Republic / Ford Aerospace LTV-2 Loon

An Aviation Enthusiast Page

Cruise Missiles : The V-1 Flying Bomb and USAAF JB-2 / JB-1 here

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Despite the V-1's limitations, the US military was very interested in it. In contrast to the bumbling American efforts in radio-controlled flying bombs such as the BQ weapons, the German V-1 looked pretty good, and in July 1944 captured V-1 components were shipped to Wright-Patterson Field in Ohio for evaluation. Within three weeks, the USAAF and American industry had built their own V-1, which was designated the "Jet Bomb 2 (JB-2)".

In August, the USAAF placed an order for 1,000 JB-2s with improved guidance systems: Ford built the pulse-jet engine, designated "PJ-31"; Republic built the airframe; and other manufacturers built the control systems, launch rockets, launch frames, and remaining components.

The JB-2s were launched off a rail with a solid rocket booster, in contrast to the somewhat complicated steam catapult system used by the Germans. Two versions were built, one with a gyroscopic guidance system like that used with the V-1, and the other with a radio-radar guidance system.

The USAAF then experimented with air-launching the JB-2. Most of the launches were from a B-17 bomber, though some were performed from B-24s and B-29s. The Air Force was so enthusiastic with the results that they increased the order for JB-2s to 75,000 in January 1945. However, the end of the war in August dampened enthusiasm for the weapon, and the program was terminated in September of that year after 1,200 had been built.

The US Navy also experimented with their own V-1 variant, the "KUW-1" (later "LTV-N-2") "Loon". Two submarines, the USS CARBENERO and the USS CUSK, and a surface vessel, the USS NORTON SOUND, were modified to launch the flying bombs. In February 1947, the CUSK successfully launched a Loon. The flying bomb was stored in a watertight hanger on the deck of the submarine, and assembled and launched by solid rocket boosters while the submarine was on the surface.

Cruise Missiles Of The 1950s & 1960s here

USAF Museum (Wright Patterson AFB)

JB-2 "Loon" (V-1 Buzz Bomb) here

Designation-Systems.Net

Directory of U.S. Military Rockets and missiles here

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The U.S. Navy had also shown interest in the JB-2 program from the beginning, and suggested to launch the missile from escort carriers. The Navy called the weapon the Loon and in late 1945 the designation KGW-1 was assigned to a proposed submarine-launched tactical weapon. It was briefly considered to arm the Loon with a 15 kT XW-10 nuclear warhead, but these plans were short-lived. The first launch of a KGW-1 occurred in January 1946, and in March that year the Navy approved the conversion of two submarines to Loon launch and guidance boats. However, the Loon officially became a pure research vehicle soon afterwards, and was accordingly redesignated KUW-1. The launches of KUW-1 missiles from a surfaced submarine began in early 1947, and the first successful flight was the fifth one in March that year.

Loon became primarily a launch test vehicle to test and evaluate procedures for firing guided missiles from submarines, and was again redesignated as LTV-2 in September 1947 and finally as LTV-N-2 in early 1948. The LTV-N-2 program was terminated in March 1950, and some of the results were used in the development of the SSM-N-8/RGM-6 Regulus cruise missile.

The Centre for Telecommunications and Information Engineering

  HARCRAVE RPAV Remote Piloted Aerial Vehicles

   NASM Space Artifacts: JB-2 Loon here

Smithonian air and space Museum

Rockets and Missiles: Loon here

Regulus The Forgotten Weapon
David K. Stupf
Paduucah: Turner Pub. Company, 1996
ISBN 96-60266

Models
JB 2 Loon from MPM

Picture from Hannants online model shop here