Kurt C. Volkhart

Kurt C. Volkhart with his own rocket car on the Nürburgring, April 1929

Kurt C. Volkhart (full name Kurt Julius Carl Ernst Volkhart , often Curt Volkhardt , born June 21, 1890 in Düsseldorf , †  November 19, 1959 in Bielefeld ) was a German engineer , designer , racing driver and the first rocket driver in the world. As early as 1928 he was considered one of the pioneers in space travel.

Volkhart developed and tested the world's first rocket car , the Opel RAK1 , for Opel with the astronomer Max Valier and the explosives expert Friedrich Wilhelm Sander . On March 12, 1928, he drove the "Opel-Sander-Rakwagen 1" for the first time, while still in camera. The vehicle was presented to the public for the first time on April 11, 1928, and its functionality was demonstrated during a test drive by Volkhart.

Early years and entry into racing

1914: Carl Jörns with his co-driver and "lubricant" Volkhart and the Opel 12.3-liter racing car .

Kurt C. Volkhart was the son of the genre painter and etcher Max Volkhart and his wife Anna. He grew up with two sisters in an artistic environment in Düsseldorf. His two grandfathers were the painters Wilhelm Volkhart and Julius Roeting , who worked in Düsseldorf, and his sister, the sculptor Claire Volkhart .

Not much is known about the early years, including how Kurt C. Volkhart came to love automobile construction and racing.

Like many European racing drivers at the time, he was drawn to the United States . He traveled to America in October 1913 to take part in the still usual dirt track races , and in 1914 was hired by the Indianapolis Auto Racing Association team, among others .

In July 1914 Volkhart started for the FH Beck team on the Cedar Valley Fair Grounds Track on a Marmon 32 .

In November 1914, although the First World War had already started , Volkhart returned to Europe via Copenhagen with the help of his friend Hanns Heinz Ewers , who lived in New York .

During this war he was employed as a driver and pilot and was wounded in a crash.

Development engineer and racing driver

After the end of the First World War and completing his studies, he worked as a senior engineer at the then very renowned automobile manufacturer Steiger and achieved great success in motorsport on its vehicles. Among other things, he won one of the most important racing events of the time, the Eifel Tour in Nideggen, in 1922 , and relegated his Steiger team-mate Alfred Noll and the not so well-known Rudolf Caracciola to second and third place with a clear lead. Alfred Noll and Kurt C. Volkhart were club friends in what was then the Düsseldorf Motorsport Club 05 and worked and drove together for Steiger, later Dürkopp, for several years.

With the looming global economic crisis , the situation in the automotive sector and especially for Steiger became more difficult. Like Noll, Volkhart switched to the Bielefelder Dürkoppwerke in 1925 and started again as a works driver. However, in 1927 the car production was also given up here because of the advancing global economic crisis and Volkhart switched to Opel in the spring of 1927 .

Opel and the rocket engine

The astronomer Max Valier was one of the founders of the Space Agency in Wroclaw in 1927 . He is considered to be the source of ideas for a rocket-propelled vehicle and saw it as a preliminary stage to a spacecraft . Valier was able to win over the industrialist Fritz von Opel , who supported the project with 30,000  Reichsmarks . The engineer Friedrich Wilhelm Sander contributed the powder rockets . Kurt C. Volkhart had known from Opel for a long time, as both had competed against each other in car races for years. Volkhart took over the development, construction and testing of the Opel RAK1 as an engineer.

Development and Secret Tests

The first rocket test prototype was still based on the " tree frog "

The first prototype , only intended for internal tests, was based on a production vehicle from Opel, the Opel 4/12 PS " Laubfrosch " .

In the first secret test on the Opel racetrack on March 12, 1928, they started with only two rockets, a so-called “soul rocket” for the start and a “permanent fire” for sustained thrust. Kurt C. Volkhart's first drive lasted only 35 seconds, in which he only covered 150 meters. Gradually, the number of rockets and thus the thrust increased. The last attempt on the day was made with the help of the still existing internal combustion engine to overcome the initial rolling resistance. The rockets were fired at around 30 km / h and then accelerated the vehicle to 75 km / h within 1.5 seconds, then the next rocket fired.

Due to the successful test, Volkhart and his team, the engineer Schaberger and the mechanics August Becker, Hans Grein and Karl Treber set up the RAK1, which was later presented to the press.

The RAK1 was based on the short chassis of an Opel 10/40 PS . Volkhart designed a monoposto body for this , a narrow, single-seater racing car shape. The internal combustion engine had been removed and an aerodynamic, pointed front was fitted in place of the dominant radiator that was common at the time . Two small, 50 to 60 cm large wings for additional downforce were attached to the front axle and a massive steel box for 12 rockets was built into the rear. To protect the driver, a solid steel plate was pulled up into the headrest and the seat was padded with burlap up to the headrest.

