R4M rockets, on an Me 262's starboard launcher.

The R4M rocket, nicknamed the Hurricane (German: Orkan) due to its distinctive smoke trail when fired, was the first practical anti-aircraft rocket. It was developed by the German Luftwaffe during World War II and used briefly before the end of the war. After the war the R4M served as the pattern for a number of similar systems, used by almost all interceptor aircraft during the 1940s and '50s. R4M rockets File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... R4M rockets File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... ... American troops man an anti-aircraft gun near the Algerian coastline in 1943 Anti-aircraft, or air defense, is any method of combating military aircraft from the ground. ... A Soyuz rocket, at Baikanur launch pad. ... This or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... The MiG-25 is a Russian interceptor that was the mainstay of the Soviet air defence. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... This does not cite any references or sources. ...

Development

The R4M was developed in order to deal with the increasing weight of anti-bomber weapons being deployed by Luftwaffe fighters. Their designs had started out with the 20 mm MG 151/20 cannons but it was found that it took an average of 23 rounds to shoot down a B-17 Flying Fortress, a number that was difficult to achieve. The 20 mm cannons were then replaced (or supplemented) with the 30 mm MK 108 cannon, which could bring down a bomber with only three hits. However the MK108 was much heavier and the larger ammunition made it difficult to carry more than one or two "passes" worth. Worse, the low muzzle velocity of these guns meant that the fighter had to come quite close to the bombers placing themselves in range of the defensive guns. The more powerful MK 103 cannon had higher muzzle velocity and increased range, at the cost of greatly increased weight and size. The MG 151 (MG 151/15) was a 15 mm cannon produced by Waffenfabrik Mauser starting in 1940. ... The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is an American four-engine heavy bomber aircraft developed for the US Army Air Corps (USAAC). ... The MK 108 (German: Maschinenkanone - Machine Cannon) was an autocannon (30mm calibre) manufactured in Germany during World War II by Rheinmetall-Borsig for use in aircraft. ... A guns muzzle velocity is the speed at which the projectile leaves the muzzle of the gun. ... More detailed info can be found here http://prodocs. ...

The solution was to replace the gun with a small solid-fuel rocket engine, mounting a warhead similar to that of the cannon shell. The R4M used a much larger warhead of 55 mm with a Hexogen explosive charge, guaranteeing a kill with one hit. Each R4M weighed 3.2 kg and was provided with enough fuel to be fired from 1000 m, outside the range of the bomber's defensive guns. A battery typically consisted of two groups of 12 rockets and when all 24 were fired at once they would fill an area about 15 by 30 m at 1000 m, dense enough that one was almost certain to hit its target. The R4Ms were usually fired in four salvos of six missiles at intervals of 0.07 seconds from a range of 600 meters. The main body of the rocket consisted of a simple steel tube with flip-out fins on the tail for stabilization. Two warheads were available for the R4M, the common PB-3 with a 0.4 kg charge for anti-aircraft use and the larger shaped charge, similar in construction to the Panzerschreck PB-2 for anti-tank use. American troops man an anti-aircraft gun near the Algerian coastline in 1943 Anti-aircraft, or air defense, is any method of combating military aircraft from the ground. ... Panzerschreck team The Panzerschreck (German: tank terrorizer; lit. ... Anti-tank, or simply AT, refers to any method of combating military armored fighting vehicles, notably tanks. ...

Operations

Only a small number of aircraft were fitted with the R4M, mostly Messerschmitt Me 262s and the ground attack version of the Fw 190s, which mounted them on small wooden racks under the wings. The Messerschmitt Me 262 Schwalbe (German: Swallow) was the worlds first operational jet-powered fighter aircraft. ... Focke-Wulf Fw 190 in flight. ...

The weapon gave mixed results. French ace Pierre Clostermann notes in his book The Big Show that in March 1945, six R4M-armed Me 262s flying out of the Oberammergau flight test center and led by Luftwaffe General Gordon Gollob claimed to have shot down 14 B-17s in a mission. In April 1945, R4M-equipped Me 262s claimed to have shot down 30 B-17s for the loss of three aircraft but records from Allied forces show only 5 B-17s lost during the time claimed. The Luftwaffe found the R4M missiles to be unpredictable in flight, due to their unguided nature and the use of Revi gunsights for aiming. In early use, the missiles often fell short of target due to the claim that the missile was effective at 1000 meters. In practice the missile was found to be most effective at 600 meters. Pierre Clostermann, DFC and bar (February 28, 1921 – March 22, 2006) was a French pilot, flying ace, author, engineer, politician, and sport fisherman. ... This or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Gordon MacGollob (16 June 1912 - 8 September 1987) was an Austrian fighter pilot and flying ace in the Luftwaffe from 1938 to 1945) during World War 2. ...

The R4M was modified for ground attack and called the Panzerblitz II

After the war the R4M served as the pattern for both the US 2.75 in (70 mm) FFAR (Fin-Folding Aerial Rocket) and the larger 5 in (127 mm) Zuni. The Mk 4 Folding-Fin Aerial Rocket (FFAR) is a 2. ...