Sunday 15 September 2013

Hitler's Folly: Reichenberg





   This is one of the last Fieseler Fi103s left in existence on display at Headcorn Airfield in Kent.

   It is essentially a V1 flying bomb with a cockpit added. The idea was that the pilot would fly it nearly into the target and then bail out turning the bomb into a cruise missile. The canopy opened sideways and the jet intake was right behind the pilot's head. Survival chances were reckoned at 1%.

   As far as I know it was never used in combat but it was intended for a special flight of KG200 under the code name Reichenberg.

4 comments:

  1. That's a new one to me! It makes you wonder if the Luftwaffe would have actually found any volunteers to pilot it! Kind regards, Brian.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hannah Reitsch was a big factor in their development too, she pushed for 'kamikaze' weapons to be adopted by the Germans.

    Cheers,

    Pete.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I knew she tested it but had no idea she was keen on kamikaze raids. Did she intend to volunteer or just encourage other people.

      Delete