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Munich Detonates WWII Bomb

theatlanticwire.com

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Re: Munich Detonates WWII Bomb

#11

Post by mhd »

donretag wrote: post #5

Pardon my ignorance, but how involved was Munich in the entire WWII conflict? It was not too close to the front (especially to the west) and the closest bordering nations were allies.

74 air raids, 60k bombs plus a few million incendiary devices, about 90% of the city center destroyed.

There was lots of industry (BMW, Dornier) in Munich, a few important airports and it was the Capital of the Movement, i.e. the place where the whole Nazi BS started[1].

[1]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beer_Hall_Putsch

Re: Munich Detonates WWII Bomb

#12

Post by demallien »

donretag wrote: post #5

Pardon my ignorance, but how involved was Munich in the entire WWII conflict? It was not too close to the front (especially to the west) and the closest bordering nations were allies.

Munich is the home of BMW, and a major industrial centre of the southern part of Germany. As such it was a desirable target for the Allied war effort. According to Wikipedia, 42% of the city was destroyed during the bombing campaign:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strategic_bombing_during_World_...

Re: Munich Detonates WWII Bomb

#13

Post by mhd »

hendrik-xdest wrote: post #9
jlgreco wrote: post #6

I am guessing either this type of bomb wasn't designed to create shrapnel, or they removed the casing beforehand somehow?

They did not. I've read in a German newspaper today that a piece of the metal casing has been found 300 meters off, near one of the main roads of Munich. They coated the bomb in straw and sandbags to minimize the shrapnel as best as possible, though.

The did say that they found "Splitter" as far as 300m away, but that could apply to both shrapnel and just pieces of the casing.

Re: Munich Detonates WWII Bomb

#14

Post by jlgreco »

hendrik-xdest wrote: post #9
jlgreco wrote: post #6

I am guessing either this type of bomb wasn't designed to create shrapnel, or they removed the casing beforehand somehow?

They did not. I've read in a German newspaper today that a piece of the metal casing has been found 300 meters off, near one of the main roads of Munich. They coated the bomb in straw and sandbags to minimize the shrapnel as best as possible, though.

Ah, I was thinking the straw/sand was more to dampen the shock-wave somehow. Interesting, I would have though that the shrapnel from a bomb that big would have been far more devastating even with sandbags; I guess they probably used more than I was picturing in my head. Fascinating stuff.
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