Public presentation

On April 11, 1928, the Opel RAK1 was presented to the public and the press at the Opel racetrack. The well-known Frankfurt photographer Paul Wolff documented the premiere with a cinema recording device.

The vehicle was presented to the public in detail. Among other things, the hood was opened to show that instead of an internal combustion engine, only the ignition system for the rockets was installed.

At 4:30 p.m. Volkhart raised his arm as a sign to start, the rockets ignited, the RAK1 rocket car started with a loud howl and a lot of smoke. After just eight seconds, the vehicle passed the 100 km / h mark.

“There were a total of twelve missiles in this vehicle, divided in such a way that the first six burners for three seconds and six burned for one second. Three seconds were intended to give the vehicle a certain initial speed, which was then accelerated after having had increased thrust from the one-second burners.

Fritz von Opel warned me that the north curve, which you are about to enter, allows a maximum of 120 to 125 km / h, as I pass the main grandstand, I already have 130 km / h on it and since the detonator of the rockets cannot be turned off was like in the car, where I can turn off the gas, so whether I wanted to or not, I stabbed the north curve at 140 and managed to get through, otherwise I would have hit the sky as a rocket. "

- Kurt Volkhart : In an interview with SWF radio in 1952

The international press celebrated the start of rocket-propelled space travel as early as 1928.

“Ultimately, Max Valier sought to detach himself from the earth. And indeed the further course of development has shown that the person who was not considered to be completely normal at the time had the right foresight to break away from the gravity of the earth. "

- Kurt Volkhart : In the same interview with SWF radio in 1952

The next test starts on April 17th, the aim was to cover a longer distance with a fully equipped rocket set with 12 soul rockets. But again a rocket exploded and the vehicle could not go beyond 100 km / h.

Opel RAK2 and the rift

Opel RAK2, which was ultimately driven by Fritz von Opel

After the great success, the development of a stronger and larger prototype based on the Opel 10/40 PS , the Opel RAK2, began immediately . The RAK2 was also a Volkhart design and was modeled on the English 1927 “Blue Bird” by Malcolm Campbell .

In the meantime, Volkhart and Opel parted ways. Fritz von Opel himself drove the record attempt with the RAK2 at the AVUS on May 23rd . After the record drive, Valier and Opel also parted ways.

Own rocket vehicle

Volkhart in his own vehicle on the AVUS, December 1928

After separating from Opel, Volkhart began developing its own rocket vehicle, the Volkhart R1. This time, Volkhart used a Rabag , a Düsseldorf license replica based on Bugatti, as the basis. With two seats, the vehicle was designed for everyday use and had an aerodynamically favorable, closed shape, but like the RAK1 it was still equipped with disposable propellants from Sander.

On November 25, 1928, Volkhart presented the rocket car to the public and successfully started a demonstration run at the AVUS in Berlin.

The next known test run started on April 1st, 1929 at 2:30 p.m. on the start-and-finish straight of the Nürburgring , this time with a co-driver, his future wife Miss Karolyn Waldenfels-Schlie. Volkhart also drove the first rocket-powered motorcycle, the Volkhart R-R1, on the day.

In 1929 the general public's interest in rocket-propelled vehicles died out. Volkhart drove one of the last known presentations on August 30th at the Heider autumn car and motorcycle race.

Volkhart devoted himself more to motorsport and the construction of conventional vehicles and, due to the economic crisis, had to improve his livelihood with odd jobs such as driving up steep cliffs at folk festivals. His last known race was in September 1931 at the Hohensyburg circuit race, later starts are not known.

Cooperation with von Koenig-Fachsenfeld

In the mid-1930s, the amateur aerodynamicist Reinhard von Koenig-Fachsenfeld and Kurt C. Volkhart came together. Both worked together on small and racing car prototypes for the Imperia vehicle plant in Bad Godesberg until the plant closed in 1935 .

In 1939, when the Second World War broke out, both began a new streamlining project. Volkhart was assigned to the Aviation Department in Berlin-Adlershof and was given the task of designing a courier truck. This test car was powered by a Ford-Taunus engine and, according to research by Koenig-Fachsenfelds, was streamlined with a long rear end. The project was stopped in 1942, but laid the foundation for further constructions by Volkhart.

Streamlined vehicle Volkhart V2 Sagitta

The prototype Volkhart V2 Sagitta at the Classic Days Schloss Dyck , 2013

Volkhart had already ordered a chassis for the KdF car in 1941 , but it was not delivered until 1944 and then stored.

