The aerial torpedo, airborne torpedo or air-dropped torpedo is a naval weapon, the torpedo, designed to be dropped into water from an aircraft (fixed-wing aircraft or helicopter) after which it propels itself to the target. First used in World War I, air-dropped torpedoes were used extensively in World War II, and remain in limited use today. Aerial torpedoes are generally smaller and lighter than submarine- and surface-launched torpedoes.
Historically, the term "aerial torpedo" was used to describe flying bombs and pilotless drone aircraft intended as weapons, the precursor to modern cruise missiles. Today, the term refers primarily to water-borne torpedoes launched from the air.
Read more about Aerial Torpedo: Design, Tactics and Usage
Famous quotes containing the word aerial:
“But with some small portion of real genius and a warm imagination, an author surely may be permitted a little to expand his wings and to wander in the aerial fields of fancy, provided ... that he soar not to such dangerous heights, from whence unplumed he may fall to the ground disgraced, if not disabled from ever rising anymore.”
—Sarah Fielding (1710–1768)