laststandonzombieisland

Some 80 years ago today, 12 December 1945, a window into the future of naval maritime patrol and sea control debuted to the public just after it had been vetted in combat.

Official period captions: “The BAT radar pilotless aircraft under the wing of a Convair PB4Y-2 Privateer at the Philadelphia Ordnance District during development and testing. The Bat was a Mark 9 special weapons ordnance device.” Photographs released December 12, 1945.

80-G-701607

80-G-701606

Note two BATs, one under each arm. 80-G-701605

The 1,700-pound SWOD Mk 9 (Special Weapon Ordnance Device) Bat radar-guided glide bomb has been called “arguably the most advanced of the early guided bombs” of the WWII era, and was even used successfully by Privateers of VPB-109 in combat in early 1945.

BAT Air-to-Surface Guided Missile homes in on a target ship during tests. Photograph released 16 October 1946. National Archives photograph 80-G-703161. launched from PBM

What of the Bat, you ask? Well, some 2,500 of these primitive anti-shipping weapons were built, but very few actually dropped before the end of the war.

The Navy re-designated them the ASM-N-2 post-war and kept Bat in inventory until after Korea, when they were replaced by more efficient air-launched weapons (the ASM-N-7/AGM-12 Bullpup in the late 50s, AGM-45 Shrike in the 1960s, and AGM-65 Maverick in the 1970s before Harpoon came around), then used as AAA targets.