After the war, Volkhart was able to continue his project with the tolerance and later support of the British occupation forces. The team included Helmut Fuchs, a trained bodywork cleaner, master saddler Paul Butzong, a former aircraft mechanic from Gottlob Espenlaub and a mechanic from the former Bücker aircraft factory . The sports car was assembled in a barracks in a quarry between Essen and Wuppertal and was already ready at the end of 1947, i.e. 4 months before the occupation troops approved the general release of civil vehicle production.

The Volkhart V2 Sagitta has a light aluminum body on a tubular steel lattice frame . The name "Sagitta" comes from Latin and means arrow. In the stern sits a 1.1-liter Volkswagen - Boxer engine with 24.5 PS. Thanks to the aerodynamic shape, which is similar to the body of the Porsche 356 , and the low weight of 880 kg, 150 km / h are possible.

The drag coefficient was for people Harts own words 0.165. The Volkswagen plant in Wolfsburg checked the aerodynamics again in one of its wind tunnels in 2013 and came up with an excellent CW value of 0.217 and a frontal area of ​​just 2.10 square meters.

Today the fully restored prototype is in private hands. No other vehicles were produced.

Three wheeler penguin

In May 1953 Romanus Müthing, Heinz Elschenbroich and Volkhart founded the “MEV Study Society for Motor Vehicle Development” in Herne. Together they developed a three-wheeler with a 200 cubic centimeter single-cylinder two-stroke engine from ILO . The brand name had already been determined and the first prototypes of the penguin were presented at the 1953 two-wheeler salon. The front of the vehicle was reminiscent of the Volkhart V2 Sagitta with many details such as the three headlights , only that the rear with the single rear wheel was much narrower. After problems with weight, statics and driving stability, the designer of the Fuldamobil , Norbert Stevenson, started a new development. Only twelve vehicles of the penguin, two of which were prototypes, were made. The company was dissolved and the 12 vehicles were scrapped. That was Volkhart's last known construction contract.

The last few years

After the end of the Second World War Volkhart moved to Bielefeld and took over a small grocery store in the Quelle district . He tried again and again to gain a foothold in the automotive sector with various projects such as the Volkhart V2 Sagitta , but it remained with individual commissioned work and a drivable one-off Sagitta.

Volkhart died on November 19, 1959 at the age of 69 in Bielefeld.

Personal

Volkhart married Miss Karolyn Waldenfels-Schlie in the spring of 1932.

Important races and sporting successes

• 1922 - Eifel tour around Nideggen : Winner ahead of Noll and Caracciola on Steiger
• 1924 - Tour of the Eifel: 2nd place in the class over 2 liters on Steiger
• 1925 - Taunus race over 438 km: 3rd place, ahead of Alfred Noll on Dürkopp
• 1928 - II. ADAC Eifelrennen Nürburgring : retirement, private use on a Rovin-JAP
• October 1929 - ADAC gold medal: 8-hour long-distance drive at the Nürburgring on Graham-Paige
• May 1930 - Class win Eifelrennen 1930 on the Nürburgring-Südschleife 7.8 km on his private Bugatti Type 37 A, a 1.5-liter supercharged car, 2: 22: 5.1 hours (97.6 km / h)
• Mid-August 1930 - Freiburg mountain record 1930, Schauinsland: 2nd in the class up to 1500 cm³ in a Bugatti, 10: 11.2 min, only 33 seconds slower than overall winner Caracciola in a 7-liter supercharged Mercedes
• End of August 1930 - Bernina hill climb, St. Moritz, third in the overall classification and class win: up to 1500 cm³, on a Bugatti, record set
• September 1930 - Czechoslovak Grand Prix : Circuit of Masaryk, near Brno, 29.142 km
• July 1931 - Start at the Grand Prix of Germany on the Nürburgring: in Group 2 (up to 1100 cm³) named with Neander
• September 1931 - Hohensyburg circuit race: Neander special car: in the class up to 1100 cm³, class winner with 1: 10: 8 hours (average 71 km / h)

literature

• Jörg Walz: History of Motorsport , Delius Klasing Verlag, ISBN 978-3-7688-3275-5 , p. 54
• Fraunholz, Woschech: Technology Fiction: Technical Visions and Utopias in the Ultra Modern (1800 | 2000. Cultural Stories of Modernity) . Ed .: Uwe Fraunholz and Anke Woschech. transcript Verlag, ISBN 978-3-8376-2072-6 , p. 74.
• Fritz-Jürgen Hahn, Mika Hahn: Rheinisches Motorjournal, History of Motorsport and Motorization , Hahn Archive / Niederrhein Verlag, Volume 1, Issue 1, April 2002, ZDB-ID 2080967-0
• Ernst von Khuon : How did that actually go? Reports from the history of aerospace. In: Kultur & Technik, ISSN 0344-5690, Volume 3, 1984, p. 132 ( deutsches-museum.de [PDF]).
• Michael Graf Wolff Metternich : German rocket vehicles on road, rail and ice - 1928 to 1931. Ed .: Hermann Walter Sieger, Verlag Hermann E. Sieger GmbH, Lorsch / Württemberg, 1997, OCLC 248494864 .

