World War II Database

1.  BILL says:
20 Mar 2009 05:08:17 PM

The Natter made (11) unmanned launches that were made on the power of the motor alone. The photo could be a test launch, or the one that killed the pilot Lothar Siebert after launch, the Ba 349 power dived into the ground from a height of 4,900ft after having rolled on its back. The tests continued and maybe (20) aircraft were produced, but none flew in combat. Only two aircraft remain both in museum storage one in the U.S.A. the other in Germany.

2.  Bill says:
12 Mar 2011 08:32:37 PM

WHAT A RUSH!...

The Natter had impressive performance its climbing speed of 435mph off the launch pad 38,000 feet per minute, this was attained climbing almost straight up!
Powered by Walter liquid-fueled rocket of 10,600lbf or Schmidding-solid fuel booster
11,768kn (ten seconds firing time) maximum speed 1,000km/h or 600mph, endurance six minutes, service ceiling 46,000feet.

3.  Bill says:
16 May 2015 07:43:39 PM

NAZI GERMANY'S X-WEAPONS: Ba 349 NATTER

Among the last ditch weapons designed and built by Nazi Germany was the rocket powered manned Ba 349.
The Bachem Ba349 was planned to be a manned
vertical launched point defense rocket powered
craft. Powered by 1 x HWK 109-509 liquid fuel rocket, with 4 x solid fuel booster rockets two on each side of the fuselage.

WHAT WAS THE Ba 349 DESIGNED TO DO:

The Ba 349 was designed to intercept Allied bomber formations, and was launched from a vertical position, climb to altitude sight bombers and fire its 32 R4D or 24F6hn air-to-air rockets.

After attacking forward part of cockpit separated
pilot bailed out while aft fuselage with rocket engine returned to earth by parachute, to be used again. No Ba 349 natters were ever used in combat

FIRST ROCKET POWERED FLIGHT:

The Ba349 was tested and flown as a glider the first manned rocket powered flight was on March
1, 1945 with Lothar Sieber as test pilot, after the
launch the Ba349 made its climb but one of the four booster rockets failed to release a/c then went inverted, the canopy was seen to separate from the craft, as it flew through clouds, a/c was then seen in vertical dive and crashed into the ground killing Sieber.
Thirty-two (32) seconds into the flight canopy separated, could it have hit Sieber in the head, knocking him unconscious? The only surviving ne Ba 349 is in storage at the National Air & Space Museum, Wash. D.C.

4.  Bill says:
16 May 2015 08:05:00 PM

VERTICAL LAUNCHED CRAFT:

Ba 349 Natter killing test pilot Lothar Sieber, was
the only manned vertical launch of its type during WWII.
Did you know another manned vertical rocket launch didn't happen until Soviet Cosmonaut
Yuri Gagarin was launched aboard a Soviet 3KA3
Rocket, Vostok 1, on April 12, 1961...