Hitler's secret Nazi war machines of World War II

According to the Smithsonian, Nazi Luftwaffe chief Hermann Göring, allocated half a million Reich Marks to brothers Reimar and Walter Horten to manufacture the aircraft.

Plagued with problems, the Horten didn't last long in combat. Instead, the bombers' engineering did inspire today's modern stealth aircrafts — like the Northrop Gruman B-2 bomber.

Source: Weapons of WWII magazine

Considered the "grandfather of smart bombs," the Fritz X was a 3,450 pound explosive equipped with a radio receiver and sophisticated tail controls that helped guide the bomb to its target.

According to the US Air Force, the Fritz X could penetrate 28 inches of armor and could be deployed from 20,000 feet, an altitude out of reach for anti-aircraft equipment at the time.

Less than a month after it was developed, the Nazi's sank Italian battleship Roma off Sardinia in September 1943. However, the Fritz X's combat use was limited since only a few Luftwaffe aircraft were designed to carry the bomb.

Source: Weapons of WWII magazine

The Nazis' Goliath tracked mine was anything but Goliath-like in stature. Known as the "Doodlebug" by US troops, the mini-tank was controlled with a joystick and powered by two electric motors, later replaced by gas burners.

Goliath was designed to carry between 133 and 220 pounds of high explosives and was used to navigate minefields and deliver its explosive payload to defensive positions.

The Nazis built more than 7,000 Goliaths during the war and paved the way for radio-controlled weapons.

Source: Weapons of WWII magazine

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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 comparison, topped out at less than 440 mph," according to Weapons of WWII magazine.

More than 300 Komets were built and equipped with twin 30 mm cannons. The Komet's speed was both a gift and a curse. The plane was fast enough to avoid Allied gunners but it was too fast to hit Allied aircrafts.

Source: Weapons of WWII magazine

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