Operation Paperclip

By: Klaus-PeterMr. Michael Battey

Mission:

U.S. effort to capture German material and personnel related to Nazi research conducted during WWII.

Mainly involved the V-1 and V-2 rocket programs but also:

• Chemical weapons• Atomic weapons• Jet engines• and many other things….

V-1 Flying Bomb

Robert Lusser– Developer of the V-1 with the Fieseler

company– Initial test flight at Peenemünde in 1941– First attack launch in June of 1944

V-2 Rocket

Since the 1930’s Dr. Wernher von Braun and the Spaceflight Society had been studying liquid- fueled rockets.– Initial test launch in October of 1942.– First attack launch in 1944 at Paris.

Peenemünde/Nordhasen Research facilities during WWII

– Housed the V-1, V-2 programs

Massive bombing raids by the British caused the scientists to move to underground locations.

Mittelbau-Dora Concentration Camp

Production Facilities for the V-2 program 10,500 forced laborers Many died due to the conditions: cold and

heavy labor

Vengeance Weapons

V-1’s were launched to attack targets in England– 30,000 were manufactured, 10,000 fired, and 7,000 hit

England.– In London about 5,000 people died because of the

attacks. V-2’s were fired at targets in Paris, London,

Antwerp, The Hague– 3,000 V-2’s were fired before the end of the war.– 1,115 hit England– 2,700 people died

Overcast

Originally called Operation Overcast Began when important Nazi scientists turned

themselves over to American forces. Allied forces were eager to find as much

information before the Soviets could. Allen Dulles an American intelligence

officer working in Germany towards the end of the war and was the chief recruiter.

Collection German bases/research facilities were found by American

troops, materials were collected and the bases were blown with explosives to keep the Soviets from getting anything.

Scientists were found and transferred, hundreds of train cars of materials were moved to America.

President Truman ordered that only non-Nazi’s may be allowed to enter the country – but many files were “rewritten” to clean up their histories.

700 Nazi’s were brought over to the US, some were still Nazi supporters.

It was renamed Paperclip because all Germans approved for transfer had paperclips clipped to their folders.

Wernher Von Braun

Of all the scientists involved Dr. Braun was the main asset.

Personally led development of V-2 program.

Member of the Nazi party and held a SS rank.

Guided a group of 200 of his own staff to find the Americans

Other Key Figures

Robert Lusser– The V-1 Flying Bomb

Arthur Rudolph– Developed the V-2 with Dr. Braun

Hans von Ohain– Jet Engines

Alexander Lippisch– Developer of the Messerschmitt Me 163

Kurt Blome– Chemical weapons expert

Reinhard Gehlen– Chief military expert on the Soviet Union

In America

Personnel were secretly brought over to the U.S. Scientist’s were deployed to White Sands

Proving Ground, New Mexico and Fort Bliss, Texas and Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.

They did not qualify for visas, Passports, green cards, or any identification.

They considered themselves “Prisoners of Peace”

Projects

First ICBM’s built using V-2 technology – Redstone Rocket– Jupiter– Jupiter-C – Atlas– Titan

Most scientists were given U.S. citizenship during this period.

NASA

NASA was established on July 29, 1958

Wernher von Braun and Arthur Rudolph

Saturn V Rocket Apollo Program

Continuing Research Wernher von Braun

– In charge of the Marshall Space Flight Center– Left NASA after Saturn V went to Fairchild Industries.– Encouraged non-space based weapons.

Robert Lusser– Jet Propulsion Laboratory for the Navy.

Alexander Lippisch– Helped with new jet aircraft designs for the Air Force

Arthur Rudolph– Director of Saturn V project thought out the space program.

Cold War And Other Nazi’s

Reinhard Gehlen – Continued to work for the Americans during the Cold War years against

the Soviets– He ran an intelligence network against the Soviets that included 2,000 of

his former Nazi comrades. – This network was extremely important to the U.S. so when Reinhard

Gehlen helped some of his old Nazi friends get out of Europe the CIA turned the other way.

Klaus Barbie– Known as the “Butcher of Lyons” for his direct involvement in the

execution of French Resistance forces during the war. – Helped the Americans with “policing duties” in the occupied territories.

Nazi War Crimes Disclosure Act

In 1994 congress became aware of the Nazi's and US research after the war.

Petitions of classified information was denied on several occasions.

Finally, in 1998 the Nazi War Crimes Disclosure Act was enacted and the CIA began to release about one million pages of text concerning the Nazi’s after WWII.

As of 2005 the CIA is still declassifying reports.

Bibliography:

www.wikipedia.com

www.wsmr.army.mil

www.nasa.gov

www.redstone.army.mil/history

www.msfc.nasa.gov