Artillery

Infantry Guns

Caliber: 75mm

Maximum Range: 3795m (4150yds)

Muzzle Velocity: 260mps (853fps)

Weight: 400kg (882lb)

Crew: 3

The leIG 18 was introduced in 1927 and remained in service until 1945. The gun was simple to operate and very reliable. It was also light and easily manouverable. The gun was mounted on a simple box trail carriage and fitted with an armored shield to protect the crew and wooden spoked or steel disc wheels. The firing mechanism was a simple shotgun action with a hydro pneumatic recoil system.
In 1937 a lighter version was introduced for use by mountain troops. The le Gebirg IG 18 employed a lightweight carriage, spoked wheels and the armored shield was omitted. The gun could be quickly dismantled and loaded onto a mule train of six animals for transportation.

Calibre: 150mm.

Maximum Range: 4700m (5140yds).

Muzzle Velocity: 240mps (787fps).

Weight: 1700kg (3749lb).

Crew: 6.

The s IG 33 was introduced in 1927 and remained in service until 1945. It was a reliable and robust weapon but was restrictively heavy for an infantry support weapon. The gun was mounted on a box trail carriage and employed a sliding breech mechanism with a hydro pneumatic recoil system. The gun was fitted pressed metal wheels and solid rubber tyres. In 1930 the gun was redesigned to reduced its weight. The employment of light alloys reduced the guns weight by 150kg, but only small numbers of the lighter gun were produced due to a shortage of material.

Anti Tank Guns

Calibre: 37mm.

Maximum Range: 1000m (1094yds).

Muzzle Velocity: 762mps (2500fps).

Weight: 432kg (953lb).

Armor Penetration: 65mm at 100mm and 48mm at 500m.

Crew: 3.

This weapon, introduced in 1936, was the standard anti tank gun in use in 1941. Its simple mechanism made it easy to operate and its light weight meant it was easily man portable. However its small calibre left it unable to penetrate the armour of the newer Russian tanks. Its crews nicknamed it the door knocker, as its rounds had a tendency to bounce of their targets. The gun was mounted on a split trail carriage and fitted with an armored shield to protect the crew. In 1940 a tungsten cored round was introduced in order to improve armor penetration. The round improved penetration to 79mm at 100mm and 50mm at 500mm. In 1942 a hollow charge round was introduced. The oversize calibre head of this round forced the use of a solid rod to be placed inside the barrel to facilitate firing. This improved armor penetration to 180mm, but its poor muzzle velocity reduced the effective range to 300m.

Calibre: 50mm.

Maximum Range: 2650m (2898yds).

Muzzle Velocity: 550mps (1805fps).

Weight: 986kg (2174lb).

Armor Penetration: 88mm at 250mm, 78mm at 500m and 61mm at 1000m.

Crew: 5.

This weapon was introduced in 1940 to replace the 37mm Pak 36 and remained in service throughout the war. The gun was mounted on a split trail carriage with solid tyred disc wheels and had an armored shield to protect the crew. The gun had a semi automatic breech mechanism and the barrel was fitted with a muzzle break to reduce flash.

Calibre: 75mm.

Maximum Range: 7680m (8399yds).

Muzzle Velocity: 548mps (1798fps).

Weight: 1425kg (3142lb).

Armor Penetration: 132mm at 500mm, 116mm at 1000m and 102mm at 1500m.

Crew: 5.

This gun was introduced in November 1941 and remained in service for the remainder of the war. It was built to combat the heavier Russian tanks being introduced on the Eastern Front. It was basically an enlarged PAK 38 mounted on a split trail carriage with an armored shield to protect the crew. It was a little heavy and its crews often found it difficult to manhandle in the difficult Russian ground conditions. The gun had a semi automatic breech mechanism.

76.2mm Pak 39(r)

Calibre: 75mm.

Maximum Range: 9000m (9842yds).

Muzzle Velocity: 550mps (1805fps).

Weight: 1730kg (3815lb).

Armor Penetration: 120mm at 500mm, 108mm at 1000m and 97mm at 1500m.

Crew: 5.

Following the capture of large numbers of Russian equipment in the early encirclement battles of the Russian campaign, this gun was pressed into service by the Germans. Originally introduced into service with the Russian Army in 1939, the German's converted this gun to the standard 75mm caliber by re-boring the chamber. Other improvements were made to simplify the operation of the gun. The laying hand wheel was moved to the left side of the gun to allow one man laying of the gun. In addition, a muzzle break was added to conceal the flash when the gun was fired. The gun was redesignated the PAK 36r and remained in service throughout the remainder of the war.

 

Calibre: 88mm.

Maximum Range: 14815m (16202yds).

Muzzle Velocity: 820mps (2690fps).

Weight: 4985kg (10992lb).

Armor Penetration: 126mm of 30° sloped armour at 500m and 105mm of 30° sloped armour at 1000m.

Crew: 8.

