Archives: Gmedia Albums

Drawing 5741 B1 mpe – Fuel (B) Pump Spiral-housing with dimensions. Drawing origin 18 July 1944, revised to new drawing (AM41780) 11 Jan 1945. (Digipeer.de image)

Drawing 5741 B mpe – Fuel (B) pump assembly showing part/drawing numbers. Drawing originates 20 July 1944 and revised with new number (AM41780) 16 Jan 1945. (Digipeer.de image)

Animation highlighting just one of many revisions to the turbo-pump that occurred at an accelerating rate between August 1943 and late 1944 as the missile moved from development to full production, and finally use in combat. (Digipeer.de images: animation RJD)

Drawing 8526 E mpe 1944: Turbo-pump training presentation image showing cutaway. (Digipeer.de image)

Drawing 6380 A – Turbo-pump Assembly 08 Aug 1944. (Digipeer.de image)

Drawing 5800 A – Turbo-pump Assembly 1 March 1944. (Digipeer.de image)

Drawing 5742 B – Steam Tubine Assembly showing part/drawing numbers. (Digipeer.de image)

Drawing Number: 5741 D3 showing B (fuel) pump centrifugal impeller mpe drawing dated April 1944. mpe original drawing (Digipeer.de image)

Original mpe 1944 drawing number 3207 C of main fuel valave. (mpe = Heimat-Artillerie-Park Karlshagen, Werk Nord Peenemünde).

The injector head section of the 4B 1000kg thrust rocket engine is a precursor to the injector pot or ‘pre-chamber’ design used later for each of the 18-pots of the 25-ton V2 rocket engine. Most of the essential ingredients are shown in this drawing from 1940. Drawing no 1848E Deutsches Museum München online archive ref FA 014/12829

HAP11 drawing of standard 3304D fuel injector screw insert. showing details of primary swirl cavity and orrifice and all additional apertures including the four small cooling pores. HAP11 (Heimat-Artillerie-Park 11, AKA armament code: mpe), drawing number 4554D, Deutsches Museum München

HVP drawing no 1203D showing burner cup ‘diffuser system’ disposition for 19-pot head (at this stage the 25 ton thrust injector head had nineteen so called ‘pre-chambers’ or pots as no central fuel valve was present). HVP drawing dated 1939.

Drawing from the Army Experimental Station Peenemünde dated 1939. The specification describes an insert template that could be used for a range of outlet and inlet orifice sizes. The German text beginning (eingedrehte …) translates as ‘Center-line of screw used for holes to be drilled later’, and the hole dimensions are not specified on this document. HVP drawing number 1113 E, Deutsches Museum München

Sectioned general assembly view of the V2 turbo-pump (TP) dated September 1942. This image has been edited to show TP and document data closer together than the original.

Specification for fuel injector inserts showing orifice size, type, and A to E echelon position. Peenemünde document dated 30th October 1943. Of note on this document is the combination of high and low volume  injector inserts (3304D and 3305D) in the echelon E position of the 12 cups comprising outer ring I. It shows that each cup or pot on this outer ring had 16 inserts at the lowermost position E with 12 of the inserts with three inlet apertures (3305D) and 6 with only two inlet apertures (3304D being lower flow volume) positioned in the segment covering 165 degrees and closest to the outside edge of the head. HAP11 (Heimat-Artillerie-Park 11, AKA armament code: mpe), drawing number 4554D, Deutsches Museum München

Photo showing Werk Süd with IW on the left and F1 on the right taken on 19th August 1943. The photo shows only light damage to the main halls, although F1 was actually hit at least 11 times, and hits to the separate single storey workshops to the right of the IW hall. The long storage (oil and paint?) shed above IW and the woodworking shop at the top of the picture appear undamaged. Anti-aircraft platforms (at least 3) can be seen on the roof of IW but that seem to be empty of guns. F1 shows two AAA platforms (there was at least 3 at this stage and maybe more) and they may have guns installed. General W. Dornberger mentions defensive AA artillery fire from the from the roof of F1 in his 1952 book V2 (1954 in English).

