bomb bay

American  

noun

Aeronautics, Military.

1. (in the fuselage of a bomber) the compartment in which bombs are carried and from which they are dropped.

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Etymology

Origin of bomb bay

First recorded in 1915–20

Example Sentences

Morrison: We had the actors jump out of the bomb bay on stunt lines, and we hit ’em with a load of wind and basically scared the life out of them.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 18, 2024

The weapons, too big to fit into the bomb bay, were carried underneath and set spinning before their release.

From BBC • Dec. 8, 2022

Some say Bombay Beach came by its name because bombers leaving target practice over the Chocolate Mountains opened their bomb bay doors over the spot.

From New York Times • Apr. 12, 2019

After crossing the bomb bay on the catwalk, Hagenbaugh and Nelms stood gripping the seats of the pilot and co-pilot in the cockpit as they looked out at the views from 12,000 feet up.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 23, 2018

The bombers opened their bomb bay doors, exerted a miraculous magnetism which shrunk the fires, gathered them into cylindrical steel containers, and lifted the containers into the bellies of the planes.

From "Slaughterhouse-Five" by Kurt Vonnegut