Buzz Bomb/ GORGON in Philly NEW PHOTOS ! 4-3-9

cozmo · **Posted:** Sat Mar 28, 2009 1:50 pm

armyjunk2 wrote:

Here is what I believe is an original V-1, it is in Greencastle In at the courthouse. I think it probably came from Freeman Field.

Pretty interesting , don't know its accuracy

Quote:

Greencastle, Indiana - WWII V-1 German Buzz Bomb

One of only two WW II V-1 German Buzz Bombs in the U.S., Greencastle's Nazi rocket trophy is mounted on v-shaped concrete pillars, poised as if gliding into downtown.

According to the Putnam County Convention and Visitors Bureau: "It came into the Navy's possession during the war and was shipped to a naval base in Virginia. After the war, members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1550 in Greencastle asked the government for a buzz bomb to make a war memorial. That required legislation being passed in both houses of the U.S. Congress."

"The first nose on the bomb was a garbage can cover. Because the nose was a fuse, it wasn't shipped. However, another bomb was acquired and a new nose was fabricated." [Kim Sole, 05/03/2002]

Back to previously scheduled V-1 thread in progress.

Though the one in Philly is not listed here:

Preserved Axis Aircraft

Second Air Force · **Posted:** Sat Mar 28, 2009 3:02 pm

Rauhbatz wrote:

I remember seeing that JB2 at Florence (V-1 was always one of my favorite birds, especially the Hawk model version with the plastic orange flame!).

It had an odd color scheme (yellow, gray) but I do recall some nose art on the left forward side of the fuse.

I think it might be at the Warner Robbins Museum as I saw several of the Florence birds there within a storage fence(e.g. the remote control helo that flew off US Destroyers).

Our family used to go past that museum many times on the way to Myrtle Beach (my brother and I actually stopped in after Hurricane Hugo). I regret not being there when the musuem closed as I would have loved to pick up that JB2. Sure would look nice on a pole in our garden! :lol:

Any insights from WIXer's on where it wound up would be welcome...

KK

I still have parts of my Hawk kit in a spares box, including the flame!

Thanks for the info on the Florence JB-1. I wonder what happened to the NASA-surplus computer consoles they had in the exhibit hall.......

Scott

Rauhbatz · **Posted:** Sat Mar 28, 2009 5:03 pm

Hang on to that Hawk kit..I have an unassembled original that even in thse hard times fetches a decent sum on Ebay.

When I was there with my brother it was not long after Hugo and before they closed the museum. I do remember the Nasa consoles being there. That would have made for some very interesting living room furniture!

Im sure there is an article somewhere on the web about where the JB-2 and the consoles went (there is a fair body of work on where the aircraft went). I seem to recollect some magazine articles about those items.

That museum was a high point of a long drive from Ohio to MB...I need to hop on Google earth or take a 172 cross country to see what it looks like today..

Rainy night in Georgia....let me see if I can find something before the Earth Hour this evening.

Clifford Bossie · **Posted:** Sat Mar 28, 2009 5:27 pm

The Air Defense Museum on Ft. Bliss has a V-1 that was shipped to Germany in the 90s for a rebuild. It returned to the museum a couple of years ago and is now on display again.

Canso42 · **Posted:** Sat Mar 28, 2009 8:16 pm

In Bryan, Tx. there used to be a mock up buzz bomb made out of a surplus Navy paravane. If you're unfamiliar with those, they used to used them on big warships. It was like a cross between buzz bomb and torpedo with a cable cutter on the nose. They were on a long tether from the ship sailing subsurface for the purpose of cutting mine cables. Dont know how well the things worked in practice but they make cool gate gaurds.

doug

bdk · **Joined:** Sun May 02, 2004 1:16 am **Posts:** 11324

See/hear a Buzz Bomb engine run daily at the Chino Airshow in May. The engine is from a JB-2 Loon, a reverse engineered American copy of a V-1.

retroaviation · **Posted:** Sun Mar 29, 2009 12:27 pm

I'm pretty sure the Fighter Factory has one as well. If I recall correctly, I believe they said they tried to get it running and got a single "burp" out of it, then quit. :-)

Gary

jet1 · **Posted:** Sun Mar 29, 2009 5:35 pm

I believe its in the HAFB museum in Utah. Also there are reports that there are "several" crashed ones in the wendover desert that were test fired after the war.

The Inspector · **Posted:** Sun Mar 29, 2009 9:01 pm

COSMOSPHERE in Hutchinson, KS. has a V-1 that you can touch, the wing skin is just very thin sheet steel.
FHC has two, a V-1 and a Fi-103 manned version

Robbie Roberts · **Posted:** Sun Mar 29, 2009 11:20 pm

retroaviation wrote:

I'm pretty sure the Fighter Factory has one as well. If I recall correctly, I believe they said they tried to get it running and got a single "burp" out of it, then quit. :-)

Gary

I can confirm the Fighter Factory DOES have one- I saw it when I visited there 3 or 4 years ago, in the back of their large storage hangar at Suffolk Municipal(or whatever that place is called) where their maintenance facility is. They told me they can do engine runs with it. I imagine it may appear at the airshow in May. If my FF pics are still up in the WWII pics section(I have to look up the thread) you can just see the top of the motor above the PK I-16.

Robbie

armyjunk2 · **Joined:** Wed May 16, 2007 8:15 pm **Posts:** 833

look what i saw at the NAsm today, isn't this the same?

JDK · **Posted:** Mon Mar 30, 2009 6:56 pm

Well, Stap me.

That's it! Never heard of it before.

And it look like it's not the only one left. Who wants to tell the pole-dancer owners what they've got? (And the NASM that someone else has got one? :lol:

)

cozmo · **Posted:** Mon Mar 30, 2009 7:15 pm

Wow, that is neat.

They may not want to advertise it though.
Somebody may decide that their ownership papers are not in order.

Never mind, they already know about it:

About a third of the way down

Jiggersfromsphilly · **Joined:** Fri Jun 17, 2005 3:15 pm **Posts:** 951

Here is some more!

http://www.designation-systems.net/dusr ... m-n-5.html

I think there is a recent picture that matches one in this item???HMMM??

the330thbg · **Joined:** Wed Nov 14, 2007 3:06 pm **Posts:** 2713

so do these people know this is a 'Gorgon' missle.., or do people drive by and go.., 'why is there a buzz bomb in this German neighborhood?

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Buzz Bomb/ GORGON in Philly NEW PHOTOS ! 4-3-9

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