V-2: A Combat History of the First Ballistic Missile (Weapons in History) [Hardcover]

T. D. Dungan (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1594160120 | ISBN-13: 978-1594160127 | Publication Date: October 4, 2005

In August 1944, Londoners thought the war might be over by Christmas. But on September 8, 1944, in the London suburb of Chiswick, a thunderous double-boom was heard followed by a huge plume of black smoke rising high into the air. Several minutes later another explosion rocked the earth near Epping. There had been no warnings, no drone of aircraft above, just sudden devastation. "Operation Penguin," the German V-2 offensive, had begun.

The A-4 rocket, better known as the V-2, Vergeltungswaffen Zwei, or "Vengeance Weapon 2," was the first ballistic missile to be used in combat. Soaring over 50 miles high at supersonic speeds, the V-2 would strike its target within 5 minutes of launching. Once in the air its deadly warhead was unstoppable. The ancestor of all Cold War and modern day ballistic missiles, as well as the rockets used for space exploration, the V-2 could not win the war for Germany—it was too expensive, too complicated, and too inaccurate—but its unprecedented invulnerability and influence on Allied war planning made the V-2 and the advancements it represented the ultimate war prize, and British, American, and Soviet forces scrambled to seize German rocket technology along with its scientists and engineers.

In V-2: A Combat History of the First Ballistic Missile, T. D. Dungan relies on an unparalleled collection of original documents, unpublished photographs, and accounts from those who were there to provide a complete description of the V-2 program, the missile’s use in combat, and the race to capture its secrets.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A definitive reference work showing the evolution of what was essentially a test vehicle into a weapon of war." -- Spaceflight, January 2007

"The best account of the V-2 campaign that has yet been published." -- Michael J. Neufeld, National Air & Space Museum, in Military History

About the Author

T. D. Dungan is a leading authority on the V-2 rocket and founding member of the International V-2 Rocket Research Group. He assisted with the restoration of the USAAF Museum's V-2 and was a contributor to "Nordhausen: V-2 Rocket Factory," an episode in the History Channel’s Modern Marvels series.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Westholme Publishing (October 4, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1594160120
• ISBN-13: 978-1594160127
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #401,544 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Outstanding History of the "Vergeltungswaffe Zwei", February 19, 2007

By 

Terry Sunday (El Paso, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: V-2: A Combat History of the First Ballistic Missile (Weapons in History) (Hardcover)

Author T.D. Dungan's "V-2: A Combat History of the First Ballistic Missile," is much more than its title implies. It is actually a comprehensive and detailed history of the genesis, development, testing, production, operational deployment and legacy of the liquid-fueled rocket with which Nazi Germany bombarded London, Antwerp and other targets during the last seven months of World War II. The brainchild of Dr. Wernher von Braun, who came to America after the War and headed NASA's Saturn V moon rocket program in the 1960s, the V-2 ("Vergeltungswaffe Zwei," or "Vengeance Weapon Two") was the world's first operational ballistic missile weapon system. Even though it was relatively unreliable and not very accurate, the V-2 occupies a special place on the road to space. Historians may argue about whether or not the German rocket team really had their eyes on the stars when they built the V-2. But it is undeniable that the big Nazi rocket, hundreds of which the United States and Soviet Union confiscated and launched after the War, jump-started the space programs of both nations.

"V-2" is uniquely valuable because it integrates rarely-seen technical information with the overall story of the rocket. If you like "engineering detail," you won't be disappointed. For example, there are excellent annotated line drawings of both the V-2 (internal and external) and its "Meillerwagen" transporter/erector. There is a detailed layout of a typical V-2 launching site in a forest clearing that includes all the vehicles and ancillary items of equipment required to service, prepare and launch the missile. There is an interesting double-page drawing of northwestern Europe that shows all V-2 launching sites and the missiles' trajectories to their targets. There is also a drawing of the notorious "Mittelwerk" underground assembly plant in the Harz Mountains, with the 46 tunnels identified as to which part of the manufacturing process each one housed in the production of V-1s, V-2s and Junkers "Jumo" turbojet engines.

Well-illustrated with black-and-white photographs, some of which I have not seen in print before, "V-2" is a superb stand-alone volume. An extensive bibliography steers the interested reader to sources of more information. My only criticism, and it is so minor that it scarcely deserves mention, is that there are several typographical and grammatical errors (such as the author's consistent misspelling of "ordnance" as "ordinance") that one last word-by-word proofreading would probably have corrected. But none of these are errors of fact, and they in no way detract from the readability, usefulness and historical value of this outstanding work. I give "V-2" my highest recommendation.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must read, February 22, 2006

By 

Tal Inbar (Kadima - Israel) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: V-2: A Combat History of the First Ballistic Missile (Weapons in History) (Hardcover)

Many books dealt with the German V-2, but this book is by far the best research on the operational combat use of the world's first ballistic missile.

The knowledge and expertise of the author is clearly seen from every aspect and each chapter is rich with facts and information that is accurate, and which was neglected in many previous works on the subject.

With this book both the novice and experienced missile and space enthusiast will find checked information, methodically research accounts, and excellent analysis of the operational use of the missile, as well as honest account of it's horrible legacy of slave labor used for its construction during the Second World War.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars one of the few best, March 31, 2006

By 

Wang Yi "a book collector" (Shanghai,China) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: V-2: A Combat History of the First Ballistic Missile (Weapons in History) (Hardcover)

A lot of books were or to be pushlished about the V-2 missiles.But only few can really represent something "new" history to you like this book.A unbeatable operation history of V-2 and a good textbook for other historians how to do the history research!