Web links

Commons : Kurt C. Volkhart  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Original footage: Launch of the Volkhart R1 on the AVUS , criticalpast.com, film from December 1928.
• Original footage: Launch of the Volkhart R1 on the Nürburgring , criticalpast.com, film from April 1, 1929.
• Manuscript of a radio interview by SWF radio with Kurt Volkhart 1952 , SWF radio [PDF]

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} Jörg Militzer: With Bielefelder jet drive - rocket pioneer Volkhardt from Bielefeld died 50 years ago / designer and racing driver. In: New Westphalian. November 19, 2009, accessed June 4, 2020 . 
2. ↑ Zwischengas.com: AR-Zeitung No. 38/1928 of May 1st, 1928 - page 13 (1928). Retrieved May 11, 2020 . 
3. ↑ ^{a b c} Contemporary history in Hessen - data · facts · background: Extended search: LAGIS Hessen. Retrieved May 11, 2020 . 
4. ↑ The start of the rocket age. May 23, 2018, accessed May 11, 2020 . 
5. ↑ ^{a b c d e f} Fritz-Jürgen Hahn: Kurt C. Volkhart . In: TÜV Rheinland / Hahn Archive (Ed.): Program for the 16th Düsseldorf Motorbike Days . Niederrhein Verlag Pfaar GmbH, Kaart April 24, 1999, p. 12-21 .
6. ↑ ^{a b} Kugel, Wilfried, 1949-: The irresponsible: the life of Hanns Heinz Ewers . Grupello, Düsseldorf 1992, ISBN 3-928234-04-8 , p. 203 (OCLO = 29464999 [accessed June 4, 2020]).
7. ↑ Hamburg State Archives . In: ancestry.de (Ed.): Hamburg Passenger Lists - MS Pretoria . Volume 269; Microfilm number: K_1833 edition. Volume: 373-7 I, VIII A 1. Hamburg October 25, 1913, p. 3736 .
8. ^ Waterloo Evening Courier Archives, Jun 12, 1914, p. June 13 , 1914, p. 13 , accessed on May 13, 2020 (English). 
9. ↑ ^{a b} Matthias Bartels: The real heroes of the racing slope . In: Schwäbische Zeitung . No. August 25 , 1986 ( micha-schick.de [PDF]).
10. ^ Double-declutching : Der Motorfahrer No. 30 of August 24, 1922 - page 424 (1922). Retrieved June 7, 2020 . 
11. ^ DAMC 05 eV in ADAC (ed.): Anniversary publication 60 years of DAMC 05 . Düsseldorf 1965, p. 6 ( damc05.de [PDF]).
12. ↑ ^{a b c} Manuscript of an interview by SWF radio with Kurt Volkhart 1952 [PDF]
13. ↑ ^{a b} Zwischengas.com: AR-Zeitung No. 38/1928 of May 1, 1928 - page 13 (1928). Retrieved May 9, 2020 . 
14. ↑ ^{a b} Ernst von Khuon: How did that actually go? Reports from the history of aerospace . In: Culture & Technology . tape 3 , 1984, ISSN  0344-5690 , pp. 132 ( deutsches-museum.de [PDF]).
15. ^ ^{A b c} Michael Graf Wolff Metternich: German rocket vehicles on road, rail and ice - 1928 to 1931 . Ed .: Hermann Walter Sieger. Verlag Hermann E. Sieger GmbH, Lorch / Württemberg 1997, OCLC 248494864 , p. 25-31 .
16. ↑ ^{a b} Bernd Sternal: Conquerors of the sky: Life pictures - German aviation and space pioneers . Books on Demand, 2016, ISBN 978-3-7431-5535-0 ( google.de [accessed June 12, 2020]).
17. ^ ^{A b} Michael Graf Wolff Metternich: German rocket vehicles on road, rail and ice - 1928 to 1931 . Ed .: Hermann Walter Sieger. Verlag Hermann E. Sieger GmbH, Lorch / Württemberg 1997, OCLC 248494864 , p. 32-46 .
18. ↑ Double-declutching : ADAC Motorwelt No. 20 of May 18, 1928 - page 9 (1928). Retrieved June 12, 2020 . 
19. ↑ Matthias Bartels: Take a seat in the rocket! In: Schwäbische Zeitung . No. August 26 , 1986 ( micha-schick.de [PDF]).
