1. Technological Advancements During World War II

2. Fighter Planes World War I plane max speed: 175 mph; small caliber machine gun (later in the war) WWII: U.S. P-51 Mustang max speed 440 mph; 50 caliber machine gun WWII German Messerschmitt max speed 350 mph Japanese Zero max speed 390 mph armed with a 20mm cannon

3. Aircraft Carriers The U.S. built a total of over 30 aircraft or fleet carriers during World War II. The carriers were built to allow short range fighter planes to assist in amphibious invasions. Aircraft carriers played a significant role in the Pacific Theater of the war, allowing for defense and attacks far away from controlled landing bases.

4. Bombers World War II B-29 Flying Fortress; range of over 3,200 miles; could carry over 5,000 lbs of bombs and could cruise at 350 mph World War II B-24 Liberator; over 5,000 lbs bomb load and a range of over 1,900 miles and could cruise at 215 mph

5. Tanks World War I French Comet tank; max speed 8 mph; 6 lb artillery round World War II Panzer Tiger; max speed 32 mph; 23 lb artillery round Flame throwing tank used in WWII. This tank, used during the Battle of Iwo Jima used a newly developed chemical called napalm.

6. Submarines German U-boat (submarine) during World War I. U-boats could not sustain long periods of time underwater. World War II German submarine. WWII subs could stay underwater for more than 2 days at a time.

7. Semi-automatic Assault Rifles M1 Garand First reliable semi-automatic (fires round each time you pull the trigger rather than reloading each time) U.S. infantry assault rifle.

8. Higgins Boats Mainly used as a troop transport for amphibious invasions. Was also used to transport vehicles (Jeeps, etc.) and armored vehicles (tanks) onto beaches.

9. Sonar and Radar Radar: Greatly helped with the early warning evacuations and responses to invasion forces. Sonar: Reduced the impact of submarines.

10. V-1 and V-2 Ballistic Missiles V1: Carried 1 ton (2,000 lbs) of explosives; traveled at a maximum speed of 400 mph V2: Carried 1 ton of explosives, however, it traveled at a maximum speed of over 2,000 mph (this was the first rocket propelled weapon). All together, these missiles are estimated to have killed over 10,000 people in southern Britain.

11. Atomic Weapons Completely altered the way nations interacted with one another and therefore changed the face of war. Could completely destroy entire cities, killing hundreds of thousands of people instantly. Replicas of Fat Man and Little Boy