German Parachute Mines 'chained together'??

[Bombphoon]

Over the years I have heard and read testimonies from the Blitz where people refer to German Luftmines being dropped linked together, presumably to create greater damage.

I have spoken to a Blitz survivor who remembers a mine coming down and they could 'hear the chains clanking in the wind as it came down'. Have also read recollections of linked mines in several Blitz books, most notably eyewitnesses attributing the famous February 1941 Hendon incident, where several blocks of terrace housing were wiped out, to linked mines.

However, I am sceptical about the linked parachute mines story. Although the mines were often dropped in pairs, I have never seen any official German manual/info suggesting they were dropped linked together. Also, the Hendon incident is now attributed to an SC 2500kg (possibly aimed at the De Havilland plant) not parachute mine(s).

Surely there would also be a risk that two parachutes deployed right next to each other could 'candle' (twist) togther and fail?

So, is the two parachute mines linked togther just a Blitz myth?

Regards

Austin

[Chris Goss]

The aerodynamics of such an idea would be extrememely difficult. In any case, one mine would make one hell of a mess-what would be the point of two which never had the precision of today's munitions. Hear the chains clanking? Pretty foolhardy I think. The Hendon incident was not due to chained mines but a single massive bomb