World War 2 In Review: 09/19/25

US Marine Corps barrage balloon, Parris Island, South Carolina, in May 1942

A barrage balloon is a type of airborne barrage, a large uncrewed tethered balloon used to defend ground targets against aircraft attack, by raising aloft steel cables which pose a severe risk of collision with hostile aircraft, making the attacker's approach difficult and hazardous. Early barrage balloons were often spherical. The kite balloon, having a shape and cable bridling that stabilizes the balloon and reduces drag, could be operated at higher wind speeds than a spherical balloon. Some examples carried small explosive charges that would be pulled up against the aircraft to ensure its destruction. Barrage balloons are not practical at higher altitudes due in large part to the cable's weight.

First World War

France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom used barrage balloons in the First World War. While the French and German forces developed kite balloons, early British barrage balloons were spherical.

Sometimes, especially around London, several balloons were used to lift a "barrage net" length: a steel cable was strung between the balloons, and more cables hung from it. These nets could be raised to an altitude comparable to the operational ceiling (15,000 feet or 4,600 meters) of the bombers of the time. By 1918 the barrage balloon defenses around London stretched for 50 miles (80 km), and captured German pilots expressed great fear of them.

Second World War

In 1938, the British Balloon Command was established to protect cities and key targets such as industrial areas, ports, and harbors. Balloons were intended to defend against dive bombers flying at heights up to 5,000 feet (1,500 m), forcing them to fly higher and into the range of concentrated anti-aircraft fire: anti-aircraft guns could not traverse fast enough to attack aircraft flying at low altitude and high speed. By the middle of 1940, there were 1,400 balloons, a third over the London area.

While dive-bombing was a devastatingly effective tactic against undefended targets, such as Guernica and Rotterdam, dive-bombers were very vulnerable to attack by fighter aircraft when pulling up after having completed a bombing dive. Due to the effectiveness of the Royal Air Force fighters' tactic of waiting for a dive bomber to complete its dive and then pouncing when it was pulling up—a moment when it was slow and vulnerable—the use of dive bombers against the UK was discontinued by Nazi Germany. Balloons proved to be of little use against the German high-level bombers with which the dive-bombers were replaced, but continued to be manufactured nonetheless until there were almost 3,000 in 1944. They proved to be effective against the V-1 flying bomb, which usually flew at 2,000 feet (600 m) or lower but had wire-cutters on its wings to counter balloons. 231 V-1s are officially claimed to have been destroyed by balloons.

The British added two refinements to their balloons, "Double Parachute Link" (DPL) and "Double Parachute/Ripping" (DP/R). The former was triggered by the shock of an enemy bomber snagging the cable, causing that section of cable to be explosively released complete with parachutes at either end; the combined weight and drag bringing down the aircraft. The latter was intended to render the balloon safe if it broke free accidentally. The heavy mooring cable would separate from the balloon and fall to the ground under a parachute; at the same time a panel would be ripped away from the balloon causing it to deflate and fall independently to the ground.

The 320th Barrage Balloon Battalion, a Very Low Altitude barrage balloon battalion of the United States Army, participated in the June 1944 Normandy landings, raising barrage balloons on Omaha Beach and Utah Beach. They remained stationed at Normandy until October 1944.

In January 1945, during Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm raids on the Palembang oil refineries, the British aircrews were surprised by the massive use of barrage balloons in the Japanese defenses. These were spherical and smaller than the British type. One Grumman Avenger was destroyed, and its crew killed, from striking a balloon cable.

Barrage balloons were partly filled with highly flammable hydrogen. "The top of the balloon was filled with hydrogen, the bottom half was left empty, so when it was put up at a certain height it filled with natural air", according to Dorothy Brannan, barrage balloon volunteer in Portsmouth, England.

Power Line Disruption

In 1942, Canadian and American forces began joint operations to protect the sensitive locks and shipping channel at Sault Ste. Marie along their common border among the Great Lakes against possible air attack. During severe storms in August and October 1942 some barrage balloons broke loose, and the trailing cables short-circuited power lines, causing some localized disruption to mining and manufacturing. In particular, metals production was disrupted. Canadian military historical records indicate that one of the more serious incidents, known as "The October Incident", caused an estimated loss of 400 tonnes (440 short tons; 390 long tons) of steel and 10 tonnes (11 short tons; 9.8 long tons) of ferro-alloys.

