Peenemunde
Luftwaffe Experimental Airfield

This imagery was taken over the German test centre, the enlargement shows a pair of Messerschmitt Me 163 'Komet' aircraft.

The Me 163 had a top speed in the range of 510-520 mph at low levels rising to 597 mph at 9,900 ft. It was armed with two 30mm Reinmetall Mk108 cannon, each with 60 rounds. Its maximum rocket endurance was 7 minutes and 30 seconds (allowing for periods of reduced thrust).

In the main Image you can see a number of other aircraft, on the left is a He 111 bomber

 Peenemunde Airfield


Another area of Peenemunde Airfield Another area within the Peenemunde airfield.

This image shows another Me 163 (Red Box) and what could be a Gotha Go 244 (Yellow Box).

The Go 244 started life as a glider (Go 242), it could carry 21 fully-equipped troops or the equivalent weight, such as a Kubelwagen utility vehicle. this could be loaded through the rear hinged fuselage.

After the fall of France radial engines became widely available, and the Go 242 was then modified as the Go 244 twin engine transporter.

The Go 244 had a maximum speed of 180 mph, with a of 373 mile range and a maximum ceiling of 25,000 feet.


Peenemunde Airfield
In this image, we can see a pair of possible DFS 230 gliders (Red Box).
This aircraft became the Luftwaffe's standard assault glider, the braced high wing monoplane had a crew of two and could carry eight fully-equipped troops.

The DFS 230 used jettisoning landing gear for take-off, and would land using a central mounted skid. Later versions were fitted with air brake parachutes. A Machine gun was fitted behind the cockpit for basic self-defence, some units fitted twin machine guns in the nose.

Used for the worlds first operation by glider-borne troops, this was the attack on the Belgian Fort of Eben Emael. The Fort was captured on the 10th May 1940. The DFS 230 was also used in the attack on the island of Crete.

The other aircraft (Yellow Box) could be a Heinkel He 177 'Greif' bomber. The long wings and the thin fuselage were a good aerodynamic shape, this gave the Greif a range of over 3,400 miles and carry a bomb load of 13,230lbs.
The Greif was later used in the anti-shipping role where it could carry the Hs 293A missile.


Farside of Peenemunde airfield This aircraft was spotted on the very far side of the airfield and appears to be a Focke-Wolf Fw 200 'Condor'.

The Condor had a crew of five, pilot, co-pilot and three gunners, one of these being the engineer and another being the radio-operator/navigator.

By February 1944, only 252 Fw 200C Condors had been built. The Fw 200 was mainly used in the anti-shipping role and as such in August of 1940 claimed 90,000 tonnes of British shipping.

On the 26 October a Fw200 bombed the 42,000 ton liner the Empress of Britain, south west of Donegal. The bombs crippled the liner which was then torpedoed by a
U-boat.


Airfield after a bombng raid

Peenemunde airfield showing the results of a bombing raid.
Date of imagery unknown

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