Operation Paperclip

Operation Paperclip was a post–World War II U.S. program that brought German scientists and engineers, including former Nazi Party members, to work in the United States.

Overcast (intelligence program): A U.S. Army program that recruited German scientists and engineers for temporary work in the United States after World War II. Overcast was Paperclip’s predecessor and established the first recruitment process.
U.S. Army Ordnance Corps: The U.S. Army branch responsible for developing, procuring, and maintaining weapons and ammunition. Its rocket program employed many Paperclip recruits at Fort Bliss and later in Alabama.
Wernher von Braun: A German rocket engineer who led development of the V-2 and later directed major U.S. launch-vehicle programs. He became Paperclip’s best-known recruit and a leading figure in American rocketry.
NASA: The United States government agency responsible for civilian space exploration and aeronautics research. Former Paperclip specialists contributed to the agency’s early launch-vehicle and engineering programs.
Joint Intelligence Objectives Agency: A U.S. government agency that coordinated the recruitment and transfer of foreign scientists after World War II. The agency administered Paperclip and coordinated its screening and immigration work.
Fort Bliss: A U.S. Army post in Texas that hosted German rocket specialists after World War II. It was an early U.S. base for Paperclip’s rocket team and its technical work.
Kurt Debus: A German rocket engineer who became the first director of NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. His career links Paperclip recruitment to the operational launch infrastructure of the space program.
Saturn V: The multistage rocket that carried Apollo astronauts to the Moon. Von Braun’s team applied expertise shaped partly by German wartime rocketry to its development.
Alsos Mission: A U.S. and Allied intelligence operation that investigated German scientific and military capabilities during World War II. Alsos teams located German researchers and technical records that informed postwar recruitment.
Redstone Arsenal: A U.S. Army installation in Alabama associated with rocket development and missile programs. Paperclip rocket specialists moved there as the Army expanded its guided-missile work.

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