As a result, balloons were stored during the winter months and training was improved. Lessons learned from breakaway balloons led to Operation Outward, intentional release of balloons trailing conductive cables to disrupt power supplies on the occupied European mainland.

Target Identification

On the road to Aachen in west Germany in 1944, the British 2nd Tactical Air Force floated barrage balloons along the American First Army sector front line (a.k.a. "bomb line") to designate the location of friendly troops during the air assault preceding the advance of ground forces, which took Aachen on October 21, 1944. Conversely, during the First Army advance past Aachen to nearby Düren, barrage balloons were floated eastward to mark the location of enemy troops to be bombed.

Post-war Nuclear Weapon Tests

After the war, some surplus barrage balloons were used as tethered shot balloons for nuclear weapon tests throughout most of the period when nuclear weapons were tested in the atmosphere. The weapon or shot was carried to the required altitude slung underneath the barrage balloon, allowing test shots in controlled conditions at much higher altitudes than test towers. Several of the tests in the Operation Plumbbob series were lifted to altitude using barrage balloons.

Further Reading

McFarlin, Shannon. As If They Were Ours: The Story of Camp Tyson, America’s Only Barrage Balloon Training Facility. Bennington, VT (Hoosick Falls, NY): Merriam Press, 2016.

Shock, James R. The U.S. Army Barrage Balloon Program. Bennington, VT (Hoosick Falls, NY): Merriam Press, 2012.

A German barrage balloon. The German design was similar in appearance to the British type, however, they were dilatable, had a smaller envelope diameter, larger lobes or fins and were more pointed at the bow.

German barrage balloon being launched.

Landing ships putting cargo ashore on Omaha Beach at low tide during the early days of the Allied invasion, mid-June 1944. Among identifiable ships present are LST-532 (in the center of the view); USS LST-262 (3rd LST from right); USS LST-310 (2nd LST from right); USS LST-533 (partially visible at far right); and USS LST-524. Note barrage balloons overhead and U.S. Army "half-track" convoy forming up on the beach. The LST-262 was one of 10 Coast Guard-manned LSTs that participated in the invasion of Normandy, France. (Naval Historical Center image 26-G-2517 from the United States Coast Guard Collection. Also: National Archives Catalog ID 12003973)

English: Fordson Sussex Royal Air Force (RAF) barrage balloon winch, at the Imperial War Museum Duxford. (Marie Griffiths, 29 April 2009)

A Cromwell Mk V tank of 4th County of London Yeomanry, 22nd Armoured Brigade, 7th Armoured Division, leads a column of armor (including a Sherman Firefly immediately behind) and soft-skin vehicles inland from King beach, Gold area, 7 June 1944. (Imperial War Museum photo B 5251)

Barrage Balloon ascends at Camp Davis, NC. (Postcard by E. C. Moore & Co., Wilmington, N.C.; Tichnor Bros. Inc., Boston, Mass.)

1940s barrage balloon at the Kew Bridge Steam Museum, London. (Jim Linwood, 30 August 2009)

Barrage Balloon Mountings. World War II concrete barrage balloon mountings, Point Field, Wearde, Saltash. The site now forms part of the Churchtown Farm Nature Reserve. Kevin Halle, 29 February 2004)

A barrage balloon at Kew Bridge Steam Museum, London. (Jim Linwood, 30 August 2009)

Barrage Balloon, Parris Island, 1942. (USMC Archives)

This 'temporary' building was built in WWII to house an inflated barrage balloon. It was a test facility for destroying enemy balloons.

An M10 Wolverine 3-inch self-propelled gun of 20th Anti-Tank Regiment on Queen Red beach, Sword area, 6 June 1944. (Imperial War Museum photo B 5086)

HM LST-425 loading trucks and troops of the 45th Division, 14 September 1943, at Palermo, Sicily for the Salerno landings. (US Army Signal Corps)

Marine Corps Base, Parris Island, South Carolina, May 1942. Marine Corps Barrage Balloons. The Leathernecks get a new job, and, as usual handle it well. A barrage balloon ready to go aloft under the handling of special Marine units in training. (Office of War Information courtesy of the Library of Congress. Also: National Museum of the U.S. Navy Lot-1822-1)

Marine Corps Base, Parris Island, South Carolina, May 1942. Bedding down a big barrage-balloon is just another job that the Leathernecks take in stride as special Marine units are trained at Parris Island. “Purging” it with fresh gas before it goes aloft again, and running it up into a tactical formation under control of steel cable, are other features of a technique at which the Marines have become proficient. (Office of War Information courtesy of the Library of Congress. Also National Museum of the U.S> Navy Lot-1822-11)

