Von Braun was an NSDAP party member since ’37, and from 1940 on Sturmbahnführer with the SS. Apart from political standing, joining the SS did ease missile production since Mittelberg was an SS-ran facility. You bet Wernher knew what was going on there.

Never suspected you would consider the Soviets the ‘right’ side. Besides, Von Braun had nothing to do with Sputnik…

Not directly he did not,but some of the info & technology gathered by Russia came from his research

Did he not realise that all those V2’s fired at London (and other cities) were full of explosive,and aimed a civillians? I think he was lucky to escape an indictment for war crimes.

He probably was aware,but to use that argument is indicative of Barnes wallis,the dams raids,Arthur Harris…..need I go on? In reality it was a time of total war & sadly civilians were killed by both direct & indirect action.

I am not excusing his past,but you might as well throw war crimes at every leader &those who gave the orders to every member of armed services,irrespective of whose side they where on.

That aside his acheivements with the Mercury,Gemini,Apollo & Space Shuttle programmes (& the everyday items that we use in this technological age that were developed as a result),tend to eclipse his past misdermeanors.

After all, this forum and P.C. wouldn’t exist without those acheivments.:)

Yes, Lancasters have a great deal in common with hot air balloons made of paper and powered by burning straw…:rolleyes:

Yes, I know your comment was probably intended in jest…but to prevent any of the “…thick and stupid youth…” from getting the wrong idea. ..
The Wrights always gave credit to Lillenthal. But recall they they did expand on his unpowered weight-shifting hang glider. Not to mention reworking his lift tables and designing the first aerial prop (which entailed a lot more than changing boat designs). If you ever read one of their biographies (for a particularly technical one written by a pilot, read Combs’ Kill Devil Hill) you’ll see they did a lot more than hang an engine on a glider.

Every time someone gets mad at America, they attack (or at least insult) the Wrights…Please keep in mind it was your own Science Museum that gave them credit for the world first manned , powered, controlled flight by an aeroplane.:D

I’ll admit it was in jest:D ,however the dig was at Americans:D 😀 & not the Wright Bros(I never mentioned their name until now):rolleyes:

I have been asked by a local historian to try and trace details of an aircrash at South Moor Golf Course, near Stanley County Durham during World War 2.

Any of the accident experts able to help

If it is any help,friends of ours live in South Moor so I’ve asked them to find out what they can.I will pass any info on that I get.:)

I would imagiane the production team will have scoured Europe for any useful items such as the traveling cockpit that attends airshows and the fuselage section (Aeroventure?) that was used in the same drama as Just Jane?

I hope they do/have approached Aeroventure, It would be nice to contribute so long as they don’t ruin the story

Lets hope they don’t have a cast full of Americans eh?, or the majority of the thick and stupid youth of today will think the yanks breached the dams and invented the ‘bouncing bomb’, like the other movie that told the world how they captured the ‘Enigma’ and helped us British out because we couldn’t do anything right!

Oh yeah after all the Americans did invent the flying didn’t they?, no wonder they don’t want display the aircraft below:D

sorry all got carried away!!

The Americans inventing flying? have you forgotten the Mongolfiers brothers(ok that was a hot air balloon) & what about Otto Lillenthal?:rolleyes:

SCUM is to good a word to call them.
Sadly its all to common today with such memorials etc being stolen.
mainly for there scrap metal value . sadly most are melted down or shipped abroad very fast and are lost for ever.

SNAF(u) is even better- if you do not know the meaning please PM me:diablo: :diablo: