V-2 Rocket, La Coupole Museum and History Center, Wizernes, France Special thanks: Ed Straten, Benno Janssen, and W. Reymers    On the weekend of June 20-21, 1987, over 20,000 visitors gathered at the massive domed V-2 bunker, Coupole d'Helfaut-Wizernes, codenamed "Schotterwerke Nordwest," in Wizernes, France. The event was an open house and inauguration ceremony for a new museum complex to be constructed at the infamous bunker site.    The festivities that weekend included guest speaker Professor R.V. Jones, former member of the War Cabinet Defence Committee (Operations) and MI6 who helped target the bunker during WWII. Jones highlighted the importance of Wizernes as the world's first missile silo and its unique role in rocket development history. A key representative on the German side was former Todt Chief Engineer Werner Flos, regarded as the highest-ranking survivor of Organisation Todt. In 1942, Flos was tasked with constructing the V-weapon bunker projects in France. The former adversaries Flos and Jones met in a fascinating encounter for those who witnessed it.    Under Werner Flos, Organisation Todt began operations in 1943, constructing a massive bomb-proof dome measuring 71 meters in diameter and five meters thick at the cliff top. Additionally, many kilometers of underground tunnels were excavated by migrant laborers before Allied bombing compelled the Germans to abandon the site.    In 1986 the regional French authorities allocated 10 million francs to establish a new Second World War museum, focusing on four themes: the Atlantic Wall and Pas-de-Calais guns; Occupation and Resistance; the Battle of Britain; and the V-2 development.    In the early 1990s, the developement of the site progressed. French authorities completed the strengthening and construction of lateral tunnels to create a circular path extending several hundred meters. The project also included a lift shaft, carefully excavated in the rock, designed to safely transport visitors beneath the dome. With this initiative, visitors to the site would experience a more enriching tour when exploring the iconic site. Significant structural engineering was required to safely create a spacious interior museum.    Additionally, during this period La Coupole director Yves Le Maner began the work of acquiring artifacts and displays for the new museum. Le Maner secured donations or purchases of original V-2 and V-1 parts from esteemed American and British institutions. The Royal Air Force supplied a stored V-2 engine from RAF Museum Cosford, while the Science Museum in London and Cranfield University contributed parts from a V-1, including its propeller anemometer/odometer. -              PHOTOS ABOVE: COUPOLE D'HELFAUT-WIZERNES IN 1983. WILLEM REYMERS MADE THESE IMAGES SHOWING THE BUNKER PRIOR TO DEVELOPMENT - -    Around 1994 the National Air & Space Museum in Washington, DC, deaccessioned SI D19750821000, which consisted of heavily deteriorated V-2 parts from the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, many of which had significant rust. NASM also donated another group of V-2 parts, including a heavily damaged V-2 hull that had been on loan to the Florence Air & Missile Museum in South Carolina since 1980, which had rusted outdoors for twelve years.

- WIZERNES OPEN HOUSE 1987 - WERNER FLOS, R.V. JONES, 1987 - WERNER FLOS, WIZERNES, 1987

The La Coupole/Wizernes Museum V-2 was built in 1995-1996 at the Didier Féramus S.A. workshops in Blendeques. The museum first unveiled the V-2 rocket in the year 1997, marking its debut to the public audience. This notable event took place a full decade after the museum’s establishment, highlighting the evolution and development of the institution during that time period. It is uncertain which parts of the missile are refurbished originals and how much is newly constructed, as most deteriorated components from NASM were found to be unusable. Féramus referenced Peenemünde plans in the Munich archives for new fabrication, suggesting that a substantial portion of the missile is not original manufacturing—which is understandable considering the poor condition of what they had to work with. La Couple Museum Homepage Wizernes V-2 Bunker

BELOW: DETERIORATED V-2 COMPONENTS AND EARLY CONSTRUCTION


BELOW: LA COUPOLE MUSEUM PHOTOS


BELOW: LA COUPOLE ENGINE ASSEMBLY