20. ↑ Fraunholz, Woschech: Technology Fiction: Technical Visions and Utopias in the Ultra Modern (1800 | 2000. Cultural Stories of Modernity) . Ed .: Uwe Fraunholz and Anke Woschech. transcript Verlag, ISBN 978-3-8376-2072-6 , pp. 74 .
21. ↑ Zwischengas.com: Illustrated Automobile Review No. 11 of December 1, 1928 - page 11 (1928). Retrieved May 11, 2020 . 
22. ↑ Zwischengas.com: AR-Zeitung No. 28/1929 of March 26, 1929 - page 2 (1929). Retrieved May 11, 2020 . 
23. ↑ Film material - You drive with a woman in the back seat of the Volkhart R1 Rocket propelled car during a test run on the speedway in Germany. Retrieved May 12, 2020 . 
24. ^ ^{A b} Michael Graf Wolff Metternich: German rocket vehicles on road, rail and ice - 1928 to 1931 . Ed .: Hermann Walter Sieger. Verlag Hermann E. Sieger GmbH, Lorch / Württemberg 1997, OCLC 248494864 , p. 25-32 .
25. ↑ Footage - Rockets used in motor vehicles, illustrated by an Opel motorcycle with rocket fan installed in Germany. (from 0:23 min!). Retrieved May 12, 2020 . 
26. ↑ PS Nürburgring - Anecdotes 1925 - 1934. Retrieved on May 12, 2020 . 
27. ↑ Max Valier: Rocket Ride: A Technical Possibility (reprint) . Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG, 1930, ISBN 978-3-486-76195-5 , p. 227 ( google.de [accessed June 5, 2020]).
28. ↑ Ernst Peters: The great automobile and motorcycle races - Fichtenhain race track 1925 - 1932: The rise and fall of a sports facility in Heide . Pro Business, 2013, ISBN 978-3-86386-596-2 ( google.de [accessed June 4, 2020]).
29. ↑ Horst Hoffmann: The Germans in space . edition ost, Berlin 1998, ISBN 3-932180-49-6 , p. 66 .
30. ↑ ^{a b} Zwischengas: AR-Zeitung No. 77/1931 of September 18, 1931 - page 3 (1931). Retrieved June 12, 2020 . 
31. ↑ ^{a b c} Hanspeter Bröhl: Sagitta V2 1944/47 - The project "Sagitta". "Austro Classic - the Austrian magazine for technology - history" Verlags Ges.mbH, January 2013, accessed on May 12, 2020 . 
32. ↑ Volkswagen - VW: Volkhart Sagitta V2 - Bj. 1944. Retrieved on May 12, 2020 . 
33. ↑ Oldtimer-News: Volkhart V2 Sagitta from 1947 with a record value in the Volkswagen wind tunnel. Retrieved May 12, 2020 . 
34. ↑ Jürgen Pander, DER SPIEGEL: Museum "Prototype": Car treasures on the edge of the harbor - DER SPIEGEL - mobility. Retrieved May 12, 2020 . 
35. ↑ # 06001 Ruhrfahrzeugbau Pinguin II (Germany, 1955). Retrieved June 12, 2020 . 
36. ↑ ^{a b} Hans-Peter Thyssen von Bornemisza: News: History and Histörchen (27): How the penguin ran to death - News. Retrieved June 22, 2020 . 
37. ↑ Matthias Bartels: Take a seat in the rocket! In: Schwäbische Zeitung . No. August 26 , 1986 ( micha-schick.de [PDF]).
38. ↑ Zwischengas.com: AR-Zeitung No. 30/1925 of June 5, 1925 - page 3 (1925). Retrieved May 11, 2020 . 
39. ↑ Double-declutching : ADAC Motorwelt No. 40 of October 4, 1929 - page 6 (1929). Retrieved June 12, 2020 . 
40. ^ Double-declutching : ADAC Motorwelt No. 30 of July 25, 1930 - page 4 (1930). Retrieved June 12, 2020 . 
41. ↑ Zwischengas: AR-Zeitung No. 82/1930 of September 30, 1930 - page 14 (1930). Retrieved June 12, 2020 . 
42. ↑ Zwischengas: AR-Zeitung No. 49/1931 of June 12, 1931 - page 5 (1931). Retrieved June 12, 2020 .