With the last visit to Cherbourg, the tour in this region is completed. You can return back to the N 13, and take the heading for Valognes. But,… there is one object I recommend for a visit, and that is a former V! launching site. If you have a navigational help at hand in your vehicle, put these coordinates into it: 49º34’42.98” N, 1º32’33.88” W.

Leaving from Cherbourg on the N 13, leaf this road after some 10 kilometers, and take the exit heading for St. Martin-le-Gréard. After a long exit, go lef ton the D 56. After 7.5 kilometers you coem across the V1 site on the left. Another route for this V1 launching site, is through the country. From Cherbourg, turn into the N 201 3, and go on the exit for La Glacerie on the roundabout (the N 13 north). Drive into the D 122. After 3 kilometers, go right, on the D 63. After 5 kilometers, go right onto the D 56. After 500 meters, on the right site, you’ll see the former, never used, V1 launch site No.17 (Du Mesnil au Val) te vinden.

This launching site is one of the best preserved V1 launching sites in Normandy. Unfortunately the site is on private property, but one can observe it well. To the east, there is also a small path which leads into the bocage, where you can observe the site from the other site.

To built these sites was a dangerous ordeal, they were targeted for constant bombing by the Allies. Despite these delays, the installations were erected in a rather short time. But the V1 sites in the Cotentin were overrun before they were ready to fire the missiles towards London. Because of the position of this particular launching site, you get a good picture of how the layout was for the V1 launching site.

Before a V1 could be launched, there were some precautions to be taken. To position the gyro compasses, it was important that there were no metals around to disturb the magnetic fields. The little stone shed behind the launching paths, is built free of metals.

Under an angle (away from the blast of the engine), behind the launching paths, at 75 meters, is the fire control bunker situated. Scattered around this place a several concrete constructions and small buildings to be found. You may also notice at some constructions the damage done by the Allies. It would be a nice object to make a museum out of this place. Maar

The First propolsal for a flying bomb was rejected in September 1941 by the German Reichs Ministerium. On 5 June 1942, a new proposal was offered by Fieseler as a missile that could fly all the way to England. This design, the Fi 103 (the later V1) was the work of three men, Ir. Breé, R. Lusser (designer of the fuselage), Paul Schmidt (engine) and W. Fiedler.

The so called puls-jet engine, built by Argus, was developed in 1929 by Paul Schmidt. The air which entered at the front , was mixed with an injection of a low octane gasoline from nine sprouts and brought to combustion. Valves at the front closed during ignition, and opened up again for a new ‘bite’ of air. This sequence was 45 times a second (27.000 times a minute). This brought tremendous shakes which were countered by rubbers which were connected between the jet pipe and the fuselage. These combustions gave the V1 its distinctive popping sound, and that’s why the English named it the ‘Doodelbug’.

It was a clever system, which made use of two ball which contained compressed air (150 bar), and were placed behind the fuel tank. These balls were entwined with piano wire, to strengthen them against the pressure. The compressed air did three things: fuel under pressure towards the engine, pneumatic handling of the three gyroscopes and the steering rudders. The three gyroscopes in the rear of the V1, gave the V1 stability in flight. This constant adaption of the rudders, could bring the V1 off course, and for this purpose, a magnetic compass was built into the nose of the V1.

The V1 could not be launched under its own power. To launch the V1, there were, beside the vast constructed sites of concrete (as in the Cotentin), also launching sites of simple constructions. These launching ramps had a length of around 40 to 50 meters, and consisted of elements of 250cm, which stood under a shallow angle to a height of around 5 meters

The ‘carrier’ for the V1, the so called ‘plunger’ would run in a cylinder of 31 centimeter, in the rail of the launching ramp. In the ‘plunger’ a reaction between hydrogen peroxide (T-Stoff) and the catalyst Calcium permanganate (Z-Stoff) was made, which brought steam under high pressure. The ‘plunger’ which was connected to a V1, shot forward through the rail, to give the V1 the first push, and when it came loose from the rail, it had momentum enough that the own engine could take it over, and the V1 could fly under its own power.

Behind the magnetic compass, in the nose of the V1, an explosive between 850 and 1000 kg was placed. Behind the explosives, a fuel tank for 675 liters was to be found. The wing spar run through the fuselage and the fuel tank. The speed of the 2200 kg heavy missile, was around the 550 and 600 km/h (later pushed up to 655 km/h). The distant it could normally travel, was around the 250 kilometers, at a height of 600 to 1500 meters.

To measure the V1 its distance to the target, a little propeller had brought a small counter in rotating back to zero, at that point, the fuel injection was cut, the elevator was pulled, and the V1 would plunged towards Earth.

Problem with the V1 was the difficulty to target the missile. It was more of a lucky shot when it hit a target and made victims and inflicted damage. The first designated name for the missile was Fi 103, but at became soon known as the V1, ‘Vergeltungswaffen’. The V1 was maybe a rude flying bomb, but its psychological purpose had maybe a larger impact. The later rocket V2, was even more dramatic for the victims, because it came without sound from the heavens with enormous devastating effect.

The first 10 V1’s were launched from France on 13 June 1944, towards London, but all failed to reach their target. From the 16.000 launched V1’s, 2.419 hit London and 2.448 Antwerp (those last were fired from Holland). The rest, around 11.000 did not reach its designated target, were lost through mechanical failure or were destroyed by anti-aircraft guns or fighter planes

This was the last bit of the tour around the Cotentin.
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