Marine Corps Base, Parris Island, South Carolina, May 1942. The Leathernecks get a new job—and, as usual, handle it well. A barrage balloon ready to go aloft under the handling of special Marine units in training at Parris Island. (Office of War Information courtesy of the Library of Congress. Also: National Museum of the U.S. Navy Lot-1822-18)

Marine Corps Base, Parris Island, South Carolina, May 1942. Putting the Indian sign on Axis dive bombers and strafing planes. This barrage balloon under control of a Marine unit in training at Parris Island is part of a plane trap that protects important ground installations. Planes cannot come close to any of a number of these balloons, swaying in a tactical formation, with steel cables trailing, without the danger of shearing off wings. (Office of War Information. Courtesy of the Library of Congress.Also: National Museum of the U.S. Navy Lot-1822-21)

Marine Corps Base, Parris Island, South Carolina, May 1942. When a husky leatherneck throws his weight on a line, things come his way. A member of a Marine balloon-barrage unit in training at Parris Island, helps to ground one of the big bags that the Corps has added to its kit of fighting tools. (Office of War Information courtesy of the Library of Congress. Also: National Museum of the U.S. Navy Lot-1822-7)

Marine Corps Base, Parris Island, South Carolina, May 1942. A couple husky Marines and the ground tackle of a barrage balloon don’t take long getting acquainted. Special Marine Corps units in training at Parris Island, add balloon-barrage technique to their large repertoire of fighting methods. (Office of War Information courtesy of the Library of Congress. Also: National Museum of the U.S. Navy Lot-1822-5)

Reinforcing tail rigging of a new ballonet-type Army barrage balloon, circa December 1941. (U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, cataloged under the National Archives Identifier (NAID) 196223)

U.S. Army barrage balloon lying on the ground adjacent the United States’ encampment at Tampico Flats in Antwerp, Belgium, during World War II. (William L. Flournoy Sr. Papers, WWII 109, WWII Papers, Military Collection, State Archives of North Carolina, Raleigh, N.C.)

Soldiers of the 320th Barrage Balloon Battalion soldiers preparing a barrage balloon for launch on Omaha Beach on 6 June 1944 during the Battle of Normandy. (U.S. Army photo)

On its fifth trip to Normandy LST 357 is resting high and dry on Utah Beach in June 1944. Note the barrage balloons tethered to each ship. The balloons were not being used to deter low-flying enemy aircraft as many captions for photos of ships with barrage balloons claim; they were being transported by the ships, the balloons being already inflated and thus could be more quickly deployed on shore. (Dale Groom, LTJG, MC, USNR)

The 1st Division is preparing to sail for Normandy. The Big Red One insignia appears on almost all the steel helmets, and often on the left shoulder. All these men are wearing combat dress with wool pants and M1941 combat jackets or tanker jackets. Behind these men are visible the pontoon cranes that will be used by the engineers to unload supplies onto the beaches as soon as the assault is over. To the right stands a black soldier in fatigues, who probably belongs to the 320th Barrage Balloon Battalion or one of the support elements of the 5th Amphibious Engineer Brigade. The soldier seated in the foreground, whose trouser legs are rolled up, is sitting on a green canvas assault vest. Most of the boots are blackened by anti-blister grease. Note the "J" dock sign and the tanks in the background.

Marine Corps Base, Parris Island, South Carolina, May 1942. “Old Swampy” (No.1 to you) was at one time, the problem child of the Marine Corps balloon-barrage unit in training at Parris Island, South Carolina, used to go A.W.O.L. on runway excursions. The Leathernecks, though, taught her manners. Now she’s a great favorite, and her crew likes to tell tall takes of her early escapes. (Office of War Information courtesy of the Library of Congress. Also: National Museum of the U.S. Navy Lot-1822-4)

Marine Corps Base, Parris Island, South Carolina, May 1942. The Marines have the situation well in hand. That goes for anything they tackle-like the barrage balloon, for example. Special Marine Corps units at Parris Island gain rare proficiency with this new fighting tool that the Leathernecks have taken over. (Office of War Information courtesy of the Library of Congress. Also: National Museum of the U.S. Navy Lot 1822-10)

U.S. Marine Corps, bedding down a big barrage balloon, Parris Island, S.C. May 1942. (Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division LC-DIG-fsac-1a35182)

