WW2 Special effects hides airplane plant from zee germans ..err japanese

[CptStern]

this is pretty awesome:

During World War II the Army Corps of Engineers needed to hide the Lockheed Burbank Aircraft Plant to protect it from a possible Japanese air attack. They covered it with camouflage netting to make it look like a rural subdivision from the air.

http://stories-etc.com/hidden.htm

 

[YROC]

I used to watch this WWII airplane show on History and they mentioned this! :v

 

[Matorbogl]

That's pretty cool, but what really blows my mind is the thought of a mainland American facility needing to be camouflaged in the first place. It's hard to imagine a time when the threat of an attack from another nation against the American mainland was very real possibility and not a Tom Clancy wet-dream.

Really cool pictures though, never heard of this before.

 

[Barnz]

http://stories-etc.com/police-women.htm

 

[Warped]

I think I have WW2 in HD somewhere. when I get some more free time I'm gunna sit down and watch it. I love WW2 its my favorite History to learn

 

[Unfocused]

I have WWII in 3D with deleted scenes and bloopers.

 

[Emporius]

Two words:

Jasper Maskelyne

 

[Jerry_111]

That's pretty cool, but what really blows my mind is the thought of a mainland American facility needing to be camouflaged in the first place. It's hard to imagine a time when the threat of an attack from another nation against the American mainland was very real possibility and not a Tom Clancy wet-dream.

Really cool pictures though, never heard of this before.

The Japanese did attempt an invasion in Alaska and thousands of troops on both sides died during the ensuing battles.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleutian_Islands_Campaign

There were also a few isolated submarine missile attacks onto the American mainland on both the West and East coasts by German U-Boats and Japanese mini-subs.


At one point, the Japanese sent thousands of "fire balloons" across the Pacific Ocean in an attempt to start fires in California. Only a couple of them actually made it and did some damage, killing only like 7 Americans.

Not to mention the "Battle of Los Angeles" where California national guard went paranoid and started shooting the night sky up because someone thought they spotted Japanese planes. Turns out it was nothing but paranoia but made for one hell of a light show.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_los_angeles

 

[Krynn72]

This reminds me of the Ghost Army.
http://www.telovation.com/articles/us-military-used-inflatable-army.html

The Ghost Army was a United States Army tactical deception unit during World War II officially known as the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops. The 1,100-man unit was given a unique mission within the Army to impersonate other U.S. Army units in order to fool the enemy. From a few weeks after D-Day, when they landed in France, until the end of the war, they put on a traveling road show, using inflatable tanks, sound trucks, phony radio transmissions and even playacting. They staged more than 20 battlefield deceptions, often operating very close to the front lines. Their mission was kept secret until 1996, and elements of it are still classified.

An invisible army, operating in obscurity, were masters of the art of illusion, deception, and disinformation to defeat the Nazis in World War II. This top-secret unit, so highly classified that its very existence was denied by the Pentagon for 50 years, is finally being revealed. Among the tools of trickery were visual deceptions created by using life-size inflatable mock-ups of artillery, trucks, planes, tanks, and even buildings.

The US Army's 23rd Headquarters Special Troops' "Dummy Convoy" Featured Vehicles And Weapons Made From Rubber


The deceptions of The Ghost Army used every theatrical tool at their command. Sound engineers created elaborate, multi-layered recordings of the noises made by infantry, tank, and artillery units in all kinds of weather and from a variety of distances. A few sound trucks armed with nothing more than loud speakers could "impersonate" a battalion of tanks or an entire infantry division.

Inflatable convoy

Cloth and wood tank

inflatable sherman

Jeep disguised as a light tank.

 

[Acepilotf14]

Jasper Maskelyne is awesome.