This radical, rocket-powered interceptor was designed for a single-use mission: launch vertically, strike with a battery of rockets, ... and fire a battery of 28 55mm R4M rockets.

By the late 1930s, the Germans were developing the Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet, a rocket-powered jet with speeds of up to 700 mph. "During this time the vaunted American P-51 Mustang fighter, in ...