Geschichte im
Unterland
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Heilbronn
Waldheide - Reste einer
modernen Festung der nuklearen Abschreckung
 rei Kilometer östlich von Heilbronns
Stadtzentrum entfernt befindet sich in 310 Metern über
NN eine waldlose Hochfläche. Nur wenige Reste erinnern
in der rechteckigen 1 km langen und 0,5 km breiten,
rechteckigen Wiesenlandschaft an die einstige Nutzung als
festungsartig ausgebaute Raketenabschußbasis für
Pershing II- Mittelstreckenraketen. Heute erinnern zwei
Gedenksteine (einer im ehemaligen Montagebereich hinter
den noch vorhandenen Gebäuden und einer an der Südwestecke)
an die Vergangenheit. Die "Waldheide" kann man
heute, nachdem die Festung geschliffen ist, als modernen
"Burgstall" betrachten.
Waldeheide Teil I/ Part I
Weitere Artikel:
Teil II/ Part II
Teil III/ Part III
Teil IV/ Part IV
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English
summary
History
in the Unterland
Nuclear base Waldheide/Heilbronn in South Germany
On January, the
11th 1985 three GIs of the "C"
Battery, 3rd Battalion, 84th Field Artillery died when a
section of a Pershing II exploded on the area of "Fort
Camp Redleg", in German called Waldheide, in
Southwest-Germany. 9 other GIs were injured. The reason
for the explosion of the missile was an electrostatic
charge between the installation of the missile on the
launcher. Since 1977 middle range missiles were
positioned on the "Waldheide", an area on a
plateau only 3 kms from the center of Heilbronn in Baden
Wuerttemberg. 36 of the 108 Pershing II which all were
positioned in three bases in Europe (New Ulm, Heilbronn
and Schwaebisch Gmuend-Mutlangen) after 1980 were
positioned on the Waldheide. 12 of the missiles were in
so called "quick reaction areas" ready to start
in a very secured part of the camp. 12 other missiles
were mobile to transport them with special trucks. In the
nineteeneighties the Pershing II was the exactest missile
in the target with a flight- continuity of only 12
minutes and a range of 1850 kms. (The nuclear warhead had
10 - 20 kt TNT, maximum speed: 3800 metres/second,
maximum flight hight 400 kms). After the INF-contract (Memorandum of understanding
regarding the establishment of the data base for the
treaty between the USSR and the USA on the elemination of
their intermediate-range and shorter-range missiles) in 1987
and Gorbatschow's Perestroika the Pershing II -
missiles and the launchers were removed and the US army
left the base in1990. Today the complete base is
demolished and the area is renaturated.
You can find a
commemorative stone at the place of the accident:
Lest we forget
SSG
John Leach
SGT Todd A. Zephier
PFC Darryl L. Shirley
who
made the ultimate sacrifice for their country and peace
and the soldiers of the C Battery, 3rd Battalion,
84th Field Artillery (Pershing) injured in the
missile fire at Fort Redleg, Heilbronn/Germany,
11 January 1985
(c) 2000 by Buchali
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