The Third Reich had the most technologically advanced and innovative weapons industries in World War 2, with aircraft, tanks and bombs that could match and beat anything else in the World. Nazi scientists pioneered rocket and jet-propelled aircraft, the pilotless plane, long-range rocket technology, “robot bombs” and the world’s first super-heavy tanks. Many of these weapons had a real impact on the course of the war. Following the invasion of the Soviet Union and the realisation that the war could continue for years, Hitler put great resources into the development of new and technologically advanced weaponry, in the belief that the production of “wonder weapons” were the key to winning the war.
In 2016 Netflix documentary “Top 10 Secrets and Mysteries”, it was revealed that the Nazi Party and Adolf Hitler himself were very interested in ancient mythology and occultism.
The narrator claims: “They believed esoteric secret weapons would help the Third Reich achieve victory.”
He adds: “Thule and Vril, two secret societies linked to the Nazi ideology, underpinned these beliefs and inspired the leadership.”
The activities of this society included rituals, the evocation of ancient divinities, and a search for the “Black Sun”, a source of immeasurable energy that would give Germany enormous power.
Rudolf Hess, Hitler’s right-hand man at the start of the war was a member of Thule. The members of the Vril society were another secret organisation closely associated with Nazi ideology.
The documentary suggests that these activities were even more focused on the search for secret weapons, particularly the production of a gigantic flying device that would have a direct military application but would also be able to travel into space.
The narrator states: “They saw themselves as godlike super-being.”
Below is a look at are some of the secret, lethal weapons the Nazis created.
Hitler’s stealth ‘flying wing’ bomber
Referred to as “Hitler’s secret weapon,” the Horten Ho 229 bomber was designed to carry 2,000 pounds of armaments while flying at 49,000 feet at speeds north of 600mph.
Equipped with twin turbojet engines, two cannons, and R4M rockets, the Horten Ho 229 was the world’s first stealth aircraft and took its first flight in 1944.
The Fritz X radio-guided bomb
Considered the “grandfather of smart bombs,” the Fritz X was a 3,450-pound explosive equipped with a radio receiver and sophisticated tail controls that helped guide the bomb to its target.
A remote-controlled tracked mine
The Nazis’ Goliath tracked mine was anything but Goliath-like in stature. Known as the “Doodlebug” by US troops, the mini-tank was controlled with a joystick and powered by two electric motors, later replaced by gas burners.
Goliath was designed to carry between 133 and 220 pounds of high explosives and was used to navigate minefields and deliver its explosive payload to defensive positions.
A rocket-powered plane that was nearly 300mph quicker than the fastest aircraft around
By the late 1930s, the Germans were developing the Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet, a rocket-powered jet with speeds of up to 700mph.
This aircraft was a whopping 300mph quicker than the fastest aircraft around.
“During this time the vaunted American P-51 Mustang fighter, in comparison, topped out at less than 440mph,” according to Weapons of WW2 magazine.