Mk.13-6 (2,216 lb)
Contents
Description
The Mk.13-6 is an American air-dropped torpedo.
Vehicles equipped with this weapon
| Vehicles equipped with this weapon | |
|---|---|
| Bombers | TBD-1 |
| TBF | TBF-1C · ▄Avenger Mk II |
| PBY-5 | PBY-5 Catalina · PBY-5A Catalina · ▂PBY-5A Catalina · ▄Catalina Mk IIIa |
| SB2C | SB2C-1C · SB2C-4 · ▄SB2C-5 |
| B-26 | B-26B · B-26C |
General info
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Effective damage
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Comparison with analogues
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Usage in battles
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Pros and cons
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Pros:
Cons:
History
The Mark 13 was the first aerial torpedo accepted into service by the United States Navy, but it had its teething problems for most of the war. It was not a thoroughly tested design before its adoption and when it entered service, it found itself having a reputation for malfunctioning in almost every manner a torpedo could conceivably fail. As a result, modifications were made to the design such as with the Mk 13-6.
The modification of the Mark 13 to the Mark 13-6 Case came from studies by the California Institute of Technology at the Morris Reservoir Naval Weapons Test Site in Los Angeles. By dropping the Mark 13 into the water from a 300-foot slide down the Morris Dam, into the reservoir to study all aspects of the torpedo’s drop into the clear water. The results of the test showed the “low and slow” doctrine of the US Navy’s torpedoes bombers was counterproductive as the flat angle of the torpedo entering the water would damage the mechanism. From these tests, the Mark 13 Mod 2A was created which was more reliable due to less fragile components along with the addition of a water trip delay valve to delay the torpedo from firing when dropped at an altitude higher than 300 feet. The Mark 13-6 uses the Mark 2A as a basis but adds another innovation: the shroud ring.
The idea of the shroud ring ironically came from the Imperial Japanese Navy. To get their Type 91 aerial torpedoes to enter at the proper angle, the IJN added a wood box-shaped tail design to shear off when the torpedo entered the water and ensure it fired at the correct depth. This modification was used to excellent effect during their attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941, but the US Navy first observed it May 8th, 1942. On this date during the Battle of the Coral Sea, Captain Fredrick of the USS Lexington noticed the addition of the wooden shroud rings on Type 91 torpedoes from B5N “Kate” torpedo bombers. As the Mark 13’s planned replacement, the Mark 25 was still undergoing development, the Mark 13-6 was built as an interim solution to improve the aerial torpedoes of the US Navy. By February 1944, the Mark 13-6 could be dropped at altitudes of 1,000 feet. Further improvements to the design led to the later Mk. 13-6 Case.
Media
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See also
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