Norden Bombsight training at Deming NM

Northern Shoveler, San Antonio NM, February 10, 2011

During the Second World War Army Air Corp bombardiers were trained in the use of the Norden Bombsight at the Deming Army Airbase making practice runs on large simulated ground targets in the desert.

During the Second World War, Deming was again the designated location for a training base. This time, the Deming Army Air Base was established east of town to train young airmen in the use of the secret Norden bombsight. The trainees were processed in groups of 500 every 6 weeks, and they flew their missions in the 150 AT-11 Beechcraft trainers, designated the Kansan, each armed with up to 10 practice bombs.

The missions were flown against 24 large simulated ground targets (Figure 71), some of which were located close to old Fort Cummings. The men bombed the targets with 100-pound dummy ordnance (containing 5 pounds of explosive and 95 pounds of flour for a "marker") from 8,000 to 10,000 feet above the ground. During the training only a few men and aircraft were lost to accidents. On night a trainee fell out of the bomb bay while reaching for his flashlight. The surprised cadet parachuted safely and walked into camp the next day.

From page 237, Cooke's Peak - Pasaron Por Aqui, A focus on Unites States History in Southwestern New Mexico [19.5 MB PDF] by Donald Howard Couchman, 1990

Clipped March 27, 2009

Additional clippings in the Finger-Ring Draw collection

An Apache Defilade in the Florida Mountains
The Heliograph in the Apache Wars
Heliograph routes of the 1890 Practice
Heliograph route between Fort Cummings NM and Tubac, AZ

Norden Bombsight training at Deming NM

Additional clippings in the Finger-Ring Draw collection

Additional clippings in the American History collection