You searched for world war ii - History and Headlines

Search Results: world war ii (903)

Weird, Wacky and Wonderful Weapons of World War II

By Major Dan on May 31, 2021 Inventions, Lists, May 31, Military

A Brief History On May 31, 1942, the Japanese Imperial Navy commenced an attack on the harbor (harbour for you British types) at Sydney, Australia, using 3 Ko-hyoteki-class midget submarines. With a 2-man crew and armed with a pair of torpedoes, the little subs had the potential to create tremendous damage to any ship afloat. Japan was not the only country to employ midget submarines during World War II, and midget subs were just one of many truly innovative attempts to adapt weapons for special purposes during that war that spawned so much in the way of technological progress. Today…

German Technology Used by the Allies After World War II

By Major Dan on May 10, 2021 Inventions, Lists, May 10, Military

A Brief History On May 10, 1946, at the White Sands Proving Ground in New Mexico the US Army made the first successful launch of a German designed V-2 rocket, the same sort of weapon the Germans had used to terrorize England and Holland during World War II. V-2 technology was not the only German inspired technology to be eagerly scooped and later used by the Allies after World War II, and today we take a look at some of those items (keeping the list short and therefore not all encompassing). As always, feel free to nominate such items as…

Did the Axis Powers Want to Conquer Latin America during World War II?

By Major Dan on April 2, 2021 February 2, Military, Politics

A Brief History From February 2nd through the 15th of 1945, various Latin American countries including Ecuador, Paraguay, Venezuela, and Uruguay joined the Allied Powers by declaring war on Germany and Japan. They were neither the first nor last Latin American countries to do so but represented the most substantial cluster of Latin American declarations of war against the remaining major Axis Powers during World War II. These declarations occurred late in the war when the situation was essentially already hopeless for Germany and Japan. One may wonder why did these Latin American countries wait so long to choose sides…

U-Boats of World War II, Murderers or Honorable Foes?

By Major Dan on May 12, 2020 May 12, Military

A Brief History On May 12, 1942, the German Kriegsmarine submarine, U-507, a Type IXC boat, sank an American tanker, the SS Virginia, with one of its deadly torpedoes while the tanker was in the mouth of the Mississippi River, an affront to the United States bringing deadly danger to shipping right to America’s doorstep. During World War II the submarine fleets of each navy of the major powers played an outsized role in effective naval warfare, and also put the crews of those submarines in more peril than any other naval duty. We have dealt with the subject of…

6 Most Under-rated Airplanes of World War II

By Major Dan on September 27, 2019 Lists, Military, September 27, Vehicles

A Brief History On September 27, 1944, the American bombing command in Europe, the US Army Air Forces’ 8th Air Force, conducted its Kassel Mission, a horrendous raid that resulted in the worst losses for any US bomb group in World War II, a tale we told back in 2013. The 445th Bombardment Group, consisting of 39 Consolidated B-24 Liberator bombers had become separated from the main bombing force, and to make matters worse, also lost their fighter escort. Although the big bombers suffered terribly, they managed to shoot down about 29 German fighters, a remarkable defensive performance by the…