Marine Corps barrage balloons, Parris Island, S.C. May 1942. (Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division LC-DIG-fsac-1a35173)

Marine Corps barrage balloons, Parris Island, S.C. May 1942. (Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division LC-DIG-fsac-1a35181)

Marine Corps barrage balloons, Parris Island, S.C. May 1942. (Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division LC-DIG-fsac-1a35176)

A tethered barrage balloon being hoisted into position by a team of women in WAAF overalls with the city of Coventry visible in the background. (Dame Laura Knight, 1943. Imperial War Museum photo Art.IWM ART LD 2750)

A kite balloon tethered to the balloon barge Norman Wade on the River Humber, ready to be taken ashore for inspection and maintenance at No. 17 Balloon Centre, Sutton-on-Hull, Yorkshire. January 1943. (Imperial War Museum photo CH 8663)

Balloons safely tucked away in the hangar for the night. WAAF balloon operators report for inspection before going off duty after a strenuous day of training on the balloon site. England. (U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, cataloged under the National Archives Identifier (NAID) 541911)

A barrage balloon of Balloon Command floating just above the ground, near Biggin Hill, Kent. In the background a number of airborne balloons are visible. Large numbers of barrage balloons were located across the south-eastern approaches to London to combat the growing threat from V-1 flying bombs launched from the Pas de Calais starting in June 1944. (Imperial War Museum photo TR 2161)

Barrage balloons over London during World War II. Buckingham Palace and the Victoria Memorial can be seen in the middle ground. (From Air Publication 3003 - A Brief History of the Royal Air Force, HMSO)

Barrage Balloon Winch, Imperial War Museum, Duxford. (Roland Turner, 19 May 2018)

Looking down on the factory floor at the Dunlop Balloon Factory, Manchester, where barrage balloons are being constructed. (Imperial War Museum photo HU36241)

Airship sheds and World War II barrage balloon. Cardington, RAF. (Ben Brooksbank, 29 April 1962)

Castles of the Air - Man the Walls - Join a Balloon Barrage Squadron, Auxiliary Air Force, 1939. (Imperial War Museum photo Art.IWM. PST 3126)

Barrage balloons over the Thames and Tower Bridge. (The National Archives (United Kingdom) document record INF3/30)

Keep It Up - Save and Lend Through the Post Office Savings Bank and Trustee Savings Banks. (Imperial War Museum photo Art.IWM PST 16517)

Kite balloons tethered to mobile winches, and attendant handlers of No. 1 Balloon Training Unit, proceed out of No. 1 Airship Shed at Cardington, Bedfordshire, for a morning's training on the airfield. (Imperial War Museum photo CH 17333)

Inflated kite balloons of No. 1 Balloon Training Unit await their handlers, during the morning parade in No. 1 Airship Shed at Cardington, Bedfordshire. (Imperial War Museum photo CH 17332)

Man the Barrage. Join A Balloon Barrage Squadron. (Imperial War Museum photo Art.IWM PST 14622)

Man the Barrage. (Imperial War Museum photo Art.IWM PST 3773)

Kite balloons and their attendant balloon winches are walked out of No. 1 Airship Shed at Cardington, Bedfordshire, for handling practice by No. 1 Balloon Training Unit. (Imperial War Museum photo CH 1515)

A Barrage Balloon Section, housed in a converted sugar barge in the Thames Estuary, sends up a kite balloon from its cradle. (Imperial War Museum photo C 726)

A kite balloon operated by No. 961 Balloon Squadron is winched into the air amid damaged buildings at Granville Gardens, Dover, Kent. (Imperial War Museum photo CH 11026)

The crew of a kite balloon site of No. 961 Balloon Squadron, relax in their Nissen hut at Dover, Kent. (Imperial War Museum photo CH 11033)

Leading Aircraftmen W E Rushton and R Carrick of No. 12 Balloon Centre based at Tichfield, Hampshire, 'bed down' a kite balloon following inspection, during one of the FABIUS invasion exercises conducted in the Southampton area. In the foreground is the portable winch operated by the two-man crews to raise and lower the balloon. (Imperial War Museum photo CH 13212)

Kite balloons and balloon winches of No. 1 Balloon Training Unit are prepared for handling practice at Cardington, Bedfordshire. (Imperial War Museum photo CH 1521)

Kite balloons rise above the airfield at Cardington, Bedfordshire, during handling practice by No. 1 Balloon Training Unit. (Imperial War Museum photo CH 1523)

