[ARC5] Guided Bomb Equipment

[Michael A. Bittner]

My R-116/ARW-26 is in a waterproof, fully gasketed, square-shaped housing with black wrinkle finish.  It came with a similarly waterproof and finished battery box for dry-cell batteries. The tube complement was 9002, 9003 and seven 3Q4s.  I know these were used by the Navy at the Pt. Mugu Naval Air Station and one piece of paper I have that came with it mentions FASRON maintenance, which I think is strictly a Navy term.  In the 1960s, the Los Angeles surplus dealer J.J. Glass sold these along with instructions for converting it to a straight (non-radio control) receiver with loudspeaker. My BC-464 is identical to the ARW-26 except it is not water proofed and is in a plain aluminum housing.  My R-438A/ARW-26AY is in a waterproof, barrel-shaped housing with black wrinkle finish.  Within its housing is a 28-VDC vibrator power supply. Its tube complement is 12AU7, two 6AK6s and an 0A2.  It does not have separate driver tubes for the relays like all the others. There are several other lettered versions of the R-196/ARW-26Y with housing and circuitry similar to the R-116 but with all heater tubes and vibrator supplies. One version used all 12AU7s for both RF and relays while another used a 12AU7 for the RF and all 6AK6s for the relays.  I remember the Pasadena surplus dealer G & H sold the control actuators that go with these receivers.  I wonder if anyone has put a whole system together as it would go in a drone?  Mike, W6MAB


  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Mike Morrow 
  To: arc5 at mailman.qth.net 
  Sent: Friday, September 30, 2011 8:01 PM
  Subject: Re: [ARC5] Guided Bomb Equipment


  Mike Bittner wrote:

  > I have three versions of the ARW-26 including the BC-464 Army version.

  All of these were USAAF systems.

  The BC-464-* is actually part of the earlier RC-57-** target drone aircraft
  receiving system.  It worked with the RC-56-* ground transmitting equipment
  (BC-463-* transmitter, PE-126 dynamotor, and BC-1272 control boxes) on 67
  to 74 MHz, using MCW tones.

  The RC-57-* was replaced by the AN/ARW-26 using R-116/ARW-26 or R-143/ARW-26X
  receivers.  The RC-56-* was retained as the ground equipment.

  The control range given for both systems is "10 miles maximum, 3 - 4 normal".

  > I believe they were used in propeller driven target drones for the ground-to-air
  > gunnery practice that air gunners got before starting actual air-to-air combat
  > gunnery training.

  A diagram that I have shows the trainees in a "B-29 GUNNERY RIG" on the ground.
  The diagram also states:  "CRASHING OF AIRCRAFT SHOT DOWN IS PREVENTED BY
  AUTOMATIC RELEASE OF PARACHUTE".  A target aircraft is shown descending with
  parachute.

  That would have been fun to watch.  I wonder how well that worked out.

  Mike / KK5F
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