World War II: The R.A.F.'s first operational use of the Grand Slam bomb, Bielefeld, Germany.
The Bomb, Medium Capacity, 22,000 lb (Grand Slam) was a 22,000 lb (10 t) earthquake bomb used by RAF Bomber Command against German targets towards the end of the Second World War. The bomb was originally called Tallboy Large until the term Tallboy got into the press and the code name was replaced by "Grand Slam". The bomb was similar to a large version of the Tallboy bomb but a new design and closer to the size that its inventor, Barnes Wallis, had envisaged when he developed the idea of an earthquake bomb.
Medium Capacity (M.C.) bombs were designed to remedy the shortcomings of General Purpose (G.P.) bombs, with a greater blast and casings which were robust enough to confer a considerable capacity to penetrate, especially the Tallboy and Grand Slam. The Grand Slam case was made of a chrome-molybdenum alloy steel and had a charge-to-weight ratio of over 43 per cent.
Conventional Avro Lancaster bombers could not carry the bomb and 32 Lancaster B.Mk 1 (Special)s with more powerful engines, a stronger undercarriage, without bomb bay doors and minus many items to save weight, were built. When airborne with the Grand Slam a Special could barely manoeuvre and pilots were advised to refrain from minor adjustments of the flying controls, allowing the aircraft to wallow. A Lancaster which returned with its bomb was not permitted to land at RAF Woodhall Spa, the 617 Squadron base, but had to use the longer runway at RAF Carnaby.
From 14 March to 19 April 1945, 42 Grand Slams were dropped on Germany. When landing on reinforced concrete, the bombs tended to break up when they hit or explode prematurely. The bombs had been designed to land in soft ground, penetrate deeply and then explode, creating a camouflet, causing the structure above to subside. Grand Slams and Tallboys were capable of causing damage that smaller bombs could not, accelerated the collapse of German resistance and avoiding mass civilian casualties. Grand Slams were the most effective bombs used by the Allies until the advent of nuclear weapons later that year. After the war, the Royal Air Force and United States Army Air Forces used Grand Slams and other bombs for research.
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS). Following the Allied victory over the Central Powers in 1918, the RAF emerged as the largest air force in the world at the time. Since its formation, the RAF has taken a significant role in British military history. In particular, it played a large part in the Second World War where it fought its most famous campaign, the Battle of Britain.The RAF's mission is to support the objectives of the British Ministry of Defence (MOD), which are to "provide the capabilities needed to ensure the security and defence of the United Kingdom and overseas territories, including against terrorism; to support the Government's foreign policy objectives particularly in promoting international peace and security". The RAF describes its mission statement as "... [to provide] an agile, adaptable and capable Air Force that, person for person, is second to none, and that makes a decisive air power contribution in support of the UK Defence Mission". The mission statement is supported by the RAF's definition of air power, which guides its strategy. Air power is defined as "the ability to project power from the air and space to influence the behaviour of people or the course of events".Today, the Royal Air Force maintains an operational fleet of various types of aircraft, described by the RAF as being "leading-edge" in terms of technology. This largely consists of fixed-wing aircraft, including those in the following roles: fighter and strike, airborne early warning and control, intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance (ISTAR), signals intelligence (SIGINT), maritime patrol, air-to-air refuelling (AAR) and strategic & tactical transport. The majority of the RAF's rotary-wing aircraft form part of the tri-service Joint Helicopter Command in support of ground forces. Most of the RAF's aircraft and personnel are based in the UK, with many others serving on global operations (principally over Iraq and Syria) or at long-established overseas bases (Ascension Island, Cyprus, Gibraltar, and the Falkland Islands). Although the RAF is the principal British air power arm, the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm and the British Army's Army Air Corps also operate armed aircraft.