Spring Military Aviation and Militaria Auction
Lot 137:
Description
This lot consists of a complete World War II aircraft bombsight assembly, featuring the Type T-1 computer unit and its corresponding mechanical sighting head. Manufactured by the AC Spark Plug Division of General Motors in Flint, Michigan, this system is the United States production version of the British Royal Air Force Mark XIV vector bombsight. The computer unit is contained within a black crinkle-finish metal housing protected by a green tubular metal cage. The face of the computer features manual adjustment dials for flight parameters including wind direction, wind speed in MPH, indicated airspeed, course, target height against sea level pressure, and bombing angle. The sighting head is a complex mechanical and optical instrument used for target acquisition, featuring a calibrated scale for port and starboard drift and a warning label regarding the fragile mirror under the cover. The main data plate on the computer unit is marked: AC SPARK PLUG DIV. G.M.C., FLINT, MICH., COMPUTER BOMBSIGHT TYPE T-1, CONT. AC-33987 SER. AF 43-20846, PART 647494. A secondary plate reads: COMPUTER TYPE N-1, REF. 109/123. Internal views of the computer unit show a complex array of brass bellows, gears, and original wiring. Included is an original paper Serviceable tag from the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) dated September 19, 1945, indicating the unit was processed through Canadian inventory at the conclusion of the war.
Share this lot:
