The Henschel Hs 297 Föhn or 7.3 cm Raketen Sprenggranate was a small German surface-to-air rocket of the Second World War. The associated multiple rocket launcher was known as the 7.3 cm Föhn-Gerät. Design The Henschel Hs 297 Föhn (The Foehn wind is a warm, dry fall wind) was intended to be used in large barrages to defend targets against low-flying ground attack aircraft. Several launchers were also found at likely river crossing sites at Satzvey, Unkel and Hahn to provide ground fire. The use of dual-purpose sights on the launchers confirms this role. For mass deployment in the Volkssturm, the launcher was officially termed the Volks-Fla-R-Werfer - an abbreviation of Volkssturm-Flugabwehr-Raketenwerfer ("Volkssturm anti-aircraft rocket launcher"). By February 1945 fifty units were delivered, which were provided to troops for testing. Twenty-four of the launcher racks were assigned to the 3./ FlakLehruVersAbt 900 (o) ("3rd Battery of Anti-Aircraft Training and Testing Battalion 900 (stationary)") in the Remagen area and were used for the first time on 2 March 1945 against Allied fighter-bombers. A few days later, after American forces captured the Ludendorff Bridge at Remagen, some of the launchers (classified as secret) fell intact into the hands of the Americans. The specimens found were either emplaced statically, with the pedestal bolted to a foundation or were mounted on a circular folding platform which was carried on a two-wheeled trailer. The projector could be fired from the trailer, but its traverse was limited. To achieve full 360° of traverse it was necessary to remove the launcher from the trailer, support it on the jacks, then unfold the circular platform and fasten the pedestal to the foundation. The elevation scale was marked from -10° to +90° but the launchers that were evaluated post-war could not be depressed below 0° or elevated above +30°. An elevating hand-wheel controlled both the launch rack and sight with the two moving in unison. The launcher could also be locked in both traverse and elevation. Two styles of sights were provided; the main sight was a pivoting-ring type that was graduated for both ground and anti-aircraft targets. While the secondary sight was an open sight with a rear V notch and triangular front post sight. The range limits were for anti-aircraft use or for ground fire. The launcher consisted of a square framework holding 35 launch racks, a pedestal mount with a shielded operators station, plus traverse and