The tail spindle is given an arrow-head shape, the
vanes being utilised to steady the downward flight of the
missile. In falling the bomb spins round, the rotating speed
increasing as the projectile gathers velocity. The vanes act as
a guide, keeping the projectile in as vertical a plane as
possible, and ensuring that the rounded head shall strike the
ground. The earlier types of bombs were not fitted with these
vanes, the result being that sometimes they turned over and over
as they fell through the air, while more often than not they
failed to explode upon striking the ground.
The method of launching the bomb also varies considerably,
experience not having indicated the most efficient method of
consummating this end. In some cases the bombs are carried in a
cradle placed beneath the aeroplane and launched merely by
tilting them in a kind of sling, one by one, to enable them to
drop to the ground, this action being controlled by means of a
lever. In another instance they are dropped over the side of the
car by the pilot, the tail of the bomb being fitted with a swivel
and ring to facilitate the operation.
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