I've read that by the end of World War I they had both contact and timed fuses(fuzes?), so in the case of a timed fuse (early in the war?), the bomb would just explode early, but what of the contact fuse? Would it eventually land and then explode?
I reckoned that if the contact fuse was at the nose a strong wind (or some other major attitude change) would cause the bomb to fall 'goofy' so it would just land without incident. However, I've also read that special fuses were created that armed based on sudden motion or change of direction, in which case you get roughly the same result as the timed fuse -- it would trip early or late and detonate too early or too late.
Are these valid assessments or am I missing something?
Thanks for any insights!