Thread: Nebelwerfer

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nebelwerfer

Great Picture Kelly, and a weapon that the Allies dreaded. :p

Originally Posted by Jim

Great Picture Kelly, and a weapon that the Allies dreaded. :p

Cheers Jim, and yes, a truly devastating weapon while being easy to conceal.

This as stated was a weapon that terrorised the Allies, by the end of 44 early 45 the weapon was hardly used (if ever) as the ammo used was barely existent as the last 2 factories that made and supplied these type of weapons were blown away, and when the Germans ever tried to open up some factory for heavy armour the Allied were very quick to end it. I think the Allies were very much pleased about this.

Most Allied casualties In Normandy were as a result of mortar fire. Here the crew of a 15cm German Nebelwerfer 41 are loading the weapon with six 34kg rockets. The Nebelwerfer could discharge six rocket propelled mortar bombs in ten seconds, and fire three salvos in five minutes. It had a maximum range of almost 7,000 metres.

Preparing to launch a 30cm Nebelwerfer in support of Model's attack on 6th July. With these weapons the Germans, like the Russians with their "Katyusha" launchers, could deliver a heavy and concentrated barrage. Not the least frightful aspect of the German weapon was the noise it made as it "rocketed" through the air. Its relative light weight and mobility compared to conventional artillery made it a very effective weapon.

Rear view of a captured 32cm Nebelwerfer .. The weapon is loaded, but electrical leads are not connected to the bases of the rocket motors.

The Nebelwerfer was the most widely used of the rocket launchers developed by the Germans. Each of the six barrels had a calibre of 150mm. The weight of shot that could be laid down was heavy in comparison with conventional artillery, but even so, it was far less accurate. However, the object was to saturate an area and demoralize the enemy. The range of a Nebelwerfer was 7000m (7330yd).

A German Nebelwerfer firing.

A captured Nebelwerfer, August 1944, in overall dunkel gelb with bold over-painting in oIivgrun, Note the lightening of tyres by dirt, and the dried mud on rest of the weapon. Foliage and netting used to further camouflage the weapon have mostly been removed.