A New Form of Artillery

[M79]

...this represents the first collaboration between Japanese and German teams regarding various technologies. Our adaptation of their oxygen-driven torpedoes allowed for some of our more notable victories in the Atlantic recently, and after thst success we investigated both the now-successful trial of the Type 80 submarine system and the development of the new bomber. Although still in testing, our engineers refined their impressive design and added better engines. Early data suggest a bomb load of 15,000 kg with a top speed of 715kph and range of over 8500 km. The service ceiling will just exceed 13km, but if we can place Jumo 014s or the proposed HeS-212 or Jumo 024 in place even greater results may be feasible. For now we are working to improve and refine their "Homare" engine design but this propellor-driven aircraft may enable us to attack industrial targets anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere. We have also fitted this engine to our own fighters, it enables them to compete with and defeat British and American jet fighters *if* they are able to get into a dogfighting position. By chance we have also discovered that the tracking system for their missiles can be defeated by metallic fragments even large pieces of aluminum foil with magnetic signatures on them. Our newest fighter designs from this collaboration, the FW 152 and Do 335, are quite impressive, but most of all an unorthodox design from a junior lieutenant of the Luftwaffe has caught the imagination of both Meserschmitt and Gotha companies. This tailless dual-jet design is radical but shows great promise according to their engineers. Although initial concerns about instability are notable, most believe that once a transistor-based flight computer is installed this aircraft may exceed anything in the world by 5-10 years. A bomber is also in development and we will watch the career of this Horton and his brother who aided on the design.

Even more radical is work being conducted on a magnetohydrodynamic flight system. Apparently use of counter-rotating toroidal of high-energy plasma permits seemingly anti-gravitational flight in a saucer-shaped aircraft. Exposure to the system for prolonged periods left half a dozen Rhesus monkeys with severe injuries, their hair disappears, the noses and tails fell off, and their skin turns a mottled grey. Most disturbing is the permanent dilation of the eyes.

 

[Unknown]

Man, I'd like to see the death toll from this WW2.

 

[M79]

Report of Military Activities in German Air forces
Agent X42 of Spanish External Security Ministry
Report: Advances of German aerial technologies
18 February 1942 0900

Our erstwhile colleagues around the world are preparing various new aircraft that are a generation ahead of our local capacities and it would be wise for us to begin procuring licenses to build some of these aircraft ourselves. The Germans are developing a very advanced jet engine capable of more than five times the thrust of the ones built a mere five years ago while the Americans are working on one even more advanced. British developments are at least as advanced. With the development of the "Sidewinder" air-to-air missile in the United States, the "SA-2" surface-to-air missile system by Germany, and now the Russians developing a tank using a jet engine for its main drive, the future of warfare appears to be ready to change dramatically. German long-range rockets are still only few in number but their two-stage A9 system is beginning to make a painful experience for those living in "Tankograd" and other parts of the Soviet Union. American success with their manned "Mercury" program achieving a triple orbit and successfully retrieving the "Cosmonaut" appears to have offset the German success of the first satellite and first manned faster-than-sound and faster-than-double-sound aircraft. Their newest system of SCR-658 RADAR detection enhances the altitude . Their ART-13 radio for aircraft and especially the newest hand-held radio ARN-7 system is extraordinary, but the advancement in battery technology by the Japanese may be the most radical development so far. Somehow they have developed a battery out of lithium, apparently its charge is much greater than a nickel-cadmium battery and duration even greater still. Their increasing technology exchange with Germany via the T-52 system augmented by a Z6 cryptography coding system is yielding extraordinary results. A new combined design for a submarine has been developed called a "Type L" by the Germans and "Type 50" by the Japanese. This extraordinary vehicle uses standardized parts between both nations and its capacities are impressive. An air-independent propulsion system and new "teardrop" shaped design treat the water the way an aircraft treats the air and moves at a minimum reported 28kph possibly as high as 35kph underwater. The torpedo load of 50 is impressive, but these are new shorter "Shark"/"Type 96" torpedoes using compressed oxygen and a very high-explosive warhead along with a magnetic and heat-based detection system. With a battery load capable of driving the boat at over 5 knots for over 300km with a new "schnorkel" or air-tube capable of permitting recharging while underwater, these double-hulled machines are easily capable of starving the United Kingdom if produced in sufficient numbers. As the machines use entirely interchangeable parts, one boat can be repaired in any port of the other nation. Russian naval capacities are negligible at this point but the Western nations are unable to match these feats so far. Also, the Japanese rotary engine has yielded a nimble German fighter now being produced in Japan as well known as the Fw 152. With a top speed of over 700kph and service ceiling of over 16.5 km, its altitude exceeds that of even most jets.

