Wullenweber
The Wullenweber (the original name introduced by Dr. Hans Rindfleisch was Wullenwever) is a type of Circularly Disposed Antenna Array (CDAA) sometimes referred to as a Circularly Disposed Dipole Array (CDDA). It is a large circular antenna array used for radio direction finding. It was used by the military to triangulate radio signals for radio navigation, intelligence gathering and search and rescue. Because its huge circular reflecting screen looks like a circular fence, the antenna has been colloquially referred to as the elephant cage. The term wullenwever was the World War II German cover term used to identify their secret CDAA research and development program; its name is unrelated to any person involved in the program.
Wullenweber technology was developed by the German navy communication research command, Nachrichtenmittelversuchskommando (NVK) and Telefunken during the early years of World War II. The inventor was NVK group leader Dr. Hans Rindfleisch, who worked after the war as a Technical Director for the northern Germany official broadcast (Norddeutscher Rundfunk - NDR). Technical team leaders were Dr. Joachim Pietzner, Dr. Hans Schellhoss, and Dr. Maximilian Wächtler. The latter was a founder of Plath GmbH in 1954 and later a consultant to both Plath and Telefunken.
Dr. Rolf Wundt, a German antenna researcher, was one of hundreds of German scientists taken to the U.S. by the Army after the war under Operation Paperclip. He arrived in New York in March 1947 on the same ship as Wernher Von Braun and his wife and parents. He was first employed by the U.S. Air Force, then by GT&E Sylvania Electronics Systems on Wullenweber and other antenna projects.
Although the three men retired in West Germany, some of their second-echelon technicians were taken to the USSR after the war. At least 30 Krug (Russian for circle) arrays were installed all over the Soviet Union and allied countries in the 1950s, well before the U.S. military became interested and developed their own CDAAs. Several Krugs were installed in pairs less than 10 kilometers of each other, apparently for radio navigation purposes. At least four Krugs were installed near Moscow; just to the north, east and south (55°27′51″N 37°22′11″E / 55.46408°N 37.3698°E) of the city. The Krugs were used to track the early Sputnik satellites, using their 10 and 20 MHz beacons, and were instrumental in locating re-entry vehicles.
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