The Reihenwerfer or Mittler Schützenpanzerwagen S307(f) mit Reihenwerfer was a self-propelled barrage mortar used by the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

History

After the

Fall of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France during the Second World ...

in 1940 large amounts of French military hardware fell into German hands. Two systems that were captured in sizable numbers were the

SOMUA MCG Somua, an acronym for ''Société d'outillage mécanique et d'usinage d'artillerie'', was a French company that manufactured machinery and vehicles. A subsidiary of Schneider-Creusot, Somua was based in Saint-Ouen, a suburb of Paris. Overview ...

half-track A half-track is a civilian or military vehicle with regular wheels at the front for steering and continuous tracks at the back to propel the vehicle and carry most of the load. The purpose of this combination is to produce a vehicle with the cro ...

artillery tractor An artillery tractor, also referred to as a gun tractor, is a specialized heavy-duty form of tractor unit used to tow artillery pieces of varying weights and calibres. It may be 6x6, wheeled, continuous track, tracked, or half-tracked. Trac ...

and the 81 mm Brandt Mle 27/31 mortar. Since the Germans were short of resources both were issued to German units. The SOMUA MCG was given the German designation ''S307(f)'' and the mle 27/31 was given the designation ''GrW 278(f)''. The Reihenwerfer consisted of 20 GrW 278(f) barrels in two rows of 10 which were mounted on a common framework that was attached to a base mounted on the back of an armored S307(f) chassis. The mortars and half-tracks were converted by Major

Alfred Becker Alfred Becker (20 August 1899 – 26 December 1981) was a German engineer and artillery officer who served during the First and Second World Wars. During the Second World War he took captured British and French vehicles and refurbished and reb ...

's workshop ( Baukommando Becker) in Paris. All 16 barrels could be traversed 360° and elevated together from +35° to +90°, with the outer barrels pointing slightly outwards to increase the spread of the barrage. The vehicle carried 90 rounds of ready use ammunition and each barrel held a single round at the top of the tube until fired by pulling a lanyard. The round then slid down the tube until it hit a firing pin which launched it. In action, all 16 barrels were fired in rapid succession, but not simultaneously to saturate the target area. The Reihenwerfer was deployed by German units in Northern France during the

Normandy landings The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

Gallery

File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-300-1863-15, Riva-Bella, Vorführung Panzerwerfer, Beladen.jpg, A crew loading a Reihenwerfer near Riva-Bella (

Sword Beach Sword, commonly known as Sword Beach, was the code name given to one of the five main landing areas along the Normandy coast during the initial assault phase, Operation Neptune, of Operation Overlord. The Allied invasion of German-occupied Fra ...

), Atlantic coast, Northern France on 30 May 1944.

Notes

External links

* http://www.dws-xip.pl/encyklopedia/vehmcg-gr/ * https://www.flamesofwar.com/hobby.aspx?art_id=614 {{DEFAULTSORT:Reihenwerfer Mortars World War II artillery of Germany Military vehicles introduced from 1940 to 1944