a truly global conflict with many facets: immense human suffering, fierce indoctrinations, and the use of new, extremely devastating weapons such as the atom bomb. ...
Early models—even when dropped low to the water at slow speeds—were prone to not starting or running on the surface. Later in the war the design was modified to allow drops from as high as 2,400 ft, at speeds up to 410 knots. The final Mark 13 weighed 2,216 lb (1,005 kg); 600 lb (262 kg) of this was the high explosive Torpex.[2] This article is concerned solely with chemical explosives. ... Torpex is an explosive 50% more powerful than TNT by weight. ...
At the close of the war, the Mark 13 was considered one of the most reliable air-dropped torpedoes available.
References
^ National Museum of the United States Air Force (7 February2005). Mark 13 Torpedo". Retrieved 2 August2005.
Torpedo attacks, however, ordinarily are not made against well-defended units, unless supporting attack is made simultaneously by other types of planes to divide the enemy antiaircraft fire.
When the torpedo is installed on the plane, a toggle is hooked to this lever and is attached to the aircraft by a lanyard.
When the torpedo is released, action of the lanyard and toggle trips the starting lever, but a water trip delay valve serves to prevent the combustion flask from lighting off until water entry.
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