X-7

Work on guided rocket guided anti-tank munitions began in the military laboratories of BMW (the world owes them the appearance of anti-tank guided missiles ) back in 1941 , when the scientific and technical experts of this company came to the conclusion that the introduction of advanced achievements of rocket technology and remote control over the wires in the field of infantry weapons will help increase the effective firing range and the probability of hitting enemy tanks and heavy armored vehicles at distances x, inaccessible to existing anti-tank weapons . However, the Imperial Arms Administration , for bureaucratic reasons, caused BMW all sorts of obstacles to continuing to work on the subject of guided missiles (since work on any long-term projects that did not promise immediate readiness for adoption and did not guarantee the desired result was prohibited by the Führer’s personal order at the very beginning of the war, and officials with German pedantry complied with all the instructions given to them), as a result of which work on them was resumed only at the final stage of the war, when Yes, the defeat of the Reich was already predetermined, and BMW was ordered to transfer the existing achievements to other companies in the military industry, as a result of which, the successes of German scientists in the development of guided infantry missiles did not affect the course of hostilities in land theaters (albeit ceteris paribus subject to the introduction of other advanced military technologies, they could have a very significant effect on the course and outcome of the war ), other companies took the lead in manufacturing the first functional ATGMs, and experienced most likely ATGMs in a combat situation on the Eastern Front were most likely only possible in early 1945 , on the eve of the defeat of the Reich in the war ^{[1] [2]} . However, there are disagreements regarding the chronology of the use of guided anti-tank munitions on the Eastern Front in the military memoirs. So, for example, the use of ATGMs in August 1944 (obviously, we are talking about testing experienced German weapons in a combat situation) is mentioned in the memoirs of V. I. Chuykov : ^[3]

Here, for the first time, I saw how the enemy used anti-tank torpedoes against our tanks, which were launched from trenches and controlled by wire. From the impact of a torpedo, the tank exploded into huge pieces of metal, which scattered 10-20 meters.

- Chuikov V.I. “Guardsmen of Stalingrad go west”

Nevertheless, in the given memoirs there are no clarifying data not only about the design features (presence or absence of plumage), but also about the type of mover used "anti-tank torpedoes".

In the second half of World War II, there was a lag in the effectiveness of anti-tank artillery in competition with tank armor. The increase in the security of all types of armored targets urgently required an increase in the caliber of anti-tank guns and the improvement of specialized kinetic projectiles, primarily due to an increase in their initial velocity. With an increase in the caliber of the gun and firing range, the mass of the artillery system (barrel, carriage and recoil devices) greatly increased and the maneuverability (mobility) of the artillery system decreased. On the other hand, since the German Panzerfaust and Panzerschreck type hand grenade launchers, equipped with a cumulative charge new for that period, hit armored targets, depending on the model, only at a distance of no more than 100-150 m.

In 1944, the Heereswaffenamt Land Forces Arms Directorate instructed Rurstahl AG to develop the X-7 rocket (project 8-347). During the development, the Rurshtal AG company took as the basis the X-4 aircraft missile, which had successfully passed the tests at that point in time. In 1945, Ruhrstahlwerke (Brakvede) and Mechanische Werke (Neubrandenburg) plants were ready for mass production. Before the start of mass production, which was prevented by the end of the Third Reich, about 300 missiles were fired, some of which the Allies found in an underground warehouse near Harz , and some managed to get to the front, and was used in military operations. A variant of a missile for launching from an airplane is also known (i.e., in fact, this modification was an air-to-ground guided missile). Directions for the development and improvement of the design of the X-7 Rotkäppchen are called:

• Steinbock project - an attempt to develop a wireless infrared rocket control system
• project "Pfeifenkopf" (Pfeifenkopf) - an attempt to introduce a "target search apparatus" on a rocket system (by comparing the signal from two optical sensors)
• the Flunder project - involved the use of spare parts for a Panzerfaust grenade launcher including a warhead and a missile launch tube.

None of the above design development projects for the X-7 Rotkäppchen has been completed ^[4] .

War Tests and Use

Trial air launches of the X-7 Rotkäppchen air-to-ground rocket modification were carried out from a converted Fw 190 F-8 fighter. The troops did not receive an aircraft version of the rocket.

Ground tests have been carried out since September 21, 1944 at the Sennelagger training ground. The tests involved 7 missiles of this model. The first 4 launches ended in accidents (rockets buried in the ground 20-25 m after the launch) due to inaccurate control. During the next 2 launches during the flight, rocket engines exploded towards the target. The last of the tested missiles, flying the entire distance to the target, successfully hit a tank at a distance of 500 m to the very center of the hull ^{[4] [5] [6]} . According to Joseph Duncher, in April 1945 the X-7 tests were not yet completed and there was no talk of adopting it ^[7] .

In combat units for the use of "X-7" was not received. Despite this, it is possible that the missiles could be used in battle when the retreating German units found a large number of experimental X-7 missiles in the Aladdin’s Cave near Stolberg in the Harz.

Influence on Allied designs

Missile samples that fell into France in 1945 were used to create one of the first Nord SS.10 anti-tank anti-tank systems. By 1952, Nord SS.10 was ready for production.

Light two-stage ATGM. A cigar-shaped case with docked wings mounted in the rear and a stabilizer mounted on a tubular beam. Interceptors are installed on the left wing and on the stabilizer.

The mass of the WASAG first-stage engine ^[8] 109–506 ^[9] with a charge of quick-burning diglycol gunpowder was 3–3.5 kg. The engine of the first stage developed a thrust of 62-68 kgf for 2.5 seconds. and informed the rocket speed of up to 98 m / s. After working off the first stage, the engine of the second stage was triggered with a charge of slow-burning gunpowder, which developed a thrust of 4.9-5.5 (8? ^[4] ) kgf for 8-8.5 seconds. Simultaneously with the launch of the first stage, a gas generator was ignited, which, using a turbine, spun rocket gyroscopes. The stabilization of the flight was provided by gyroscopes, the axial rotation speed of the rocket in flight was 2 revolutions / sec. After the missile was launched, control commands were transmitted to it via two insulated wires, coils with which were placed in the wingtips. Direct guidance was carried out visually on the tracers using the control handle - "joystick" (a kind of joystick). Piezoelectric fuse, contact.

• Length - 0.758 m
• Case diameter - 0.14 m
• The scope of the plumage (wing) - 0.6 m
• Curb weight of the rocket - 9.0 kg
• Missile mass on the launch machine - (9.0 + 15.0) = 24.0 kg
• Starting Battery Voltage - 300 Volts
• The mass of the cumulative warhead - 2.5 kg
• First stage operation time (thrust 68 kgf) - 2.5 s
• Run time of the second stage (thrust 5.5 kgf) - 8.5 s
• The maximum speed is 98 m / s. (according to other sources, 300 km / h, or 83.3 m / s on average)
• Range max. - 1200 m (1500-2000 m)
• Penetration - 200 mm

• Ruhrstahl X-4 (air-to-air missile)

• Kozyrev M., Kozyrev V. Unusual weapons of the Third Reich M .: Tsentrpoligraf, 2007
• Roger Ford: Die deutschen Geheimwaffen des Zweiten Weltkriegs, Nebel, ISBN 3-89555-087-6
• Josef Stemmer: Raketenantriebe, Schweizer Druck- und Verlagshaus AG. Zürich, 1952

• Kramer
• Kramer X7 / X4