In the near future a new type of aircraft carrier squadrons – skip-bombers, will be tested. Please note that if this concept is successfully tested, detailed information on its application will be announced later.
The squadrons tested will be equipped with HE bombs.
The peculiarity of these bombers will be a new type of attack, which in reality was used during World War II. The planes can descend to a low altitude to drop their bombs. The bombs themselves can make several bounces on the surface of the water before hitting the target.
Specifics of skip-bombers:
- Skip-bombers do not need to fly close to the ship to perform an attack, which reduces the time spent in the target ship’s AA defense zone;
- The planes are more vulnerable to AA defense fire during and after an attack than other bombers;
- Bombs, when they bounce, can fly over small ships;
- Because of the bomb’s trajectory, there is a high probability of it impacting on the target ship’s armor belt, which will often result in no penetration. Therefore, it is necessary to accurately aim at the vulnerable parts of the ship.
- An attack can take 2 forms, depending on the height at which the bomb is dropped:
- When dropping from a high altitude, the bomb detonates immediately.
- When dropped from a low altitude, the bomb bounces off the water surface.
Please note that all information in the development blog is preliminary and subject to change during testing. Any showcased features may or may not end up on the main server.
Source: WoWS devblog
