Early Rocket Testing in Florida

Related Cities & Topics:

Operation Crossbow played a crucial role in testing the vulnerability of German rocket launches.

Toward the end of World War II, Eglin Army Air Field in Northwest Florida became the site of an unusual series of experiments to test the vulnerability of German V-1 rocket launching ramps. Known as Operation Crossbow, the program began in early 1944 when the Allies discovered unusual structures being built along the cost of German-occupied France. Intelligence sources indicated that these were launching ramps for German V-1 rockets. To determine the best tactics to be used in destroying the structures, General “Hap” Arnold ordered the construction of a replica at Eglin Field.  

Later in 1944, the Allies obtained parts of salvaged V-1s, which were brought to the United States and used in the construction of a working copy, which became known as the JB-2. Eventually the U.S. military ordered some 75,000 JB-2s, of which 1,300 were actually produced. Test launches near Destin and on Santa Rosa Island continued from 1944-1945.

After the war, the U.S. military experimented with captured German V-2 rockets while attempting to develop the first large scale, liquid-propelled two-stage rocket. Additional missile tests took place at Cape Canaveral over the next several years. The first test launches took place in New Mexico in 1948. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration would later begin operations at Cape Canaveral.