AA Shells Detonation

[alamotex]

Originally Posted by alamotex

I was looking at some data re WW II bomb damage to a coastal UK town that was not the target for heavy Luftwaffe air raids. I wondered how many of the bomb damaged buildings were actually struck by AA shells that failed to detonate in the air and exploded on impact when they returned to earth ?

Just how reliable were the WW II timed fuzes fitted to heavy anti aircraft shells and if the shell failed to explode in the air, would it explode on impact with the ground ? Ground damage from exploding 3.7", 4.5" or 5.25" shells were unlikely to be reported ,as such, in the local press at that time.

The above post was prompted by my questioning(in general ) the reliability of WW II bomb damage reports that are in the archives of many UK municipalities. These data are on record for the town and the surrounding rural area :- Air Raids 85
HE Bombs dropped 567
Incenderary Bombs 12454
Land Mines 13
Other Types 212

Damage to Buildings
Destroyed 350
Major damage 900
Light-Mod damage 14000

It is my understanding that these data were compiled from the local ARP and Police reports recorded at the time. If the figure for the incenderary bombs is correct,there is little recorded evidence that they did much damage to the town itself. It also seems resonable to conclude that much of the light to moderate damage to buildings was due to AA shell shrapnel. as pointed out by Tony Smith.