Flour Bombing

[MisfitSELF]

Does any one have link or instructions for running a flour bombing event?  I may be looking to do something like this is a few months.  I've seen it done, I've watched some youtube videos, but I was looking for specific things like:

Safety rules, scoring rules, things to work out with your air field tower/management (believe it or not I may do this at lightly used towered field), how to set up targets, how to make the flour bombs, can you color code the flour bombs, and anything that I'm too ignorant to ask about...

 

Thanks,

Bruce

[N201MKTurbo]

I haven't done one of these for like 25 years.

Here is what you need to do:

Have a fun target that is easy to see. The last one I did had a mannequin in a canoe. Not sure why. The target should be about 30 feet in diameter with a clear bulls eye. The target should be somewhere with features you can align on like between the runway and taxiway. 

The target runs should be a defined pattern at a defined altitude and speed. 100 KTS and 500 ft works well. The bombs should be 1 Lb of flour in paper lunch bags. Have the bomber write their N Number a few places on the bag with a sharpie.

 

It is more fun for the bombers if they can do 2 or three bombs with scores radioed to them so they can refine their aim. The score should be distance and direction from the bullseye. The scorers need to be well out of the way or in a sturdy shelter (old car maybe) when the bombs are being dropped. Have the planes hold a few miles from the airport and clear them for the run after the scorers are safe. I have done these where the bombers are not sequenced and it gets to be a dangerous free for all and you lose track of the bombs.

 

You will be surprised how many people will drop the bomb after passing the target thinking it will blow back. If I recall, you want to drop the bomb 3-4 seconds before crossing the target.

Edited June 1, 2022 by N201MKTurbo

[BDPetersen]

I like the 500’ idea. Seems that’s how we used to do it. Last year the fools did one using like 200’. I didn’t participate (how do you bomb from a Mooney? ) but where’s the challenge in 200’? 
I tried doing it from my 310 once, tucking the bags in the split flaps to be released by extending the flaps. They didn’t drop. But it would have been so cool if it worked. Oh well.

[eman1200]

You can’t say bomb on a plane!!!

[N201MKTurbo]

How about powdered grain marker?

It is easy to mark a target with a Mooney. You just toss it out the storm window.

[Tony Starke]

54 minutes ago, N201MKTurbo said:

How about powdered grain marker?

Is that a gluten free option?

[Shadrach]

If you have a local EAA chapter, they might be worth speaking with. Ours does these events several times a year off airport. They seem to have it dialed. They sometimes issue mission papers the night before with target location and arrival time. 

[A64Pilot]

200’ is tougher than you think, 500’ is darn near impossible, just try it, but I can’t imagine a towered airport letting you. There is an FAR about dropping stuff but don’t remember it, surely it prohibits dropping dangerous things.

There is an Airport in Montana I believe that you drop a bowling ball onto a wrecked car, hit the car and the fuel is free. Cut bank Montana maybe?

Here at my grass strip we bust balloons when the wind is real low.

Edited June 2, 2022 by A64Pilot

[A64Pilot]

Seems like the bowling ball drop may be canceled due to liability.

http://www.cutbankpioneerpress.com/cut_bank_pioneer_press/news/article_ebcbc5a2-1d78-11e4-a1fe-0019bb2963f4.html

Really, what could go wrong dropping bowling balls from an airplane?  

[Pinecone]

On 6/2/2022 at 10:39 PM, A64Pilot said:

200’ is tougher than you think, 500’ is darn near impossible, just try it, but I can’t imagine a towered airport letting you. There is an FAR about dropping stuff but don’t remember it, surely it prohibits dropping dangerous things.

There is an Airport in Montana I believe that you drop a bowling ball onto a wrecked car, hit the car and the fuel is free. Cut bank Montana maybe?

Here at my grass strip we bust balloons when the wind is real low.

91.15

"Dropping objects. No pilot in command of a civil aircraft may allow any object to be dropped from that aircraft in flight that creates a hazard to persons or property. However, this section does not prohibit the dropping of any object if reasonable precautions are taken to avoid injury or damage to persons or property."

