8.8 cm Raketenwerfer 43

8.8 cm Raketenwerfer 43

The 8.8 cm Raketenwerfer 43 and its ammunition being inspected by Allied troops.[lower-alpha 1]
Type Anti-tank rocket launcher
Place of origin Nazi Germany
Service history
In service 1943–45
Used by Nazi Germany
Wars World War II
Production history
Number built 3000
Specifications
Weight 143 kg
Length 2.972 m
Width 1.016 m
Height 0.899 m
Crew 2
Cartridge RPzB. Gr. 4312[1]
Caliber 88 mm
Action breech loaded, fired from closed breech[1]
Muzzle velocity 140 m/s
Effective firing range 230 m for moving targets, 500 m for stationary targets[1]
Maximum firing range 750 m

The 8.8 cm Raketenwerfer 43 Puppchen[lower-alpha 2][2] was an 88 mm calibre reusable anti-tank rocket launcher developed by Nazi Germany during World War II.

Raketenwerfer 43 was given to infantry to bolster their anti-tank capability. The weapon was fired from a small two-wheeled gun carriage which fired a percussion-primed, rocket-propelled, fin-stabilized grenade RPzB. Gr. 4312[1] with a shaped charge warhead. The grenade had a shorter tailboom of 490 mm (19 in) compared to the 650 mm (26 in) tailboom for the electrically-primed grenade RPzB. Gr. 4322 for the Panzerschreck.[1][3] Both grenades used identical warhead and fuzing.[1]

Approximately 3,000 units were completed from 1943 to 1945. It was made in much smaller numbers than either the Panzerschreck, which was based on the American Bazooka, or the Panzerfaust, which was a disposable-launcher explosive charge-propelled grenade, firing a High Explosive Anti-Tank warhead. This is partly because it was realized that a simple hollow tube with an ignition device was all that was needed to launch the 88 mm rocket, rather than an elaborate miniature artillery piece with carriage and breech. Due to the carriage and better sights, the accuracy was better, and the range more than double that of the Panzerschreck. However, Raketenwerfer 43 was more expensive, heavier and had longer production time than Panzerschreck or Panzerfaust.[1]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Gordon L Rottman; Johnny Shumate; Alan Gilliland (20 August 2014). Panzerfaust and Panzerschreck. Osprey Publishing. pp. 29–30. ISBN 978-1-78200-790-6. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
  2. ↑ ""Puppchen" (auch "Püppchen" ? ) = 8,8cm Raketenwerfer 43, in Frankreich". Forum der Wehrmacht. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  3. ↑ "8.8 cm R. Pz. B. Gr. 4312: Antitank Rocket Grenade". "Catalog of Enemy Ordnance". "U.S. Office of Chief of Ordnance". 1945. Retrieved 6 August 2015.

Notes

  1. ↑ Projectile in the image held by officer is RPzB. Gr. 4322 electrically primed with long tailboom, meant for Panzerschreck. Raketenwerfer 43 projectile RPzB. Gr. 4312 is percussion primed and tailboom is shorter.
  2. ↑ Many sources refer to this weapon as Püppchen, German for "little doll". The official name was Puppchen without the umlaut.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Raketen-Panzerbüchse 43.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/29/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.