The V2 (German: Vergeltungswaffe-2 - retaliation weapon No. 2) was a German ballistic missile from the Second World War. The V2 was a single-stage liquid-fuel missile with a range of 320-380 kilometers, capable of carrying a warhead weighing up to 975 kilograms.
The first designs and theoretical assumptions of a vertical launch missile powered by a rocket engine were developed in Germany in the mid-1930s. The German armed forces became interested in the idea relatively quickly and began to spend large sums of money on research. From 1937, the work was focused on the island of Usedom, in the vicinity of Peenemunde, in a specially created and built from scratch research center, which was managed by Werner von Braun. The first successful V2 launches took place in 1942, and the construction of the missile assembly line began in 1943, but work on the new weapon was very effectively delayed by an RAF raid conducted in August 1943 on research centers in Peenemunde. The British were guided by the information obtained by the Home Army intelligence service. Despite this, the first V2s entered the line in early 1944, but their first combat use did not take place until September 1944. Their main goal was to attack British cities, especially London. It is estimated that between September 1944 and March 1945, approximately 5,500 missiles were fired, of which approximately 70% hit the target. Undoubtedly, the V2 was a revolutionary weapon that had a significant and clear impact on the development of ballistic missiles during the Cold War, but it also had many disadvantages: it was actually impossible to steer a V2 missile in flight, its accuracy was tragically poor (it could hit several kilometers from the intended target!), it was also difficult to determine the exact range of the rocket. Its influence on the course of World War II was marginal.
Raķetes V1 pilotēta versija Fieseler Fi 103R Reichenberg IV, kas paredzēta pašnāvnieku uzbrukumiem sabiedroto lidmašīnām un atsevišķiem mērķiem. Pašnāvnieku lidojumu programmu bija plānots īstenot kara beigās 1945. gadā. Oficiāli vācu militārās varas iestādes lietoja terminu "taranēšana", tomēr iespēja izdabūt pilotu no raķetes praktiski nebija, jo lielā ātruma dēļ un kabīnes pārsegs atradās tieši zem reaktīvo dzinēja. ieplūde, papildus sasveroties tikai par 45 grādiem, kas neļāva ātri nolaist raķeti.kabīne pilotam un nolaišanās uz izpletņa. Kopumā tika apmācīti 70 piloti un saražotas 175 Fieseler Fi 103R Reichenberg IV mašīnas, taču to praktiskais pielietojums kaujas laukā tā arī netika sasniegts. Pati raķete Fieseler Fi 103R Reichenberg IV bija gandrīz identiska japāņu pašnāvnieku pilotu izmantotajai japāņu Yokosuka MXY7 Okha ar atšķirību, ka japāņu pilota kabīne tika noskrūvēta, neļaujot raķetei izkļūt lidojuma laikā, savukārt kabīne Vācu raķete deva teorētisku iespēju aizbēgt, lai gan praksē tas nebija iespējams. Specifikācijas: garums: 8m, spārnu plētums: 5,72m, maksimālais ātrums: 800 km/h, maksimālais darbības rādiuss: 330 km.