Azon

AZON (AZimuth ONly) was one of the world's first smart bombs, deployed by the Allies and contemporary with the German Fritz X.

Officially designated VB-1 (Vertical Bomb), it was invented by Major Henry J. Rand and Thomas J. O'Donnell during the latter stages of World War II, as the answer to the difficult problem of destroying the narrow wooden bridges that supported much of the Burma Railway.

AZON was essentially a 1,000 lb (450 kg) bomb with a radio controlled tail fin allowing adjustment of the vertical trajectory in two planes, making basically a guided fall. There were gyroscopes mounted in the bomb to stabilise it, and a radio control system, which had about three minutes of battery life, long enough to guide it from a 5,000 foot (1,500 m) drop height. On the tail of the bomb was a 600,000 candela flare, to enable the pilot to observe it from the control aircraft. It was dropped from a modified B-24 Liberator. Only ten crews, of the 458th Heavy Bombardment Group, based at RAF Horsham St Faith, were trained to drop the device.

AZON crews famously destroyed Bridge 277, the Bridge on the River Kwai, although they used four 1,000 lb conventional bombs from tree-top height, making four direct hits and destroying one concrete pier, along with two of the spans.

Azon Operations by Eighth Air Force, June-September, 1944
Target	Date	Result
Melun	June 8, 1944	Mission 400: an attack on the Melun bridge by an Azon unit is foiled by clouds.
Ham-sur-Somme	June 14, 1944	Mission 412: 7 of 15 B-24s hit the Ham-sur-Somme Bridge and 5 use Azon missiles against targets of opportunity; no losses.
Etaples	June 15, 1944	Mission 414: 12 B-24s use Azon missiles against Etaples railroad bridge and 7 others use the missiles against the Pecrone railroad bridge.
Samur	June 22, 1944	Mission 432: 9 of 10 B-24s use Azon glide bombs against the Samur Bridge; escort is provided by 41 of 43 P-51s.
Les Foulous	August 17, 1944	Mission 558: 10 B-24s are dispatched to drop Azon missiles on the Les Foulous, France rail bridge but the mission is abandoned due to deteriorating weather.
Moerdijk	August 25 & 26, 1944	Mission 571: 10 of 10 B-24s fly an Azon glide bomb mission to Moerdijke, the Netherlands but the target is missed. Escort is provided by 36 of 36 P-47s without loss. Mission 577: 9 of 10 B-24s fly an AZON bomb mission to Moerdijk rail bridge, the Netherlands but clouds prevent an attack. Escort is provided by 32 P-51s.
Ravenstein	September 1, 1944	Mission 597: 12 of 12 Azon-equipped B-24s hit the Ravenstein rail bridge, the Netherlands without loss. Escort is provided by 15 of 15 P-51s.
Hemminstedt & Kropp	September 13, 1944	Mission 629: 11 B-24s are dispatched on an Azon mission to the oil refinery at Hemminstedt (6); 5 hit the secondary target, ammunition dumps at Kropp. Escort is provided by 15 of 15 P-51s without loss.

See also

• Fritz X
• Razon
• GB-8
• List of anti-ship missiles

External links

• Allied & German guided weapons of WW2
• The Dawn of the Smart Bomb
• Guided weapons of WW2
• GB series weapons

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