Today in US military history: the world's first legitimate cruise missile

Unto the Breach ^ | Oct. 19, 2018 | Chris Carter

[fugazi]

Today's post is in honor of Pvt. Edwardo J. Lopez, who was killed in action in Asad, Iraq on this day in 2006. The 21-year-old native of Aurora, Ill. was assigned to the 2d Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force.

---

1781: British Gen. Charles Cornwallis formally surrenders 7,087 officers and men, 900 seamen, 144 cannons, 15 galleys, a frigate, and 30 transport ships to an American and French force at Yorktown, Va., effectively ending the American Revolution.

1944: Two Interstate TDR assault drones are launched against Japanese gun emplacements on Ballale Island - one drone missing its target and another delivering two of its four 100-lb. bombs on the target. The TDR was a two-engine, unmanned airplane remotely controlled by a Grumman TBF Avenger via a television camera feed.

1950: Troopers with the 5th Cavalry Regiment enter

[fugazi]

Image of the day: Look Ma! No wings! An experimental "lifting body", which paved the way for the Space Shuttle years later.

[DFG]

Another lifting body test vehicle similar to the X24 was the Northrup M2-F2. The M2-F2 crash at Edwards Air Force Base on May 10, 1967 is the opening sequence on "Six Million Dollar Man". The test pilot, Bruce Peterson, hit the ground at two hundred fifty miles per hour, tumbling six times. He lost use of his right eye following an infection, and had to stop flying, ending his career. Understandably, Peterson has said that he hated reliving his accident, week after week, courtesy of the show. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071054/trivia?ref_=tt_ql_2 http://www.check-six.com/Crash_Sites/NASA-803-1967.htm

[tophat9000]

Sorry but the German V1 was the first real cruise missile

[central_va]

The first cruise missiles

[yarddog]

The Air Force displayed that plane in the parking lot of Northside Mall in Dothan around 1975. It really did not look like it could fly.

I still have those photos somewhere.

[az_gila]

And the rocket equipped, guided Hs 293 was operationally used in Aug 1943, pre-dating the US one shown in the first post.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henschel_Hs_293

[doorgunner69]

I would guess that being guided rather than pointed in the general direction is part of the description. The V1 was more a jet engine (of sorts) propelled artillery shell.