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Concept
Aerial torpedo
Summary
An aerial torpedo (also known as an airborne torpedo or air-dropped torpedo) is a torpedo launched from a torpedo bomber aircraft into the water, after which the weapon propels itself to the target.
First used in World War I, air-dropped torpedoes were used extensively in World War II, and remain in limited use. Aerial torpedoes are generally smaller and lighter than submarine- and surface-launched torpedoes.
The idea of dropping lightweight torpedoes from aircraft was conceived in the early 1910s by Bradley A. Fiske, an officer in the United States Navy. A patent for this was awarded in 1912. Fiske worked out the mechanics of carrying and releasing the aerial torpedo from a bomber, and defined tactics that included a night-time approach so that the target ship would be less able to defend itself. Fiske imagined the notional torpedo bomber would descend rapidly in a sharp spiral to evade enemy guns, then at an altitude of about would level off long enough to line up with the torpedo's intended path. The aircraft would release the torpedo at a distance of from the target. In 1915, Fiske proposed attacking enemy fleets within their own harbors using this method, if there was enough water (depth and expanse) for the torpedo to run. However, the United States Congress appropriated no funds for aerial torpedo research until 1917 when the U.S. entered into direct action in World War I. The U.S. would not have special-purpose torpedo planes until 1921.
Meanwhile, the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) began actively experimenting with this possibility. The first successful aerial torpedo drop was unofficially performed by the later RFC pilot Charles Gordon Bell on 27 July 1914 - dropping a Whitehead torpedo from a Short S.64 seaplane. Gordon Bell was followed the next day by RNAS pilot Arthur Longmore, when officially testing an aerial torpedo. The success of these experiments led to the construction of the first purpose-built operational torpedo aircraft, the Short Type 184, built from 1915.
Official source
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