Created before World War II in Germany, multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) were originally intended for firing projectiles filled with chemical warfare agents and projectiles with a smoke-generating composition for setting smoke screens. However, in fairness it should be noted that the Soviet MLRS BM-13 (the famous "Katyusha") was created with similar goals. This is reflected in the name of the first German serial 150-mm MLRS - Nebelwerfer or "D-type smoke mortar". The literal translation of the name "Nebelwerfer" from German is "Fog-thrower".
15-cm Nebelwerfer 41
During World War II, Germany, yielding to the allies in terms of the total stocks of accumulated chemical weapons, had a significant qualitative superiority in this area. The traditionally high level of development of the German chemical industry and the availability of an excellent theoretical base allowed German chemists at the end of the 30s to make a breakthrough in the field of chemical warfare agents. In the course of research on the creation of means to combat insects, the most deadly type of poisonous substances in service was discovered - nerve poisons. Initially, a substance was synthesized, which later became known as "Tabun". Later, even more poisonous "Zarin" and "Soman" were created and produced on an industrial scale.
Fortunately for the allied armies, the use of poisonous substances against them did not take place. Germany, doomed to defeat in the war by conventional means, did not try to turn the tide of the war in its favor with the latest chemical weapons. For this reason, the German MLRS used only high-explosive, incendiary, smoke and propaganda mines for firing.
Tests of a six-barreled 150-mm mortar began in 1937. The installation consisted of a package of six tubular guides mounted on a converted carriage of a 37-mm anti-tank gun 3.7 cm PaK 36. Six barrels with a length of 1.3 meters were combined into a block using front and rear clips. The carriage was equipped with a lifting mechanism with a maximum elevation angle of 45 degrees and a swivel mechanism that provided a horizontal firing angle of up to 24 degrees.
In the combat position, the wheels were hung out, the carriage rested on the bipod of the sliding beds and the folding front stop.
The combat weight in the equipped position reached 770 kg, in the stowed position this figure was equal to 515 kg. For short distances, the installation could be rolled by the forces of calculation.
For firing, 150-mm turbojet mines (rockets) were used. The warhead was located in the tail section, and in the front was a jet engine equipped with a perforated bottom with 26 inclined holes (nozzles inclined at an angle of 14 degrees). A ballistic casing was put on the engine. The projectile was stabilized in the air due to obliquely located nozzles that rotate at a speed of about 1000 rev / s.
The main difference between German and Soviet missiles was the method of stabilization in flight. Turbojet missiles had a higher accuracy, since this stabilization method also made it possible to compensate for the eccentricity of the engine thrust. In addition, it was possible to use shorter guides, since, unlike missiles stabilized by the tail, the effectiveness of stabilization did not depend on the initial speed of the missile. But due to the fact that part of the energy of the outflowing gases was spent on untwisting the projectile, its flight range was shorter than that of a projectile with a plumage.
When loading rocket mines from the breech, the shells were fixed with special holders, after which an electric igniter was stuck into one of the nozzles. After aiming the mortar at the target, the crew went into cover and, using the launch unit, fired in series of 3 mines. The ignition of the electric igniter at start occurs remotely, from the battery of the vehicle towing the installation. The volley lasted about 10 seconds. Recharge time - up to 1.5 minutes (ready for the next volley).
Initially, black powder pressed at a high temperature (at the melting point of sulfur) was used as a jet fuel. The low strength of the gunpowder bar and the presence of a significant amount of voids in it led to the formation of cracks, which led to frequent start-up accidents. In addition, the combustion of this fuel was accompanied by abundant smoke. Bars of black powder in 1940 were replaced by tubular bombs made of smokeless diglecol powder, which had the best energy qualities. Typically, seven pieces of powder were used.
The maximum flight range of the rocket weighing 34, 15 kg (smoke - 35, 48 kg) was 6700-6800 meters at a maximum flight speed of 340 m / s. The Nebelwerfer had a very good accuracy for a MLRS of that time. At a distance of 6,000 m, the dispersion of shells along the front is 60-90 m, and at a range of 80-100 m. The dispersion of fragments of a high-explosive fragmentation mine was 40 meters along the front and 13 meters ahead of the burst site. In order to achieve the maximum damaging effect, shooting was prescribed only with batteries or divisional divisions.
