Henschel Hs 293 anti-ship missile test launch from a Heinkel He 111

The Henschel Hs 293 was a World War II German radio controlled glide bomb with a rocket engine slung underneath it that boosted the bomb in front of the launching bomber in order to make it more visible to the bomb aimer. It is the first operational anti-shipping missile, first used unsuccessfully on August 25th 1943 and then with increasing success over the next year, ultimately damaging or sinking at least 25 ships. Allied efforts to jam the radio control link were increasingly successful despite German efforts to counter them. The weapon remained in use through 1944 when it was also used as an air-to-ground weapon to attack bridges to prevent the Allied breakout after D-Day, but proved almost useless in this role. 0:00 Missile attached to the Heinkel He 111 launch aircraft 0:21 Demonstration of the control mechanism 0:46 Missile launch and impact seen from a chase plane 1:48 Damage to the target structure seen from the chase plane 1:55 Missile launch and impact seen from the laun