The Flak 18 was introduced in 1933 as an anti aircraft gun. However it excelled in the anti tank role. The gun itself was built with a single piece barrel within a jacket. It was fitted with an advanced semi automatic breech. The gun was mounted on a square platform with four outriggers to provide stability. For travelling the mounting was jacked up on to two sets of interchangeable twin wheeled bogies. In 1936 several improvements were made to the gun. The barrel was changed to a three piece construction to reduce barrel wear and increase barrel life. Improvements were also made to the gun mount and bogie suspension. This version was designated the Flak 36. A final version with a two piece barrel and improved gun laying system was designated the Flak 37. The gun first operated in the anti tank role in the Spanish civil war and then in North Africa during the desert campaign. The gun was fitted with a telescopic sight and an armored shield to provide protection for the crew when used in this role.

Field Artillery

Calibre: 105mm.

Maximum Range: 12325m (13479yds).

Muzzle Velocity: 540mps (1772fps).

Weight: 1955kg (4311lb).

Crew: 5.

This gun was introduced in 1935. The gun was mounted on a split trail carriage, fitted with either wooden spoked or pressed steel disc wheels. The recoil system was part hydraulic and part hydropneumatic. Despite being a reliable and effective weapon its maximum range was insufficient to put it on a par with its Russian contemporaries. So in 1940 the gun was fitted with a muzzle brake and improved recoil system. In 1942, attempts to reduce the guns weight lead to the introduction of the le FH 18/40. The construction of this gun incorporated the lighter Pak 40 carriage which was fitted with larger pressed steel wheels to compensate for the lower height.

Calibre: 100mm.

Maximum Range: 18300m (20013yds).

Muzzle Velocity: 827mps (2713fps).

Weight: 5642kg (12441lb).

Crew: 8.

This gun was introduced in 1933. The gun was constructed with a single piece barrel with a muzzle brake fitted and a simple but effective sliding block breech mechanism. The gun was mounted on a robust split trail carriage which was fitted with pressed steel wheels. During travel the trail ends were carried on a two wheeled limber.

Calibre: 150mm.

Maximum Range: 12300m (13450yds).

Muzzle Velocity: 485mps (1591fps).

Weight: 3280kg (7232lb).

Crew: 7.

This medium howitzer was introduced in 1938 and remained in production until 1942. The gun was mounted on a split trail carriage, largely made from light alloys to reduce weight. The barrel was shortened, again to reduce weight, and fitted with a muzzle break. During travel the trail ends were carried on a two wheeled limber.

Rocket Artillery

Calibre: 150mm.

Maximum Range: 6800m (7760yds).

Crew: 4.

The Nebelwerfer 41, which entered service in late 1940, was a six-barrelled, non rotating, tubular projector. The barrels were 3ft in length and 160mm in diameter. The projector was mounted on a rubber-tired artillery chassis with a split trail. The barrels had no rifling and the projectiles were guided by three rails, each about 10mm high, which ran down the inside of the barrels. This reduced the calibre to approximately 150mm. The barrels were open-breeched, and the propellant was a slow-burning black powder, which generated gas through 26 jets set at an angle.
The weapon was fired electrically from foxholes, which were dug about 10 to 15 yards to the side and rear of the projector. The sighting and elevation mechanisms were located on the left-hand side of the barrels, immediately over the wheel and were protected by a light-metal hinged box cover.
The projectile itself resembled a small torpedo. The base was flat, with slightly rounded edges. The rocket jets were located about one-third of the way up the projectile from the base, and encircled the casing. The jets were placed at an angle with the axis of the projectile, so as to impart rotation in flight. The propelling charge was housed in the forward part of the rocket, with the detonating fuze located in the base of the projectile. In this way, on impact, the smoke or high explosive was set off above ground when the nose of the projectile penetrated the soil. The weapon could fire three different types of projectiles. High-explosive shells, incendiary projectiles, and smoke projectiles. The high-explosive shells could be fitted with both supersensitive fuzes and delayed-action fuzes, allowing the latter to penetrate hard cover.
The advantage of the Nebelwerfer 41 was that it could mass its projectiles on a very small target area. Unfortunately, the large firing signature, caused by the launch of the projectiles, left the Nebelwerfer positions an excellent target for counter-artillery fire. It was therefore often necessary to relocate the Nebelwerfer as soon as possible after firing. Rocket-projector troops were organized as rocket-projector Regiments, which were fully motorized. The rocket-projector Regiment was divided into Battalions and Batteries, like those of the artillery. The projector units were usually kept close behind the forward infantry line. Because of the light construction of the projectors, a 3-ton prime mover was sufficient for traction purposes and could also carry the gun crew and some of the ammunition.
In mid 1941, a new launcher was introduced, which partially replaced the Nebelwerfer 41. The Nebelwerfer 42, had only five barrels, but fired a larger, 210mm projectile. The range was increased to almost 8000m due to the greater capacity for propellant, as was the lethality due to the larger warhead.