Our American intelligence is more limited, but the "Canuck" fighter and "Scorpion" tactical fighter are yielding interesting results in limited numbers. German use of the Me 262 is impressive as is the now-aging (!) He 280. Yet the ongoing development of the rumored German super-jet "Project 1101" has not yielded a prototype that we can confirm yet. American progress on their newest "J73" jet engine is coming along but they have also begun to incorporate a swept-wing design following the German aeronautical engineering on the Me 262. So far bombing raids over continental Europe are still on hold following too many casualties from the Sa-2 defence system. Yet reports of the "B-47" turbojet bomber are beginning to surface, this high-speed platform is apparently a B-17 modified with swept wings and jet engines though rumors are as numerous as spies would appear to be. Russian developments are harder to ascertain, but they are fighting hard to maintain the lands they have left and are getting limited technology and aid from the United States. So far the Japanese are running wild but do not appear to be preparing for an attack on Russia, choosing instead to focus on the Asian colonies of the larger powers. More information as it becomes available.

 

[M79]

Aeronautical Research Committee Advisory Paper
Total Copies: 7 - one to each of the War Cabinet
Total Pages per Copy: 6
Beyond Top Secret

Our most recent developments are of keen interest not only in that they mirror our collaboration with the Americans but also in that our technological developments are advancing quickly. First the advances in cryptography are able to break the elusive Lorenz system with 60% consistency within three days of cypher changes, the use of the Programmable Operations and Organizational Determinant for Logarithmic Excellence (POODLE) computer system allows for much faster cryptanalysis at our control facility. Improvements in klystron and cavity magnetron research are yielding much more compact RADAR and detection systems while the Plutonium - Uranium Guidance system (PUG) is enabling an acceleration in calculations for our Tube Alloys project. American interest in this program has been considerable and their exceptional resources are keeping developments moving at a steady pace. Our own turbojet engine program is now getting feedback and design tips from theirs, the development of a combined fighter aircraft code-named "Chief". At the same time the same group in the United States that pushed turbojet engines forward at Lockheed are apparently designing a "Starfighter" that may be able to exceed twice the speed of sound.

Transistors have begun making their way into civilian life despite our attempts to keep them bottled up and secret, the notable development out of this is that a company known as Texas Instruments has combined with an antenna company to begin marketing a "TR-1" that uses five fairly inexpensive transistors to create a radio that is much more shock resistant and uses a slight fraction of the power of current civilian radios. The first batch was bought out three months before it was to be released! We have asked that the Americans look for commercial talent as we are in the hopes that the war effort can be profit from this. If the Americans can find a way to produce transistors efficiently at very low cost it would be a significant boon. Rocket technology locally has produced an effective surface-to-air missile system that has prevented any additional large-scale attacks by German aircraft, and though the operational ceiling of our missiles is only 15km this is expected to improve to 25km by year's end. We are unable to state exactly how far the latest evidence of German-Japanese collaboration has taken their designs, but the appearance of the Fw 152 fighter and ongoing rumors of "Project Z" are of concern. Apparently Nakajima had early-stage designs for a transcontinental bomber of some sort, the Germans are providing expertise in engine design as the original power plant requirements for a piston engine were apparently quite exceptional. The aircraft attached to the rumors so far was in fact "G8N", a preliminary build being put into production anyway, and it is an exceptional bomber. We believe from available technical data that is has a range of over 5000 km, a speed in excess of 500KPH, and a load of over 4000kg of ordinance. Our greatest curiosity is into the "G10N" series currently being developed. According to our Polish and internal sources, this monstrosity appears to have a speed in excess of 650 KPH, a range of over 15,000 km, and a bomb load possibly as high as 20,000 kg with a service ceiling above 15km. If these specifications are true, this aircraft in mass production could fly from Germany to Japan while bombing us or the Americans, refuel and rearm, then do so all over again. Our hopes are to capture such a design for ourselves if possible but to destroy the factories able to produce the very complex 36 cylinder engines required for such a feat. Even our cryptanalysis service is unable to penetrate the German Z6-enhanced coding system, their movement towards a Z7 is confirmed and Z8 proposed. We know that Siemans has developed some new evolution of the transistor but are uncertain as to its overall function. We are also not sure if their yield of effective transistors has exceeded our own of 25%.