RAF reconnaissance photo showing the Werk Süd region with the F1 pre-production hall and to the north the IW repair and maintenance hall, centre right, and road rail links to Prüfstand XI (Test Stand 11, circular rampart centre left) heading directly left from F1. P-XI was conceived to provide engine test facilities for the nearby pre-production hall. Scroll down to see GPS map, the marker index is set to the centre of P-XI, click map and switch to satellite view and you will see that only a small section of the circular rampart remains visible. You can easily zoom out to cover the coast area where F1 and the equally large Repair & Maintenance Workshops are located. The area immediately surrounding P-XI is now contained within a commercial farming operation with sheep appearing to be the staple – or was anyway, at the time of our first visit to the vicinity in 2010 and our last in 2017 – none of the sheep seemed to recognise us though so they may have changed. (for access to restricted areas click here)

This video still shows Robert in front of a bomb crater on the West or opposite side of the rail lines and road that pass the Repair & Maintenance Hall (R&MH). The crater like so many others, created in a fraction of a second, in August 1944 during a US air raid, has developed in to a thriving eco-system that now teems with all kinds of life. After the passage of more than 70 years the crater is still deep and well defined. There are hundreds of craters like this in the area.

This video still shows the same bomb crater from a slightly different angle. The crater like so many others, created in a fraction of a second in August 1944 during a US air raid, has developed in to a thriving eco-system that now teems with all kinds of life. After the passage of more than 70 years the crater is still deep and well defined. There are hundreds of craters like this in the area.

This video screen grab shows Robert about to climb the steps up onto the rail and road loading station 9 (also called Die Verladerampen or in English, The loading ramps). This storage and loading facility was never finished during the war and was intended to be a more elaborate with large storage buildings – but the pressure of war and constant use of the area prevented further development. The area is still surprisingly intact today with a strong correspondence between modern ground detail and historical reconnaissance photography.

Photo shows the cut stump of an heavy upright support girder. The ragged profile of the cut shows that it has been cut down with an oxygen and gas torch or possibly a larger fuel and oxygen device like a thermal lance. The steel support still has the bottom support pin for a large door. Note that although the girders have been gas-cut there is a great deal of mechanical damage to the steel work that was not caused by the cutting work. Considerable force would be required to bend the middle girder in the way shown, even if it was much longer at the time the bend was created. The upper superstructure of the storage shed may have been part demolished using a bulldozer. Or perhaps the East German Army may have used the site for explosives training – signs of demolition explosive use are in evidence nearby. The map under the album presentation of this picture shows the exact location of the girders.

Incomplete V2 missile on rail transporter. All 4 control compartments are well shown. The fuel tank connection pipe can be seen but not much else. All of the control equipment has been removed. Plainly visible is the chicken wire holding the fiber wool tank insulation in place. Today this would be called ‘Galvanised hexagonal network restraining matrix, and be supplied by a blue chip Aerospace company for $800 per square inch. In the 1940s, it was just chicken wire at a 2 dollars for a 100 ft roll.

Control compartments 1 (upper) & 4 (lower) Image copyright Imperial War Museum

Control compartments 3 showing gyro mounting platform with two gyros and DC motor driven 3 phase AC voltage generator. The alcohol tank pressurisation pipe is also shown running through the equipment bay (large silver coloured pipe). Image copyright Imperial War Museum

Control compartments 1. Image copyright Imperial War Museum

Control compartment 2 showing plywood separation panels, Oemig umformer (DC to 3 phase AC voltage generator), and voltage frequency control box. Towards the rear the ground connection plugs can just be seen and the mechanism of the cable release trap door (see cat flap!). Image copyright Imperial War Museum

Control compartment 1 top right, 2 top left, 3 bottom left, and 4 bottom right. The fuel tank pressurisation pipe upper connection point is well shown at about 6 o’clock (compartment 3) and just above and to the right the upper plate of the air (N) tank rack (tan colour). Image copyright Imperial War Museum
showing plywood separation panels, Oemig umform