Bachem Ba 349 Natter

The Bachem Ba 349 Natter was a secretive, vertical take-off, single-seat rocket interceptor intended to offer high-speed defence of key targets. This radical aircraft offered Luftwaffe an inexpensive means with which to intercept and attack Allied heavy bombers using a vertically-launched, semi-expendable machine built of wood and armed with a nose-mounted 'honeycomb' battery of spin-stabilised air-to-air rockets as well as cannon armament. Launched vertically at 36,000ft per minute, the pilot was expected to fly within range of the enemy bombers, fire his rockets at them, ram another bomber, eject and parachute to the ground.

Illustrated with contemporary photographs and stunning commissioned artwork, this study examines this inventive yet ultimately unsuccessful attempt by the Luftwaffe to defend against the tide of Allied aircraft that was bombing German cities into the ground.

Robert Forsyth is an author, editor and publisher, specialising in military aviation and military history. After working in the shipping industry, he co-founded a publishing and book production business in 1995 which has produced some 250 illustrated reference books on military aviation, armoured warfare, vintage motor sport, history, biography and wildlife. He is the author of thirty books, including twenty-one titles for Osprey Publishing, on the aircraft, units and operations of the Luftwaffe, an interest he has held since boyhood, and he has been consulted for television on the same subject. He has written articles for The Aviation Historian, Aerojournal, Aeroplane Monthly, Aviation News, Combat Aircraft, and FlyPast and he is a member of the Editorial Board of The Aviation Historian.