WW2 Trivia Archive
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What creature did the U.S. military attempt to use as incendiary bomb delivery devices, and how much was spent on the program?
Answer: Mexican free-tailed bats. Dr. Lytle S. Adams proposed strapping tiny napalm-based incendiary devices to bats, which would roost in the eaves of Japanese wooden buildings. FDR approved the program and $2 million was spent before cancellation.
The bats were refrigerated for hibernation in containers that were dropped by parachute. When they warmed up, they flew to roost and the timed charges detonated. During testing at Carlsbad Army Airfield, escaped bats started fires that burned down a hangar and a general's car. Each bomb could start 3,625–4,748 fires. The program was canceled when the Manhattan Project proved more promising.
How did B.F. Skinner propose to guide missiles using pigeons, and did it work?
Answer: The father of operant conditioning trained pigeons to peck at images of ships on a screen inside a missile nose cone. Each peck adjusted the guidance system. Food pellets conditioned the pigeons to track targets accurately.
Three pigeons were placed in a missile nose cone. In tests, pigeons hit targets 55% of the time — better than most mechanical guidance systems of the era. The National Defense Research Committee funded it with $25,000. Canceled only because it sounded too absurd, despite working. Skinner said later: "It was a beautiful idea, but the pigeons were too good for their own good — they never panicked." The scheme was not approved for combat use.
What bear was enlisted as a corporal in the Polish II Corps and carried artillery shells at Monte Cassino?
Answer: Wojtek ("Joyful Warrior"), a Syrian brown bear purchased as a cub from a shepherd boy in Iran in 1942 by Polish soldiers. He was officially enlisted as a private with a service number, paybook, and rations.
Wojtek was taught to salute and drank beer from mess tins (he ate cigarettes but not the tobacco). At the Battle of Monte Cassino in May 1944, he carried 100-lb crates of 25-pound artillery shells to the guns without dropping one. Promoted to Corporal for his service, his unit adopted a bear with a shell as their official emblem. After the war he lived in Edinburgh Zoo. Veterans visited him and the lights would go on when he saw them. He died in 1963 with full military honors. Statues stand in Edinburgh, London, and Kraków.