History Magazine Nr.4 : Just some of ridiculous,  weird weapons developed by people and militaries all over the world



Giant listening horns used to listen for approaching aircraft during WWI



The Corkscrew Tank was developed by the Russians and was mostly used during the Cold War.  The corkscrew design made it ideal for use in the
extreme winters, as it didn’t get bogged down in snow and ice like other vehicles.  It was even able to travel sideways, which helped when it
got stuck.



This German audio-visual apparatus was designed to enhance the boom and flash of enemy artillery and, thus, help pinpoint gun positions



Unwieldy and cumbersome, but the Brewster Body Shield could still stop a machine gun bullet



A French catapult to throw hand grenades on opposing trenches



A German spy pigeon wearing a time-delay camera on an aluminium breast harness



The Antonov A-40 (sometimes referred to as the A-40T or Krylya Tank, “tank wings”) was the Soviet attempt in 1942 to create a flying tank –
only one prototype was produced. Soviet forces had originally strapped tanks and armored cars, such as the T-27, T-37, and D-8, to the bottom
of TB-3 bombers, and dropped them from a very short height; as long as the gear was in neutral, the tank would not break on impact. However,
this required the crew to be dropped separately, which meant that the tank’s deployment was delayed.



German soldiers generating electricity for communications and light



The Tsar Tank, built by the Russians during World War 1, was the largest-- and probably the weirdest-- tank ever to reach full-scale
testing. It was also called the Lebedenko after its main developer, Nikolay Lebedenko, while others called it the Netopyr, Russian for “bat”, because its model resembled a sleeping bat when carried by its rear wheel.



US sailors were trained to strap on bed mattresses in the absence of lifejackets



This image were created on the basis of a 3D-model of a unique Soviet project - a flying submarine! The project was born back in 1934. Its
creator, Boris Ushakov, was a student of the Naval Engineering School. The subject of his coursework was a vehicle able to fly and swim under the water. In April 1936 the project was approved by the competent committee, who found the vehicle to be worth further realization. The
author of the project, Boris Ushakov, was working on the project as an engineer and military technician in 1937-1938. The name of the vehicle
was Flying Submarine. In other words, it was a plane able to submerge in the water. It underwent many modifications, in its latest version it
represented a solid metal plane whose flying speed was 100 knots, speed under the water - about 3 knots.



The Vespa 150 TAP is a Vespa scooter modified for use with paratroops (Troupes Aéro Portées, or TAP). Introduced in 1956 and updated in 1959, it was produced by Ateliers de Construction de Motocycles et Automobiles (ACMA), the licensed assembler of  Vespas in France at the
time. Modifications from the civilian Vespa included a reinforced frame and a three inch recoilless rifle mounted to the scooter.