The first units, armed with six-barreled mortars, were formed at the beginning of 1940. This weapon was first used by the Germans during the French campaign. In 1942, after entering service with the 28/32 cm Nebelwerfer 41 MLRS, the unit was renamed 15-cm Nb. W. 41 (15-cm Nebelwerfer 41).
In 1942, the German army deployed three regiments (Nebelwerferregiment), as well as nine separate divisions (Nebelwerfeabteilung). The division consisted of three 6 launchers each, the regiment consisted of three divisions (54 "Nebelwerfer"). Since 1943, batteries of 150-mm rocket launchers (6 launchers each) began to be included in the light battalions of artillery regiments of infantry divisions, replacing 105-mm field howitzers in them. As a rule, one division had two batteries of MLRS, but in some cases their number was brought up to a three-battery battalion. In addition to reinforcing the artillery of infantry divisions, the Germans also formed separate units of rocket launchers.
In total, the German industry was able to produce 5283 six-barreled 150-mm Nebelwerfer 41 installations and 5.5 million missiles for them.
Relatively light, with high firepower, the Nebelwerfer MLRS performed well during the landing on Crete (Operation Mercury). On the Eastern Front, being in service with the 4th Special Purpose Chemical Regiment, from the first hours of the war they were used to shell the Brest Fortress, firing over 2,880 high-explosive rocket mines.
Due to the characteristic sound of flying shells, the Nebelwerfer 41 received the nickname "donkey" from Soviet soldiers. Another colloquial name is "Vanyusha" (by analogy with "Katyusha").
The big drawback of the German 150-mm six-barreled mortar was the characteristic, well-visible smoke trail when firing, serving as an excellent reference point for enemy artillery. Given the low mobility of the Nebelwerfer 41, this disadvantage was often fatal.
To increase the mobility and security of the crew in 1942, on the basis of the Opel Maultier half-track truck, a self-propelled 15cm Panzerwerfer 42 Auf. Sf MLRS was created, whether Sd. Kfz.4 / 1 with a combat weight of 7.25 tons. The launcher consisted of ten barrels arranged in two rows, connected in one block by two clips and a casing.
15cm Panzerwerfer 42 Auf. Sf
The Panzerwerfer 42 was protected by 6-8mm anti-splinter armor. For self-defense and shooting at anti-aircraft targets, there is a bracket for mounting a 7, 92 mm MG-34 machine gun above the driver's cab. The crew consisted of four people: the vehicle commander (aka radio operator), gunner, loader and driver.
During serial production in 1943-1944, 296 combat vehicles were produced, as well as 251 ammunition carriers for them at the same base. Panzerwerfer were actively used by German troops until the end of the war.
In addition to the Opel chassis, the self-propelled MLRS version was produced on the basis of a standard 3-ton army tractor (3-ton schwerer Wehrmachtschlepper), a half-track armored personnel carrier used by the troops to transport ammunition. Serial production has been carried out since 1944 by the firms "Bussing-NAG" and "Tatra". It continued until the very end of the war. The vehicle, protected by 15 mm armor, turned out to be low-maneuverable and slow-moving, since its mass reached 14 tons.
The 150-mm self-propelled MLRS was also produced on the basis of the captured French half-track tractor SOMUA MCG / MCL.
In order to increase the destructive effect of rockets in 1941, a six-barreled 28/32 cm Nebelwerfer 41 mount was adopted. A two-tier barrel truss was attached to a wheeled carriage with a fixed frame bed. The guides contained both 280-mm high-explosive and 320-mm incendiary missiles. The mass of the unloaded installation reached only 500 kg (the guides had not a tubular, but a lattice structure), which made it possible to freely roll it onto the battlefield by the forces of calculation. Combat weight of the system: 1630 kg for a mortar equipped with 280 mm ammunition, 1600 kg - 320 mm. The horizontal firing sector was 22 degrees, the elevation angle was 45 degrees. A volley of 6 missiles took 10 seconds, reloading took 2 and a half minutes.
