Helmut Gröttrup
| Helmut Gröttrup | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Helmut Gröttrup February 12, 1916 Cologne, Germany |
| Died | July 5, 1981 (aged 65) Munich, Germany |
| Nationality | German |
| Citizenship | Germany |
| Alma mater | Technische Hochschule Berlin (Technical University in Berlin) |
| Occupation | Engineer and Rocket scientist |
| Spouse(s) | Irmgard Rohe (m. 1940-1981) |
| Children | Peter Gröttrup Ursula Gröttrup |
Helmut Gröttrup (12 February 1916 – 5 July 1981) was a German engineer and rocket scientist. He was a manager for Wernher von Braun in the V-2 rocket program. During 1940, he was program manager for remote guidance and control at Peenemünde Army Research Center. In December 1940, he was made department head at Peenemünde Army Research Center under Ernst Steinhoff.
In 1946, he, along with his wife and two children, was part of the more than two thousand German specialists forcibly (at gunpoint) brought to Russia under Operation Osoaviakhim. From 1946–1953, he was in charge of the more than 170 German specialists brought to Branch 1 of NII-88 on Gorodomlya Island in Lake Seliger. The German team was indirectly overseen by Sergei Korolev, the "chief designer" of the Russia rocket program.
After returning to Germany in 1953, he made significant developments on the chip card.
After World War II, Gröttrup decided to work with the Soviet rocketry program, hoping to be its leader rather than an underling of von Braun (with whom he had personality conflicts). From 9 September 1945 to 22 October 1946, Gröttrup worked under the supervision of Sergei Korolev in the Soviet Occupation Zone. Then during the night on 22 October 1946, all German scientists and engineers - plus equipment - were unexpectedly and forcibly (at gunpoint) moved to the USSR by 92 trains as part of Operation Osoaviakhim.
Gröttrup helped Korolev with the R-1 project, a recreation of the V-2 missile using Russian manufacturing and materials. At Kapustin Yar, he helped Korolev supervise the launching of 20 rebuilt V-2 rockets. As a reality check on Korolev's missile proposals, official Dmitriy Ustinov asked Gröttrup and his small team to design several new missile systems, including the R-10 (G-1), R-12 (G-2) and the R-14 (G-4) which was similar to the A9/A10 long range missile von Braun designed during the war. Gröttrup was also asked to consult on the R-13 (G-3) cruise missile. None of these projects went beyond the design stage, but some ideas were incorporated in the R-2 and R-5 missile systems.
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