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Radio navigation aids also assisted in landing. One type, introduced in 1929, was the four-course radio range, where the pilot was guided by the strength of Morse code signals. Another type that was tried experimentally was the low-frequency radio beam. These radio beams flared outward from the landing point like a "v," so at the point farthest from the runway, the beams were widely separated and it was easy for the pilot to fly between them. But near the landing point, the space between the beams was extremely narrow, and it was often easy for the pilot to miss the exact centerpoint that he had to hit for landing. Another new method had a pilot tune into a certain frequency at a checkpoint far from the airport, then use a stopwatch to descend at a precise rate to the touchdown area of the runway. This method also proved difficult.
The instrument landing system (ILS) incorporated the best features of both approach lighting and radio beacons with higher frequency transmissions. The ILS painted an electronic picture of the glideslope onto a pilot's cockpit instruments. Tests of the system began in 1929, and the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) authorized installation of the system in 1941 at six locations. The first landing of a scheduled U.S. passenger airliner using ILS was on January 26, 1938, as a Pennsylvania-Central Airlines Boeing 247-D flew from Washington, D.C., to Pittsburgh and landed in a snowstorm using only the ILS system.
More than one type of ILS system was tried. The system eventually adopted consisted of a course indicator (called a localizer) that showed whether the plane was to the left or right of the runway centerline, a glide path or landing beam to show if the plane was above or below the glide slope, and two marker beacons for showing the progress of approach to the landing field. Equipment in the airplane allowed the pilot to receive the information that was sent so he could keep the craft on a perfect flight path to visual contact with the runway. Approach lighting and other visibility equipment are part of the ILS and also aid the pilot in landing. In 2001, the ILS remains basically unchanged.
Anyone knows how the Germans used radio aids for landing operations?
If allied planes had the ability to fly by instruments right down to the ground to their bases....the germans could figure out a way to exploit that. using instruments themselves, when the weather was horrible, they could follow allied the formations home. the weather would prevent them from being distinguished as allied or not.
According to this Wikipedia article:
Instrument landing system - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This:
Is a Luftwaffe AFN 2 indicator, built 1943. It appears to have a glide slope indicator. Anyone knows how the Germans used radio aids for landing operations?
.`The primary difference between the EBL 1 and the EBL 3 was sensitivity to allow ,what was basically a ILS system, to be used for bombing."
Bobbysocks,
I'm pretty sure the Allied aircraft used an IFF (Identification Friend or Foe), which helped prevent events like what you described.
Cheers,
Biff
The LW certainly infiltrated the bomber streams returning to Yorkshire, there is a memorial to it at Elvington. From memory a ju88 was shot down and it destroyed a cottage when it crashed. edit...I found thisLuftwaffe night intruders did fly over the UK, in the areas of, or approaches to, known RAF and USAAF airfields.
Quite a number of bombers were lost just as they thought they were safely home, with a notable loss to USAAF night operations in late 1944 - can't remember the date offhand.
The German aircraft did not 'follow the beam' of allied ILS systems of the period, but 'loitered' until a radar 'fix', or visual, was obtained.
However, quite a number of Luftwaffe night losses over the UK were also incurred, both to allied night fighters, and flak.
Arnim Faber landed his FW190 in England, thinking he had crossed the Channel.
He had - the Bristol Channel !
The RAF were then presented with a brand new, fully functioning 'Wurger' to inspect at leisure.
And yes, in general, all allied aircraft operating over Europe carried IFF, from 1940 onwards.