The German A4 Rocket (B955 C955)

An Air Ministry film produced by AKS dealing in detail with the manufacture, assembly and operation of the German Army A4 Rocket also known as the V2 (Vergeltungswaffe 2 = Retaliation Weapon 2). Film opens with launches of an A4 rockets from forest clearings. Rocket motor igniting and rocket lifting off [slow motion]. The first A4 rocket attack on London was on 8 September 1944 with more than one thousand rockets launched most from The Hague, Netherlands. Shows sign 'Den Haag' [The Hague]. City streets from where the rockets were launched. Avenues of tree to protect rockets from wind and air attack. The A4 needed only 25 square feet for launch provided the launch site could be reached by a vehicle. The Hague Museum. Woods where rockets were launched and aim marks painted on the trees. Pits for the firing control vehicle. Rockets and equipment wrecked by the Germans being salvaged for reconstruction and use by the British. Rebuilt rockets from captured equipment. Captured factory producing Beetlewagon transporter vehicles. Beetlewagon towing liquid oxygen container. German gun test range at Kochshafen. Proofing tower for tests. The British built a repair plant on site including workshops, sheds and stores. Captured German rocket components - rocket warheads, fuel tanks etc. Shows lightness of empty fuel tanks that can be carried by four men. Animated diagrams illustrate the mechanism of the rocket. The actual combustion chamber. Turbine and liquid oxygen pump. Assembly of the rockets. Animated diagram of rocket launch at London from The Hague. 200 miles maxium range, height reached 50 miles and striking target at 3000 mph. the whole journey taking 5 minutes. Workshops at Kochshafen, German engineers working under British supervision on rocket components. Assembly of rockets and loading onto transporter. Rocket taken to proofing tower for tests. Loaded from tower to rocket transporter. British follow the same operational procedure used by the Germans. Railhead two rockets on three railwagons. Cranes used to load rockets. Germans had one technical troop to three firing troops. Transporter takes the rockets to Field Store where rocket warheads of 1700 lbs high explosive. Use of mobile crane. Transfer of fuel from rail tankers to road tankers. Transfer of rocket from the technical troop to the firing troop using mobile crane. Firing Troop at the launch site. Setting up the launching table. Winching the rocket to erect it on the launch base. Rocket weight four tons unfuelled twelve and half tons fuelled. The fueling troop - various vehicles and trailers. Survey party levels the rocket. Fuelling the rocket - alcohol the firts fuel, liquid oxygen. Arrangement of fuelling vehicles around the rocket. Hydrogen peroxide T-Stoff and Sodium Permanganat Z-Stoff. Assembly of ignitor. Firing of rocket. Firing control vehicle. Launching rocket. Vapour trail. Slow motion scene of rocket launch. Close up in slow motion of rocket leaving the launch table. End titles.