Imperial Air Service Base No. 664
Wechtenland, Hornburg-Auersperg - Schaumburg, Wieserreich
Shortly after sunrise, 19 November 1952
Somewhere not too far from Budweis, deep into the pristine Schaumburger hills, air raid sirens rang as loudspeakers initiated a countdown.
Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five. Four. Three. Two. One. Lift-off.
In the remote military base of the Imperial Air Service in north-eastern Schaumburg, the R-3 rocket lift off the ground with a blazing red glare. The ballistic weapon, a dramatic improvement of the revolutionary R-2 rocket from the 1940s, boasted an almost doubled range from 320 km to 600 km and improvements to the system's accuracy despite the increased range. Having been first fired in 1949, the missile had been accepted into service roughly one year ago, and only entered service in early 1952.
Since 1949, the R-3 was something of a local pride. While Base No. 664 had boasted the very first Wieserreicher flying bomb, rocket and missile tests for the Imperial Air Service, this went completely off the scale in terms of range. It had required convincing the War Ministry to actually allow a properly sized, new target range just for this missile to be test-fired without public leaks and incidents; and Schaumburg and northern Thuringia's unforgiving hills were perfect for this, far from hostile eyes.
Errich von Beckenbauer, a sober man in his late thirties, had recently been ennobled in recognition for his services to the Emperor and the fatherland. The inventor of the R-1, R-2 and R-3 rockets watched with interest as another of his "children" was test-fired into Schaumburg's skies, gloating with pride. He had come a long way from the scarce funding of past times, now enjoying the personal favour of the Imperial Minister for War Maximilian von Bumgarner. Ten years ago, rockets were an experimental curiosity; now, they were a future wonder-weapon of the Reichswehr, all thanks to Beckenbauer.
"The test is a success, Kamerad Major" said Beckenbauer to the supervisor the Imperial Air Service had dispatched for the test. Major Wenzel Ljebedjew, a scruffy and moustached Saxon of Wendic origins, nodded with his usual frown and grunting.
"I shall report to the General Staff" said Ljebedjew, quickly turning to leave. "And please do not forget Herr von Bumgarner expects a report on the progress of the R-4 soon, Herr Doktor" he added with a grunt, walking off into the early Schaumburger morning. The rocket scientist nodded calmly, moving to light a cigarette as he replied to the officer.
"Jawohl, Kamerad Major. The War Minister can expect fruit in spring."
Typical Ljebedjew, Errich thought. Always like that. The way that bloody Saxon hillbilly spoke reminded the proud Swabian scientist of jokes about West Saxony's RSA directorate. Though Schaumburg had its own directorate for Wieserreich's principal intelligence service, the probability that the major's paycheck was enhanced by the RSA was high. The War Ministry was getting more and more interested in Beckenbauer's job, pressing him harder against the commission he had received not long earlier.
Snorting, Beckenbauer walked off to the car that waited for him. He needed to go back to the lab, work on the new rocket, and then perhaps rest. The R-4 was a pain; it had little to no relation to the successful R-2 and R-3, since the requirements were much more intensive and demanding. He still had problems such as accuracy to solve, but at such an early stage he was more concerned with actually getting the weapon's surprising range tested without alerting a neighbouring country.
"Fucking cheese lovers" Beckenbauer snorted at his driver. "Take me to the bunker, and step on it."
Wechtenland, Hornburg-Auersperg - Schaumburg, Wieserreich
Shortly after sunrise, 19 November 1952
Somewhere not too far from Budweis, deep into the pristine Schaumburger hills, air raid sirens rang as loudspeakers initiated a countdown.
Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five. Four. Three. Two. One. Lift-off.
In the remote military base of the Imperial Air Service in north-eastern Schaumburg, the R-3 rocket lift off the ground with a blazing red glare. The ballistic weapon, a dramatic improvement of the revolutionary R-2 rocket from the 1940s, boasted an almost doubled range from 320 km to 600 km and improvements to the system's accuracy despite the increased range. Having been first fired in 1949, the missile had been accepted into service roughly one year ago, and only entered service in early 1952.
Since 1949, the R-3 was something of a local pride. While Base No. 664 had boasted the very first Wieserreicher flying bomb, rocket and missile tests for the Imperial Air Service, this went completely off the scale in terms of range. It had required convincing the War Ministry to actually allow a properly sized, new target range just for this missile to be test-fired without public leaks and incidents; and Schaumburg and northern Thuringia's unforgiving hills were perfect for this, far from hostile eyes.
Errich von Beckenbauer, a sober man in his late thirties, had recently been ennobled in recognition for his services to the Emperor and the fatherland. The inventor of the R-1, R-2 and R-3 rockets watched with interest as another of his "children" was test-fired into Schaumburg's skies, gloating with pride. He had come a long way from the scarce funding of past times, now enjoying the personal favour of the Imperial Minister for War Maximilian von Bumgarner. Ten years ago, rockets were an experimental curiosity; now, they were a future wonder-weapon of the Reichswehr, all thanks to Beckenbauer.
"The test is a success, Kamerad Major" said Beckenbauer to the supervisor the Imperial Air Service had dispatched for the test. Major Wenzel Ljebedjew, a scruffy and moustached Saxon of Wendic origins, nodded with his usual frown and grunting.
"I shall report to the General Staff" said Ljebedjew, quickly turning to leave. "And please do not forget Herr von Bumgarner expects a report on the progress of the R-4 soon, Herr Doktor" he added with a grunt, walking off into the early Schaumburger morning. The rocket scientist nodded calmly, moving to light a cigarette as he replied to the officer.
"Jawohl, Kamerad Major. The War Minister can expect fruit in spring."
Typical Ljebedjew, Errich thought. Always like that. The way that bloody Saxon hillbilly spoke reminded the proud Swabian scientist of jokes about West Saxony's RSA directorate. Though Schaumburg had its own directorate for Wieserreich's principal intelligence service, the probability that the major's paycheck was enhanced by the RSA was high. The War Ministry was getting more and more interested in Beckenbauer's job, pressing him harder against the commission he had received not long earlier.
Snorting, Beckenbauer walked off to the car that waited for him. He needed to go back to the lab, work on the new rocket, and then perhaps rest. The R-4 was a pain; it had little to no relation to the successful R-2 and R-3, since the requirements were much more intensive and demanding. He still had problems such as accuracy to solve, but at such an early stage he was more concerned with actually getting the weapon's surprising range tested without alerting a neighbouring country.
"Fucking cheese lovers" Beckenbauer snorted at his driver. "Take me to the bunker, and step on it."