Hellmuth Walter Kommanditgesellschaft (HWK), Helmuth Walter Werke (HWM), or commonly known as the Walter-Werke, was a German company founded by Professor
Hellmuth Walter
Hellmuth Walter (26 August 1900 – 16 December 1980) was a German engineer who pioneered research into rocket engines and gas turbines. His most noteworthy contributions were rocket motors for the Messerschmitt Me 163 and Bachem Ba 349 interce ...
to pursue his interest in engines using
hydrogen peroxide
Hydrogen peroxide is a chemical compound with the formula . In its pure form, it is a very pale blue liquid that is slightly more viscous than water. It is used as an oxidizer, bleaching agent, and antiseptic, usually as a dilute solution (3 ...
as a fuel.
Having experimented with torpedoes and submarines, Walter began to design rocket engines for aircraft and founded the HWK in
Kiel
Kiel () is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021).
Kiel lies approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the Jutland ...
in 1935.
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
the HWK developed and built a variety of rocket engines for assisted take-off (
RATO
Rato is a village in the Cornillon commune in the Croix-des-Bouquets Arrondissement, Ouest department of Haiti
Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located o ...
), and guided missiles, before developing main propulsion engines for rocket-powered interceptor aircraft, notably the
Messerschmitt Me 163
The Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet is a rocket-powered interceptor aircraft primarily designed and produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Messerschmitt. It is the only operational rocket-powered fighter aircraft in history as well as ...
''Komet'' and the
Bachem Ba 349
The Bachem Ba 349 Natter ( en, Colubrid, grass-snake) was a World War II German point-defence rocket-powered interceptor, which was to be used in a very similar way to a manned surface-to-air missile. After a vertical take-off, which eliminate ...
''Natter''.
HWM designed the
steam catapult
An aircraft catapult is a device used to allow aircraft to take off from a very limited amount of space, such as the deck of a vessel, but can also be installed on land-based runways in rare cases. It is now most commonly used on aircraft carrier ...
that launched the
V-1 flying bomb
The V-1 flying bomb (german: Vergeltungswaffe 1 "Vengeance Weapon 1") was an early cruise missile. Its official Reich Aviation Ministry () designation was Fi 103. It was also known to the Allies as the buzz bomb or doodlebug and in Germany ...
. The steam was generated through the combination of
T-Stoff
T-Stoff (; 'substance T') was a stabilised high test peroxide used in Germany during World War II. T-Stoff was specified to contain 80% (occasionally 85%) hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), remainder water, with traces (<0.1%) of stabilisers. Stabiliser ...
and
Z-Stoff
Z-Stoff (, "substance Z") was a name for calcium permanganate or sodium permanganate mixed in water. It was normally used as a catalyst for T-Stoff ( high-test peroxide) in military rocket programs by Nazi Germany during World War II.
Z-Stoff wa ...
.
The company was wound up in 1945 and Walter subsequently continued his work in the United States.
See also
*
C-Stoff
C-Stoff (; "substance C") was a reductant used in bipropellant rocket fuels (as a fuel itself) developed by Hellmuth Walter Kommanditgesellschaft in Germany during World War II. It was developed for use with T-Stoff (a high-test peroxide) as an ox ...
– another chemical fuel developed by HWK
*
Walter HWK 109-500
The Walter HWK 109-500 was a liquid-fuelled rocket engine developed by Walter in Germany during the Second World War.
Description
The 109-500 is a self-contained, modular monopropellant ''Starthilfe'' (take-off assist) engine in a pod, a ...
–
RATO
Rato is a village in the Cornillon commune in the Croix-des-Bouquets Arrondissement, Ouest department of Haiti
Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located o ...
-podded ''Starthilfe'', self-contained booster rocket engine unit
*
Walter HWK 109-509
The Walter HWK 109-509 was a German liquid-fuel bipropellant rocket engine that powered the Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet and Bachem Ba 349 aircraft. It was produced by Hellmuth Walter Kommanditgesellschaft (HWK) commencing in 1943, with licen ...
– Germany's primary aircraft rocket engine
*
Gotha Go 242
The Gotha Go 242 was a transport glider used by the '' Luftwaffe'' during World War II. It was an upgrade over the DFS 230 in both cargo/troop capacity and flight characteristics. It saw limited combat action. There were multiple variants.
De ...
– rocket-assisted glider
*
Heinkel He 176 – rocket aircraft
*
Henschel Hs 293
The Henschel Hs 293 was a World War II German radio-guided glide bomb. It is the first operational anti-shipping missile, first used unsuccessfully on 25 August 1943 and then with increasing success over the next year, ultimately damaging or si ...
- radio-controlled rocket-assisted anti-ship glide-bomb
*
DFS 228
The DFS 228 was a rocket-powered, high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft designed by the '' Deutsche Forschungsanstalt für Segelflug'' (DFS - "German Research Institute for Sailplane Flight") during World War II. By the end of the war, the aircr ...
– rocket aircraft
*
DFS 346
The DFS 346 (''Samolyot 346'') was a German rocket-powered swept-wing aircraft which began development during World War II in Germany. It was designed by Felix Kracht at the ''Deutsche Forschungsanstalt für Segelflug'' (DFS), the "German Ins ...
– rocket aircraft
*
HMS Meteorite
HMS ''Meteorite'' was an experimental U-boat developed in Germany, scuttled at the end of World War II, subsequently raised and commissioned into the Royal Navy. The submarine was originally commissioned into the ''Kriegsmarine'' on 13 March 1 ...
– HTP-powered submarine
References
External links
* http://www.walterwerke.co.uk/walter/index.htm
Defunct aircraft engine manufacturers of Germany
Rocket engine manufacturers of Germany
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