Model Collect UA72172 WWII German Wasserfall Ferngelenkte Flakrakete Railway Car

The W-1 Wasserfall was a German WWII prototype surface-to-air anti-aircraft missile. The Wasserfall missile was powered by liquid fuel, had a range of up to 26 kilometers, and was able to move a warhead weighing from 235 to 303 kilograms.

The first work on the W-1 Wasserfall began in 1941, but the first copies of the missile were not ready until the beginning of 1944. The W-1 Wasserfall was to be used as equipment for anti-aircraft units and - from 1943 - to fight the Allied bombing expeditions over Germany. The missile was to be as effective as possible, which meant the use of radio-wave guidance. Its work was based on the experience gained during the testing and operation of the V-2 missiles, and the work on the W-1 Wasserfall was led by Werner von Braun. Due to problems with the control system and the propulsion system, the missile never entered mass production, and its design was officially canceled in February 1945. It is worth noting, however, that after the end of World War II, the R-101 missile was produced in the USSR on the basis of the W-1 Wasserfall missile, and the A-1 Hermes missile in the United States.