In Germany, military test rockets were launched in
Peenemünde
Peenemünde (, ) is a municipality on the Baltic Sea island of Usedom in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in north-eastern Germany. It is part of the ''Amt (country subdivision), Amt'' (collective municipality) of Used ...
(including
Greifswalder Oie) and
Cuxhaven, and larger non-military rockets were launched in
Hespenbusch,
Cuxhaven and
Zingst.
In World War II,
A4-rockets were also launched as weapons from several western areas of Germany. Several launchpads were also constructed for the
Bachem Ba 349
The Bachem Ba 349 Natter () is a World War II German point-defence rocket-powered interceptor aircraft, interceptor, which was to be used in a very similar way to a manned surface-to-air missile. After a vertical take-off, which eliminated the n ...
(also known as Natter), developed in 1944/45.
Peenemünde
From
Test stand VII
Test Stand VII (, P-7) was the principal V-2 rocket testing facility at Peenemünde Airfield and was capable of static firing rocket motors with up to 200 tons of thrust. Notable events at the site include the first successful V-2 launch on 3 O ...
, the most important launchpad for test rockets in Peenemünde, the mud wall, the channel for static tests, the concrete slab used for launches and some remains of the assembly hall still exist. The area is not open to tourists.
Greifswalder Oie
From the former launchpad, a piece of rail and the former observation shelter still exist. The area is open to tourists.
Cuxhaven
In the area of Cuxhaven, a launchpad was constructed only for
Operation Backfire. Launches for other operations in this area were made from mobile pads. A trench and some shelter remnants of the Backfire launchpad still exist. Also, the old Navy shelter used
Hermann-Oberth-Gesellschaft as control shelter still exists. The area is open to tourists.
Hespenbusch
In Hespenbusch only small rockets were launched from mobile launch pads.
Zingst
In Zingst, a lighted roadway indicates that there was once an important facility. It is possible that the concrete slab on which the launchpad stood still exists.
Liebenau
In Liebenau, the concrete slab probably still exists, which was used for launching the last A4-rockets in World War II in Germany in April 1945.
Launch sites for war use of A4
The war launches of A4 were made from mobile launch sites, for which no permanent construction was necessary. Nevertheless, there are at some sites concrete pads still in existence (in Hillscheid, for example).
Launch sites for Bachem Ba 349
On the Ochsenkopf high ground in
Lager Heuberg near
Stetten am kalten Markt, there is still the concrete pad from which the first manned launch of a
Bachem Ba 349
The Bachem Ba 349 Natter () is a World War II German point-defence rocket-powered interceptor aircraft, interceptor, which was to be used in a very similar way to a manned surface-to-air missile. After a vertical take-off, which eliminated the n ...
that took place on 1 March 1945, which ended with the pilot
Lothar Sieber being killed. The site is on an active ''
Bundeswehr
The (, ''Federal Defence'') are the armed forces of the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany. The is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part consists of the four armed forces: Germ ...
'' military exercise area and therefore is not open to tourists.
Three other launch sites for the unmanned Bachem Ba 349 test flights are situated in the
Hasenholz forest near
Kirchheim/Teck. This area is accessible for the public.
Rocket launch sites in Germany
Ruins in Germany
World War II sites in Germany
German V-2 rocket facilities
{{Germany-hist-stub