Walther Johannes Riedel

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Riedel in 1949

Walther Johannes Riedel (January 23, 1903 - November 16, 1974) was a rocket engineer who worked on the German V-2 and Wasserfall rockets before later working for North American Aviation.

Career

In 1929, Riedel graduated from the Technische Hochschule in Berlin (now Technische Universität Berlin); From 1936 to 1946, he directed development of liquid-fueled rockets at Peenemünde. [1] [2] In 1942, Reidell was chief of design on the V-2. [3]

During the US occupation of Germany, Riedel was arrested and jailed. [4] German rocket scientists including Riedel were sent to the United States as part of Operation Paperclip. [5] In 1946, he was profiled for cooperating with authorities at Fort Bliss, Texas. [6] One article featured Riedel's complaints that American food was tasteless compared to that of his native Germany. [7] [8] On December 30, Albert Einstein and the American Federation of Scientists authored a letter in protest. [8] Riedel was employed by North American Aviation which sought to recreate and improve upon the V-2. [9]

In 1949, the United Press quoted Riedel's prediction of space ships in 25 years. [10] He was against profiled in 1949 for his work at North American Aviation's plant in Downey, California. [11] [12] Letters to the editor featured a complaint about the piece's positive treatment of Riedel. [13] [8] I In 1952, Riedel was mentioned in Life Magazine's article "Have We Visitors From Space?", saying of UFOs: "I am completely convinced that they have an out-of-world basis". [14] : 132  Riedel argued the objects exhibited maneuvers that "only a pilot could perform but that no human pilot could stand." [14] : 132 

Riedel analyzed George Adamski's flying saucer photos and found them to be faked. The "landing struts" were General Electric light bulbs with logos printed on them. [15] [16] UFO researcher Joel Carpenter identified the body of Adamski's "flying saucer" as the lampshade from a 1930s pressure lantern. [17] [18] Riedel was a member of the Civilian Saucer Investigation of Los Angeles. In 1953, he was denounced by fellow NAA employee Victor Black, leading to an interview with the CIA. [19]

He returned to West Germany and died in Hamburg in 1974. [20]

References

  1. ↑ "Rotarians Will Hear Walther Riedel, German Technician". The Southwest Wave. April 15, 1948. p. 23 – via newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ Brown, Brian (November 5, 2019). Someone Is Out to Get Us: A Not So Brief History of Cold War Paranoia and Madness. Grand Central Publishing. ISBN   978-1-5387-0023-5 – via Google Books.
  3. ↑ Neufeld, Michael (April 12, 2017). Von Braun: Dreamer of Space, Engineer of War. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. ISBN   978-0-525-43591-4 – via Google Books.
  4. ↑ Jacobsen, Annie (February 11, 2014). Operation Paperclip: The Secret Intelligence Program that Brought Nazi Scientists to America. Little, Brown. ISBN   978-0-316-22105-4 – via Google Books.
  5. ↑ "The Golden Age of Aerospace". April 4, 2023.
  6. ↑ "Article clipped from El Paso Herald-Post". El Paso Herald-Post. December 5, 1946. p. 1 – via newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "American Cooking 'Tasteless,' Says German Rocket Scientist; Dislikes 'Rubberized Chicken'". El Paso Herald-Post. December 6, 1946. p. 1 – via newspapers.com.
  8. 1 2 3 Brzezinski, Matthew (September 18, 2007). Red Moon Rising: Sputnik and the Hidden Rivalries that Ignited the Space Age. Macmillan. ISBN   978-0-8050-8147-3 – via Google Books.
  9. ↑ "ch1". www.hq.nasa.gov.
  10. ↑ "Space Ship Seen as Possible But Not in the Near Future". The Sentinel. April 20, 1949. p. 18 – via newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ "Designer of German V-2 Now Works to Aid US". The Los Angeles Times. March 13, 1949. p. 33 – via newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ "V-2 Designer Helping U.S." The Terre Haute Tribune. March 24, 1949. p. 28 – via newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ "Achievement in Woe". The Los Angeles Times. March 17, 1949. p. 32 – via newspapers.com.
  14. 1 2 Ruppelt, Edward J. (November 17, 1956). The Report on Unidentified Flying Objects. Doubleday. ISBN   9780598368362 – via Google Books.{{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
  15. ↑ Nóng, Xã Luận Tin (4 August 2021). "Do you remember Dolores Barrios, the woman from the planet Venus??". www.xaluannews.com. Retrieved 21 August 2024.
  16. ↑ Moseley, James W.; Pflock, Karl T. (2002). Shockingly close to the truth! Confessions of a grave-robbing ufologist. Amherst, NY: Prometheus Bks. p. 69. ISBN   1-57392-991-3.
  17. ↑ Carpenter, Joel. "Preliminary Notes on the Adamski Scout Ship Photos" (PDF). Retrieved 8 June 2017.
  18. ↑ Hallet, Marc (2015). A Critical Appraisal of George Adamski The Man Who Spoke to the Space Brothers. Self-published. p. 70.
  19. ↑ Moseley, James W. (November 2, 2010). Shockingly Close to the Truth!: Confessions of a Grave-Robbing Ufologist. Prometheus Books. ISBN   978-1-61592-541-4 – via Google Books.
  20. ↑ "Riedel, Walther". www.astronautix.com.
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