a 12,000lbs bomb

During World War II the British military were employing the 4,000 lb H.C. Mk.II and 8,000 lb H.C. Mk.II bombs. Looking for larger options, engineers compared the explosive potential damage of dropping both an 8,000 lb and a 4,000 lb bomb versus a single 12,000 lb version and determined that the 12,000 lb bomb would provide a larger damage potential. Utilizing existing stock, a 4,000 lb bomb was bolted onto a 8,000 lb bomb and the detonation train was connected. Though approved for service, there was doubt with the Air Staff that the two bomb halves simultaneously detonated, so production of the bomb was limited. The 12,000 lb H.C. Mk.I bomb took aircraft maintenance crews 35 minutes to get the bomb loaded into the Lancaster from its transport trolley.

General info Bomb characteristics Mass 12,656 lbs Explosive mass 3,973.5 kg Explosive type Torpex TNT equivalent 6,357.6 kg HE max penetration 365 mm Armour destruction radius 114 m Fragment dispersion radius 374 m

Effective damage

With a huge destruction radius of 114 m, nothing that stands near an exploding 12,000 lb H.C Mk.I is likely to survive. Simply aiming the bomb near a capture zone will guarantee destruction of anything inside of it's destruction radius (this also applies to teammates so be careful!). The fragment dispersion is very effective even past 370 m thanks to almost 2 tons of steel surrounding the Torpex explosive filler, more than enough to kill lightly armoured vehicles such as SPGs and SPAA or at least damaging crew. Comparison with analogues

The Soviet 5,000 kg FAB-5000 bomb is the closest comparable bomb to the British 12,000 lb H.C Mk.I "Blockbuster" bomb. The FAB-5000 carries ~1,000 kg TNTe less explosive mass and has a slightly smaller explosion radius compared to the Blockbuster.

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