28/32 cm Nebelwerfer 41
When creating 280-mm and 320-mm rockets, a well-proven engine from a 158-mm 15cm Wurfgranete rocket was used. Since the mass and drag of the new missiles were significantly greater, the firing range decreased by about three times and was 1950-2200 meters at a maximum speed of 149-153 m / s. This range made it possible to fire only at targets on the line of contact and in the immediate rear of the enemy.
The 280-mm high-explosive missile was loaded with 45.4 kg of explosives. With a direct hit of ammunition into a brick building, it was completely destroyed.
The warhead of a 320-mm incendiary rocket was filled with 50 liters of incendiary mixture (crude oil) and had an explosive charge of 1 kg of explosives.
During the war, the Germans removed from service 320-mm incendiary rockets due to their lack of effectiveness. In addition, the thin-walled hulls of 320-mm incendiary projectiles were not very reliable, they often leaked fire mixture and broke during launch.
280-mm and 320-mm rockets could be used without launchers. To do this, it was necessary to dig out the starting position. Mines in boxes of 1-4 were located on leveled sloping soil on top of wooden flooring. The rockets of the first releases at the start often did not leave the seals and were fired along with them. Since wooden boxes greatly increased aerodynamic resistance, the range of fire was significantly reduced and there was a danger of hitting their own parts.
Frames located in fixed positions were soon replaced by "heavy throwing devices" (schweres Wurfgerat). The corks-guides (four pieces each) were installed on a light frame metal or wooden machine, which could be folded out like a step-ladder. The frame could be located at different angles, which made it possible to give the PU elevation angles from 5 to 42 degrees. The combat weight of the wooden sWG 40, loaded with 280-mm missiles, was 500 kg, with 320-mm ammunition - 488 kg. For steel sWG 41, these characteristics were 558 and 548 kg, respectively.
The volley was fired within 6 seconds, the reload speed was about 2.5 minutes. The sights were very primitive and included only a conventional protractor. Constant calculations for the maintenance of these simple installations did not stand out: any infantryman could fire from sWG 40/41.
The first massive use of 28/32 cm Nebelwerfer 41 launchers took place on the Eastern Front during the German summer offensive in 1942. They were especially widely used during the siege of Sevastopol.
There was also a "self-propelled" version of the 28/32 cm Nebelwerfer 41. On the sides of the tracked armored personnel carrier Sd. Kfz.251.1 Auf. D mounts were mounted for hanging all three wooden launch frames-containers (three on each side, on the commanders - two) …
The armament of the armored personnel carrier - two 7, 92-mm machine guns (aft on an anti-aircraft turret) - was completely preserved. A primitive sight for rough aiming was attached to the bar next to the machine gun. Such "self-propelled" MLRS came mainly to the SS troops.
Caps with large-caliber missiles were also installed on other chassis. So, in 1943, several dozen Renault Ue two-seater armored tractors, captured by the Germans as trophies in 1940, were converted into self-propelled MLRS.
In the aft part of the machine, guides for containers with jet mines were mounted, and in front of the frontal sheet, on a bar extended forward, a primitive sight was attached for coarse aiming of weapons. The missiles could be launched from inside the tractor. The crew is two people. The speed of the tractor dropped to 22 km / h, but on the whole the car turned out to be quite reliable and unpretentious. The entire complex was named 28/32 cm Wurfrahmen 40 (Sf) auf Infanterieschlepper Ue 630.
Also, launch frames with 280/320-mm missiles were mounted on captured French Hotchkiss H39 tanks.
During the war, the opposing sides repeatedly copied individual models of equipment and weapons from each other.
At the beginning of 1942, in besieged Leningrad, the release of rocket mines was launched, in their design repeating the German 28 cm Wurfkorper Spreng and 32 cm Wurfkorper Flam. The warheads of the high-explosive shells, which were the best suited for the conditions of the "trench war" of the Leningrad Front, were equipped with a surrogate explosive based on ammonium nitrate. Incendiary mines were filled with oil refinery waste, a small explosive charge placed in a glass of white phosphorus served as an igniter for the combustible mixture. But incendiary 320-mm rocket mines were produced several times less than 280-mm high-explosive mines.
Rocket mine M-28
In total, more than 10,000 280-mm rocket mines were fired. The brainchild of the blockade, the M-28 mine ended its existence with the blockade.
