The 1944 Schwinn Wurlitzer Interstate TDR-1 Assault Drone

[BillMetric]

Just a little Schwinn history I learned today in case anyone was wondering what top secret projects Schwinn was involved with during WWII, how about the first Television guided assault drone!

Interstate TDR - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[Saving Tempest]

WIKKED DUDE! Somebody got to do that before Reagan!

 

[BillMetric]

just in case anyone TL;DR the Wikipedia page, the aircraft tube frame was welded by Schwinn in Dekalb IL and the laminated wood skin and wings were made by Wurlitzer

 

[Saving Tempest]

Would have been PERFECT if it lit up colored bubbling tubes and played Der Fuhrer's Face as it dropped it's payload

 

[cyclingday]

I like this part.^
Yeah, like a B-29 and a couple of A-Bombs.

 

[Saving Tempest]

At least everyone was trying to pitch in.

 

[Mercian]

Hi All,

Excuse the thread resurection.

A recent Youtube video shows these in action.

Best Regards,

Adrian

 

[Oilit]

Hi All,

Excuse the thread resurection.

A recent Youtube video shows these in action.

Best Regards,

Adrian

Thanks for posting! I didn't realize that these were actually used in combat! And I notice that at the end he says that some survived the war and were fitted with cockpits to become private planes, I wonder if any still survive today? Being drones, they probably weren't built for long-term durability and there's little chance that any are still flying, but maybe someone has a forgotten project in a barn somewhere?

 

[Mercian]

Hi @Oilit

Yes, I did wonder about that too. However, a quick search shows only one known survivor, here at The National Naval Aviation Museum, Pensacola USA.

33529 | Interstate TDR1 | United States - US Navy (USN) | Siddarth Bhandary | JetPhotos

Probably the most priceless in the aircraft collection at National Naval Aviation Museum - the only surviving Interstate TDR-1 in the world.. 33529. Interstate TDR1. JetPhotos.com is the biggest database of aviation photographs with over 5 million screened photos online!

www.jetphotos.com

But it wouldn't surprise me if there were still some other sections out there.

Best Regards,

Adrian