V-2 rocket offensive began on 8 September 1944, when "Lehr- und Versuchsbatterie No. 444" () launched a single rocket guided by a radio beam directed at Paris. Wreckage of combat V-2s occasionally contained the transponder for velocity and fuel cutoff. The painting of the operational V-2s was mostly a ragged-edged pattern with several variations, but at the end of the war a plain olive green rocket also appeared. During tests, the rocket was painted in a characteristic black-and-white chessboard pattern, which aided in determining if the rocket was spinning around its longitudinal axis. The original German designation of the rocket was "V2",
Lob bomb Lob bomb A lob bomb (known officially as an improvised rocket-assisted mortar, improvised rocket-assisted munition, or IRAM) is a rocket-fired improvised explosive device made from a large metal canister (usually a propane gas tank that has been drained of its contents and filled with explosives, scrap metal, and ball bearings), which has been used by insurgents and coalition forces during the Iraq War since late 2007. The weapon is essentially an airborne version of an improvised explosive device. Lob bombs are propelled by 107 mm rockets and launched, several at a time, from the backs of small trucks where they