A-4b launch Credit - Gary Webster

Manned, winged boost-glide version of the V-2 missile. It would have been capable of delivering express cargo 600 km from the launch point within 17 minutes. Other variants would form the second stage of the A9/A10 transatlantic missile.

The A4b designation was used to disguise work on the prohibited A9 program. Two prototypes were flown; a manned version was planned. The A4b had an empty mass 1350 kg greater than the basic V-2, with wings of 52 degree sweep.

Crew Size: 1. Length: 14.18 m (46.52 ft). Maximum Diameter: 1.65 m (5.41 ft). Span: 3.20 m (10.40 ft). Mass: 16,259 kg (35,844 lb). Payload: 1,000 kg (2,200 lb). Associated Launch Vehicle: A4b.

• Michels, Juergen and Przybilski, Olaf, Peenemuende und seine Erben in Ost und West, Bernard & Graefe, Bonn, 1997. ISBN: 3763759603. Marvelous German language book traces the 'technology transfer' from the Peenemuende refugees to the rocketry programs of America, Russia, Germany, and other countries. More at amazon.com...