Rheintochter I

The Rheintochter I (Rhine Maiden) was intended for use against Allied bomber formations late in World War II. The German ground-to-air rocket was fin-stabilized, and controlled by radio. The flight of the two-stage vehicle was controlled by the four movable vanes on the nose of the craft.

The first stage carried the missile away from the launching rail, while the second stage brought the missile up to full speed and propelled it to the target.

Both the booster and sustainer engines used solid fuel. After a six-tenths of a second burn, the booster dropped off and the sustainer motor ignited. The missile warhead was housed at the rear of the sustainer stage. Exhaust gases were expelled through six nozzles located between the main fins.

The program was abandoned in December 1944, after 82 Rheintochter I rockets had been test fired. By then it had become apparent that the missile could not reach the operational altitude of modern bomber aircraft.

Hs-298

The Hs-298 was designed to combat the Allied bomber threat to wartime Germany. This air-to-air missile could be launched from either fighter or bomber aircraft and was in quantity production early in 1945.

It carried 45.4 kilograms (100 pounds) of high explosives that were detonated by proximity fuse when the missile was within 9.1 meters (30 feet) of an enemy airplane.

X-4

The fin-stabilized X-4 air-to-air missile was guided to its target by means of electrical impulses which passed through two wires connecting the rocket to the launch aircraft until detonation. Once the missile was on its way to the target bomber, the fighter pilot directed its course with a separate small control stick in his cockpit. Because the control wires streamed out ahead of the launching aircraft, the pilot was prevented from evasive maneuvering.

Launched from German fighter aircraft, usually a FW-190, the X-4 was powered by either a solid-propellant engine or a bi-propellant liquid-rocket engine. It carried a 20-kilogram (44-pound) warhead.