How U.S. Artillery Became 50x Deadlier Than German FLAK

Video Description

How U.S. Artillery Became 50x Deadlier Than German FLAK This video explains how proximity fuzes turned Allied guns into far more effective weapons almost overnight. We set the stage with interwar artillery doctrine, field guns, howitzers, mortars, and the limits of point-detonating and mechanical time fuzes in anti-aircraft and ground roles. Then we trace the problem at sea in the Pacific, where 5-inch dual-purpose guns, Bofors 40 mm, and Oerlikon 20 mm struggled to stop fast, low attacks, and how radar fire control still needed shells to burst in the right place. From there the story moves to the British concept handed to U.S. engineers, the miniature “VT” fuze with a battery activated at launch, a tiny radio set that sensed proximity, and the design fixes that kept delicate electronics alive through launch acceleration and spin. You will see what changed on January 5, 1943, when U.S. Navy ships first used VT fuzes in combat and anti-aircraft effectiveness jumped by orders of magnitude. The description follows rapid rollout to naval and coastal guns, British use against V-1s, and the strict secrecy that kept VT rounds over water until late 1944. Finally, we cover ground artillery in the Battle of the Bulge, when VT-fuzed airbursts above advancing troops made fog and terrain irrelevant and pushed German commanders to rethink tactics. A clear, complete overview of proximity fuze technology, radar-guided fire control, 5-inch naval gunnery, and how VT shells reshaped anti-aircraft and field artillery effectiveness in World War II. Chapters: 00:00 – Overnight, guns get deadly 01:52 – Old artillery vs new reality 07:00 – Pacific AA crisis 10:45 – How the VT proximity fuse works 14:30 – First kills and the Bulge