Although our naval capacities are impressive and control of the sea remains ours, the development of Axis submarine technologies is most worrisome given the proof of German-Japanese cooperation. We believe that their "Type L"/"Type 50" submarines are still under development but a standardized submarine between the two is in and of itself a frightening development. I would ask that additional intelligence be obtained from SOE about this project as our lifeline to the world is by sea, if the Germans or Japanese can sever it, or worse obtain dominance of the seas from surface fleets via submersibles, the situation for all of us is gloomy indeed.

 

[M79]

Declassified by specific request to Department of Defense (USA)
March 14, 2014

Technical Report Project "Type 50" submarine
April 17, 1942 - Kure Naval Shipyards
Chief Design Engineer, *************** (blacked out)
Assessment on initial testing for Model, Hydrodynamics

Gentleman the design for this submarine is radical, let me point out its origin. In Spain at approximately the same time as Emperor Meiji came to power a man built a radical new weapon we would recognize as a submarine today. However, this "Ictineo II" used an air-independent propulsion system based on chemical reactions that was recently investigated by a German and proved successful. This previous hull, however, makes a great deal of difference. As we design aircraft for conditions to fit the wind so are we now designing this new submersible using conditions to fit the water. As a wing allows air to flow around it so does this new "teardrop" hull permit water to flow around the entire vessel. Instead of emphasizing surface performance we are focused on underwater performance instead. Use of the most advanced mass-production batteries combined with the new hull design, our own newest model batteries (the Germans are developing newer batteries incorporating lithium thionylchloride, we are using silver oxide-based batteries for the time being). Our design is very hydrodynamic, and the Germans now refer to this as an "Alfa" class submersible and are already developing a "Beta" and "Gamma" follow-on class. This submersible appears capable of a top submerged speed of at least 30 knots with the newest modifications of the hydrogen peroxide test engine, possibly as high as 40 knots if incorporated directly with diesel engines. To compare that makes it at least time and a half as fast as the proposed I-200 class from our Submarine no. 38 trials from a few years ago and uses similar engine. At 30 knots top speed it becomes literally three times as fast as Western submarines and can outrun some torpedoes, but at 40 knots we believe we could literally outrun any torpedo the Americans or British could field. The design has a projected test depth of at least 200 meters, possibly 250 meters, largely because of the teardrop hull but also because the conning tower is eliminated and replaced with a gradual incline as part of the hull itself. The control surfaces are based on a "Greek Cross" shape using two vertical and two horizontal planes for control, much like an aircraft's tail rudder.

Silver oxide batteries are also being used in our latest "Type 100" torpedo, another cooperative design. This torpedo is much quieter than any we have made thus far, it combines the German G7e design with refinements of our engineers to produce a smaller torpedo driven by an internal combustion engine. This new "Pufferfish", as the Germans call it, comes in two forms. The "Mod A" moves at over 100km/hour and incorporates the internal combustion engine using a liquid oxygen tank to help drive the engine. A "Mod B" strictly battery-powered version using a silver oxide battery system moves at 65 km/hour with a range of 13 km at that speed (alternatively it can also move at 44 km/hour for a range of 44 km). Of special interest is that these torpedoes are only 65% the size of our Type 93 "Long Lance" torpedoes.

