Portal:Aviation/Selected picture/91
Appearance
![Schematic diagram of a V-2 rocket.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1f/V-2_rocket_diagram_%28with_English_labels%29.svg/325px-V-2_rocket_diagram_%28with_English_labels%29.svg.png)
Credit: Image credit: Fastfission
A schematic of the V-2 rocket, the first ballistic missile, the first man-made object to achieve sub-orbital spaceflight, and the progenitor of all modern rockets. Developed by Wernher von Braun on behalf of Nazi Germany, and based on work by Robert H. Goddard, over 3,000 V-2s were launched during World War II against Allied targets, resulting in the death of an estimated 7,250 military personnel and civilians. An estimated 20,000 inmates at Mittelbau-Dora died constructing V-2s, making the V-2 perhaps the only weapon system to have more deaths caused by its production than its deployment.