Did you know about the other inventions of the man who came up with the iceberg carrier?

You’ve probably already heard of Project Habakkuk (sometimes spelled “Habbakuk”), the British plan to build a giant aircraft carrier out of ice and station it in the Mid-Atlantic gap, the area neither U.S. nor British planes could reach to scout for U-boats (at least early in the war). The man behind the idea as Geoffrey Pyke, and the iceberg carrier was far from the only crazy contraption he proposed during or after the war.

During the German invasion of Norway, Pyke proposed to build a screw-propelled ground vehicle that could cross snow and allow a small British unit to tie down a much larger German force. The plan did not come to fruition, though the tracked M29 Weasel (The cutest military vehicle) was developed in its stead.
 
Pyke also suggested ships smaller than the carrier, through also made of “pykrete,” the mixture of ice and sawdust he invented. He had an idea for a landing ships to carry troops ashore, and a monitor, a relatively small ship with a single oversized gun, that could provide supporting fire during an amphibious landing. He also thought that supercooled pykrete could be pumped ashore from a ship and used to erect instant barricades, or even freeze enemy soldiers to death.

He also suggested that large quantities of small items could be sent ashore quickly through a tube system and a device similar to a pipeline pig, which he claimed would be useful in the Pacific, where many islands lacked shore facilities. He later expanded on the idea with a pipe system at least two feet in diameter, that could transport soldiers ashore, from island to island, or across swamps and mountains. In order to combat claustrophobia and panic, he suggested drugging the soldiers first and sending them in pairs to comfort each other.
 
Pyke wasn’t quite done with his innovations at the end of World War II: seeing how post-war Europe had a lot of sugar and unemployed people but not enough coal or oil, he proposed that trains could be pulled by men on bicycle-like contraptions.

Save 25% until December 2!

We are offering all our available tours with a discount of 25% if you book and pay in full by December 2, 2024. After this deadline, you will get a discount of 22% if you book and pay in full by December 30, 2024. Note that this offer applies only in case of new bookings, and it cannot be combined with other special promotions. As before, we will continue our mission of bringing history to life and sharing the stories of the Greatest Generation with our Passengers. Feel free to browse our website to find the right tour for you. We encourage our former Passengers to return and continue their journey with us on our tours meant for returning and new Passengers alike, such as our Channel Islands tours, War in Poland Tour, Britain at War Tour, World War I Tour, Italian Campaign Tour and the Third Reich Tour. 
If you have any questions related to this promotion or our tours, please contact our travel consultants at info@beachesofnormandy.com or by calling our toll-free number: +1 855-473-1999.