Design work has already begun on the "Type 55", or "Beta", submarine. While the Type 50 is 80 meters long, the Type 55 is 120 meters long. While the Type 50 has a test depth of 200+ meters, the Type 55 is proposed to a 300+ meter test depth. A Type 50 will carry 25 of the new Type 100 torpedoes, the Type 55 would carry 35. Essentially, except for speed, think of the Type 55 as 150% of whatever the Type 50 would be, even the hull goes from double to triple. Much of the expansion is dedicated to engines and batteries but not all of it as the crew is also larger by necessity. Again, this is derived from testing the model, but after repeating the tests 5 times the data is within 5% of the numbers above and I am giving the lowest figures as not to overestimate the project's potential.

 

[M79]

April 14, 1942
Topics for Confidential meeting, Radio Broadcasting Corporation of America
Re: Top 3 hits for the week according to Billboard magazine, with notes from WNBC executives

3. "Hurt" by Bing Crosby is popular with the wives and families who are seeking solace for their missing loved ones while the war continues. Soulful in a way that is akin to Adagio in Strings but even more powerful, this song seems to have been influenced by the popularity of missing families during the war and simplicity of six-string guitars.

2. "Boot Scoot Boogy" by Glenn Miller and Paul Tanner. With the development of an electro-thermin and introduction of electrical guitar to a brass band, this song appears to be the start of a new format. It may be that the boots are meant to be army boots and has a country twist to it, but nonetheless the GIs are gobbling it up on Armed Forces Radio.

1. "Satellite Oddity" by J.E.L., led by an inventor named Lester Polsfuss. This man is a genius, he literally *invented* a new type of amplifier and a new type of electric guitar. His recording style is very new and this song has literally tripled sales compared to the number two. Apparently his music is quite popular on college campuses in conjunction with intoxicants, he calls the sound "rock and roll" since that is the effect some of his new technology has on listeners. Although he turned down several offers for a recording contract, including one from us, he has instead decided to enlist with the US Army after building an electrical guitar and amplifier set powerful enough to make ears bleed.

 

[M79]

May 04, 1942
Release of information from German State Archives
Eighteen of the 35 pages released are blacked out entirely
Fifteen of the remainder mostly blacked out

Technical Report and Field Assessment
DFS-301, high speed discoid aircraft and crash remnants
(name blacked out)
Heidelberg, Grossdeutschland

DFS-301 is an experimental high-speed aircraft design for aerial combat at speeds greater than 1000km/h with an emphasis on rapid turns, fuel economy, and exceptional maneuverability. Its pilot flies prone with a pair of jet engines directing thrust with crude fins directing the engine exhaust slightly in hopes of achieving a vectoring effect. Unfortunately this program prototype crash-landed about 15 minutes after takeoff for unknown reasons, the test pilot aboard probably died instantly. His charred remains are a problem, however. We believe following a medical examination that he was knocked unconscious from a trauma to the head at the time of impact. A fire broke out from the exotic fuel used to drive the aircraft, the byproducts of one of these fuels is toxic and likely caused hallucinogenic effects based on the reactions and reports of the crowd.

Per the reports he was found by a dozen town locals who first claimed they had no pulse. A medical team came to the site when he apparently awoke and began screaming in pain about "brains" and his muscles began twitching oddly. He continued screaming "brains" repeatedly until he reportedly lunged at a young lady with his arms outstretched, she pushed him away and tore off one of his sleeves in the process. The fuel mixture included highly acidic compounds that must have eaten a great deal of the flesh off of that arm, in fact the suit may have been the only thing holding much of him together. At that point someone in the crowd pulled out a gun and shot him in the chest, pushing him back into the aircraft and causing a fire to start. Witnesses agree that afterwards he continued to move his arms and legs, almost looking like he was trying to stand back up before being shot twice in the head and once in the chest again for good measure. Upon examination his arm and leg musculature was literally cooked, he may well have died from the first shot and only appeared to be attempting to rise as his muscle contracted in just the wrong pattern. Regardless, the local citizenry seems convinced we have found a way of resurrecting dead pilots and are not very happy about it. Local party leaders and burgomeisters are asking if we intend to do anything about the "Zombie Outbreak" (apparently the term comes from North America). I believe we need an agency to deal with recovery of high-value and experimental aircraft lest the public continues to believe in such nonsense.

