‘One of our many problems has been sourcing components that can withstand very high temperatures, and this led to my meeting Bruno. To be honest, my initial approach was a perfectly proper one, part of my job – hoping our friend here from Copenhagen might be able to provide those components and this would help the V-1 development. But before that meeting I began to think about matters in a more reflective manner. Say we did solve the problem – what would happen then? There would still be dozens of other problems with the V-1 programme.

‘I began to see that the issue was a wider one: by solving one problem I’d be helping to keep the bigger problem on track, whereas in fact the best service I could do for the Luftwaffe and for the German people would be to bring about the abandoning of the V-1 programme. It’s distracting the Luftwaffe from doing its real job. Stalingrad has been a disaster: we’ve already lost hundreds of aircraft and we have to send in Junker 52s and Focke-Wulf Condors to break the siege, and they’re simply not up to those conditions. Throughout Europe our planes are outperformed by the RAF. We’d stand a chance of reversing that if all our efforts weren’t going into the V-1 programme.’

He waited for Otto to translate, pouring himself a beer and drinking most of it in one go.

‘But giving us all this information, it could be seen as treason.’ Prince spoke in Danish. He noticed that Bruno looked shocked when it was translated, startled at what he’d found himself mixed up with.

‘Depends on what you mean by treason. I’m trying to stop something I think is bad for Germany, so that can’t be treason. And in any case, there’s something else… the SS have now started showing interest in both our V-1 programme and the army’s V-2 rocket. There’s talk of them wanting to take both over. That would be an utter disaster. It would amount to the SS taking control of the Luftwaffe. I’m not a Nazi Party member, but I am a patriotic German and a professional Luftwaffe officer. I can’t sit by and do nothing while Germany’s future is compromised by these crazy programmes. What you do with the information I give you… well, I don’t want to know, just so long as it helps stop these ridiculous so-called miracle weapons. Anyway, you had some questions for me?’

Prince had, of course, not written anything down, but he’d memorised the questions London had sent via Stockholm.

Can Kurt give more information on the speed of the V-1?

How long does it take to reach that speed?

Can he give more detailed information on how any test flights have gone?

Have they managed yet to launch a V-1 with a one-ton warhead?

Can he say anything about the fuel systems?