So with an event, with precautions, it is legal to drop things.

Bombing in general is harder than people thing.  The USAF spent a lot of time, money, and jet fuel teaching me how to do it well.

[BDPetersen]

I recall that despite my clearly superior understanding of the targeting principles involved, I nearly wiped out a couple of parked aircraft not that close to the target.

[carusoam]

On 6/6/2022 at 7:11 AM, Pinecone said:

91.15

"Dropping objects. No pilot in command of a civil aircraft may allow any object to be dropped from that aircraft in flight that creates a hazard to persons or property. However, this section does not prohibit the dropping of any object if reasonable precautions are taken to avoid injury or damage to persons or property."

So with an event, with precautions, it is legal to drop things.

Bombing in general is harder than people thing.  The USAF spent a lot of time, money, and jet fuel teaching me how to do it well.

Did you use the Norden bomb sight or something more digital?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norden_bombsight

 

Norden was more the radial era… no jet fuel to be used… 

Thank you for your service!

Best regards,

-a-

[Pinecone]

1 hour ago, carusoam said:

Did you use the Norden bomb sight or something more digital?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norden_bombsight

 

Norden was more the radial era… no jet fuel to be used… 

Thank you for your service!

Best regards,

-a-

 

Thank you for the thanks.

Norden, nope, I am NOT that old.

We had a HUD with a non-computer controller pipper (dot).  We could adjust the vertical depression of the dot to match the delivery parameters.  Then you flew to the parameters.  If you were off on your parameters (airspeed, altitude, dive angle, G, bank) the bomb went somewhere else.

Newer systems are computer controlled and the bomb hits where the pipper shows.

Also, I was single pilot/crew, so no bombardier to run something like a Norden.

[EricJ]

On 6/7/2022 at 9:50 PM, carusoam said:

Did you use the Norden bomb sight or something more digital?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norden_bombsight

 

Norden was more the radial era… no jet fuel to be used… 

Thank you for your service!

Best regards,

-a-

I got to "use" a Norden when I took a ride on Colling's B-24 several years ago.   I don't think it was fully operational, and I wasn't flying the airplane with it, but I did spot the freeway through it and could've disrupted traffic pretty effectively. 

[A64Pilot]

What was used for the cross hairs in a Norden bomb sight has long been controversial, in its day it was very secret. Never left in the airplane etc. But if you look the bombing stats were abysmal.

I had read that in Germany at least the fighters once they could escort the long ranges after they were turned loose to hit ground targets late in the war actually did more damage than the bombers, and the bombers shot down more fighters, presumably because it wasn’t until late that they had fighter coverage all the way.

https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/hair-wwii-babnik-norden-bombsight

But go find yourself a grass strip and practice “bombing”

As I said here we bust balloons. Little buggers are harder to hit than you think because they don’t rise gently especially in the disturbed air from the airplane ahead of you, pretty sure I missed this one

 

 

[1964-M20E]

years ago I did toilet paper from a C150, not sure how well I did it was only one pass over a remote area.

[thinwing]

ive done frozen turkeys and ice creme to wilderness campers

[Pinecone]

5 hours ago, thinwing said:

ive done frozen turkeys and ice creme to wilderness campers

 

 

 

[A64Pilot]

On 6/21/2022 at 8:15 PM, Pinecone said:

 

 

 

Maybe urban legend, but supposedly the TV show got this from a real event that happened in Atlanta.

https://www.metv.com/stories/the-thanksgiving-episode-of-wkrp-in-cincinnati-was-based-on-a-real-turkey-giveaway-that-went-horribly-wrong

 

Then there is of course the story of the chicken cannon being borrowed to test the windshield of a high speed train, story is they used a frozen chicken with obvious results.

That one I don’t believe, but the turkey’s? maybe

[Pinecone]

18 hours ago, A64Pilot said:

Then there is of course the story of the chicken cannon being borrowed to test the windshield of a high speed train, story is they used a frozen chicken with obvious results.

That one I don’t believe, but the turkey’s? maybe

They told that story about developing the bird resistant windshield for the T-37B.