 

[M79]

Technical Report
Project Vulkan
Project Hammer
GShG Design Team, KSP Instruments Bureau
June 26, 1942

Our foray into automatic cannonry has met with a successful prototype in the 20mm caliber. With a small electrical motor the accidental discovery of a high-speed Gatling-style gun has enabled the development of both the Anakonda armored vehicle for anti-personnel operations and the "Hammer" (GShG-7.62) Cannon System for our heavier fighter aircraft. With firing speeds of 5000-6000 RPM we project that this system has a range of 1000 meters and should bring significant firepower to bear against our Fascist opponents. Weighing just over 20kg and using the aircraft's battery system, the aerial cannon version has shown significant versatility even in the most horrendous of conditions. In addition, mounting two of these systems onto a T-34 chassis permits significant anti-personnel operations with armor protection capable of withstanding even some tank hits. With additional refinement we are already working on a 30mm version, the weight remains a problem for aircraft but it may find uses in the new Anakonda model. We project that following the German movements in the South that open fields would be a perfect place to test this new weapons system.

 

[M79]

Federal Bureau of Investigation
Office of J Edgar Hoover
Re: Subversive New Forms of Music
Destroy After Reading!
July 7, 1942

Recent reports of "transistors" being able to replace vacuum tubes has led to civilians acquiring some of these devices and building their own experimental electronic equipment. Some of these are certainly welcome, the home-made advances in general computer and organizational technologies are certainly helping the war effort as demonstrated by computer-controlled concentrating of orange juice for our boys. Yet some of these projects are dangerously influential on our culture, especially the "synthesizer" developed in California recently by students at the University at Berkeley. Apparently these four "gentlemen" and their "lady" were indulging in drugs and decided that they needed an electronic form of music to enjoy this with. By crossing an Orgatron with a Novachord and substituting the vacuum tubes with transistors the warm-up time is brought from minutes to seconds, the amplitude increases considerably, and the plethora of sounds reported as feasible to generate is phenomenal. The music they write with this device is unfortunately very popular with the local teenage and young adult culture. You need not use much imagination to think of what they write about with song titles like "Nights in White Satin", "Spirit in the Sky", and "Black Velvet" with talk of 'new religions' and flaunting of sexual norms. These devices need to be curtailed and investigated lest they corrupt our youth and permit Communist or Fascist agitators a means of doing the same. I am not sure if some sort of drug-induced seizure activity is the cause but the style of music is known to its adherents as "Rock and Roll", further investigations will be taken as deemed necessary

 

[M79]

Ishikawajima Company Brief
Research and Development Project: Kamiryu
Highest level of Secrecy
For report to Imperial Council only
Destroy after Reading!
August 2, 1942

It is our honor to announce the Ne-30 engine project has reached prototype stage and development continues in earnest. While the Ne-20 achieved a great milestone in that it was successfully developed from merely a blueprint and photograph, the involvement of Eichi Iwaya from the Imperial Navy has accelerated our process significantly. As you know, Germany has replaced all other class I "First generation" jet engines with a standardized JHH (Junkers-Heinkel-Hirth) 30 engine, its output is 8kN. With the newest design specifications of the JHH 011 engine available, we were able to solve the vibration problems and weight issues that plagued the German teams so much. Our cooperation with them has resulted in the development of a new class of jet engine they deem "second generation" and we shall call Taisho. Its net output is 21kN with an afterburner that can deliver up to 32kN. While Germany is reportedly using this as a means to develop a newer dual-jet second generation jet fighter, we intend to use this for a more conservative design. In cooperation with the Kyushu Hikoki design team, the Kyushu J8W "Shinden-Kai" fighter will use a design resembling the American P-38 but with a single jet engine instead. Its armament of twin 30mm cannons and four hardpoints along with self-sealing fuel tanks courtesy of our German colleagues and our own honeycomb-frame techniques will merits this craft a range of approximately 1200 nautical miles. With a ceiling of 17,500 meters it should also be able to meet the challenges of higher-altitude Western aircraft wherever needed. The recent raid on our islands only a few months ago should serve to reinforce the need for both aeronautical innovation and rapid deployment as we may be facing far more Westerners in all parts of the globe as time goes on.