BOMBING RUN

Now that free fall is understood, the bombing run can now
be covered. A bomber at 6,400 ft, going 300 ft/sec is at 
level flight when the bomb is released. 

What is the bombing computer using as the distance to the target?

The free fall time is t = (1/4)*(bomber altitude)^.5
                        = (1/4)*(6400)^.5
                        = (1/4)* (64*100)^.5
                        = (8 * 10)/4
                        = 20 sec.
So the distance to the target is
                      d = velocity of plane * time of free fall
                        = 300 * 20
                        = 6,000 feet
Or about 1 mile (6000/5250 = 1.14mi) away.

The bombing computer must know plane speed, altitude and distance
to the target. This does not always work out so well, so the smart
bomb (laser guided) was invented.

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