An instructor of No. 1 Balloon Training Unit at Cardington, Bedfordshire, shows trainee balloon-operators how to 'bed down' a kite balloon, using a scale model. (Imperial War Museum photo CH 1527)

WAAFs hauling in a kite balloon at a coastal site. (Imperial War Museum photo CH 21007)

Two men of a Royal Air Force Combined Operations balloon crew with the winch and tackle used for hauling in small barrage balloons. (Imperial War Museum photo TR 1780)

Royal Air Force Combined Operations balloon crew hauling in a small barrage balloon of the type used during the D-Day landings. (Imperial War Museum photo TR 1781)

Watched by a group of schoolchildren, airmen of a Detachment of No. 982 Balloon Squadron RAF untether a Mark VI Kite Balloon from their tender, an adapted American Landing Craft Personnel (Ramped), before bringing in ashore at Ajaccio, Corsica. (Imperial War Museum photo CNA 4328)

Personnel of a Beach Balloon Party erect their bivouacs on a Sicilian beach, while behind them a kite balloon is prepared for deployment. (Imperial War Museum photo CNA 1008)

Personnel of 'K' Balloon Unit haul down one of their kite balloons for attention on a landing beach near Salerno, Italy, using a motorized winch in the back of a Bedford QL lorry. (Imperial War Museum photo CNA 1744)

Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament in London with barrage balloons in the background, seen from Westminster Bridge (on which a sentry, military vehicles and a tram can be seen). (Imperial War Museum photo TR 1114)

A barrage balloon of Balloon Command attached to a winching lorry and anchored to the ground near Biggin Hill, Kent. In the background a number of airborne balloons are visible. Large numbers of barrage balloons were located across the south-eastern approaches to London to combat the growing threat from V-1 flying bombs launched from Pas de Calais starting in June 1944. (Imperial War Museum photo TR 2160)

The King tours the invasion beaches. HM King George VI, accompanied by Admiral Sir Bertram Ramsay and the First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Andrew Cunningham, traveled by the cruiser HMS ARETHUSA to France, where he visited General Montgomery's headquarters and conferred decorations on Royal Navy and Army officers in the field. The motor launch carrying the King from the ARETHUSA to a waiting DUKW or "duck" off shore making its way through craft of all kinds to the beach. The ML is in the center with the Union Jack flying at the bows. Note the various types of landing craft that are moored off the invasion beaches some of which have signs on saying what supplies they hold (petrol and water). A large number of barrage balloons can be seen in the distance. (Imperial War Museum photo A 24199)

A gift to Russia; HMS ROYAL SOVEREIGN (renamed ARCHANGELSK) at anchor and flying the Russian flag, after being handed over to the Russian Navy. Also handed over were the submarines URSULA, UNISON, UNBROKEN and SUNFISH as well as eight ex-American destroyers. (Imperial War Museum photo A 23816)

Ratings bringing out an inflated barrage balloon, at Greenock or Gourock. It is to fly from a merchant ship that is about to leave harbor as part of a convoy, to help defend the vessel against dive bombers. (Imperial War Museum photo A 6170)

Ratings bringing out an inflated barrage balloon, at Greenock or Gourock. The barrage balloon is caught in a high wind and the ratings are nearly taken off their feet. It is to fly from a merchant ship that is about to leave harbor as part of a convoy, to help defend the vessel against dive bombers. (Imperial War Museum photo A 6172(

Unseen but Unceasing. (Imperial War Museum photo Art.IWM PST 10009)

Wartime barrage balloon in the sports field of Burnage High School, 1942. (Peter Ward)

Barrage balloons at a balloon station, possibly RAF Cardington. (Peter Elliott)

Balloon squadrons were formed in the Birmingham area at the start of 1939. Here a barrage balloon is demonstrated at Aston Park in March of that year.

School children from Bristnall Hall Senior Boys School pose with their local barrage balloon which belonged to 911 Squadron.

A crew at work on a deflated balloon. (A.B.Burr)

A German reconnaissance photograph showing 5 Balloon Centre at Sutton Coldfield.

This wreck is an RAF Blenheim, which crashed at Bearwood on the Birmingham boundary in February 1942. It collided with a balloon cable which was tethered at Avery’s sports ground in Edgbaston. The crew of three was killed.

RAF balloon barrage at Cardington, Bedfordshire. Note the distinctive airship hangars which are still there today.