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Röchling shells were bunker-busting
Czech language article about the newly exhibited Röchling shell
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Röchling shells were bunker-busting artillery shell
A shell, in a military context, is a projectile whose payload contains an explosive, incendiary, or other chemical filling. Originally it was called a bombshell, but "shell" has come to be unambiguous in a military context. Modern usage ...
s, developed by German engineer August Cönders
August Cönders was a German engineer working for Röchling'sche Eisen und Stahlwerke GmbH during World War II after having worked in the UK and in Putaux, France, before the war.
He designed the Röchling shell that was tested in 1942 and 1943 a ...
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 ...
, based on the theory of increasing the sectional density
Sectional density (often abbreviated SD) is the ratio of an object's mass to its cross sectional area with respect to a given axis. It conveys how well an object's mass is distributed (by its shape) to overcome resistance along that axis.
Secti ...
to improve penetration.
Description
The fin-stabilised shells made from chrome-vanadium steel were able to penetrate much more than of reinforced concrete roof before burying the shell through the floor and into earth. However, these shells had a low muzzle velocity, and thus a high dispersion, on range. As a result, they saw very limited use duringWorld 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 ...
; only about 200 shells were ever fired even though 6000 such shells were made for the very large howitzers like the 21 cm mortar.
Röchling shells were developed for the 21 cm Mörser 18
The 21 cm Mörser 18 (21 cm Mrs 18), or 21 cm Mörser M 18/L31,
was a German heavy howitzer used in the Second World War by Independent artillery battalions and artillery battery, batteries. A number were also used by coastal arti ...
, a captured French 34 cm railway gun 674(f), and the 35.5 cm Haubitze M1 only. In addition, many experimental HE shells were made for the 37 mm PAK and 50 mm PAK weapons.
Use
Röchling shells were tested in 1942 and 1943 first against the BelgianFort de Battice
The Fort of Battice (french: fort de Battice) is a Belgian fortification located just to the east of the town of Battice. The fort was built in the 1930s as part of the fortified position of Liège, augmenting the twelve original forts built to ...
then against the Belgian Fort d'Aubin-Neufchâteau
The Fort of Aubin-Neufchâteau (french: Fort d'Aubin-Neufchâteau) is a Belgian fortification located near Neufchâteau. The fort was built in the 1930s as part of the fortified position of Liège, augmenting the twelve original forts built to de ...
. They were also tested against the fortresses of Hůrka, Hanička and Dobrošov (today's Czech Republic), the Gössler wall, Toplitzsee (Austria) and at the Hillersleben test facility (Germany).
They were regarded as a German secret weapon, and there is speculation that their use was limited in order to reduce the chance of dud shells being recovered and exploited by the Allied forces. A more likely reason, however, is their poor accuracy.
Preserved small-size prototype of Röchling shell (36 cm long) is since 2020 exhibited in the Museum of Czechoslovakian fortifications, inside the fort Hůrka ( cz). Remnants of full-sized test shells are still visible in the walls of the fort./ref>
See also
*Kinetic energy penetrator
A kinetic energy penetrator (KEP), also known as long-rod penetrator (LRP), is a type of ammunition designed to penetrate vehicle armour using a flechette-like, high-sectional density projectile. Like a bullet or kinetic energy weapon, this type ...
* Impact depth
The impact depth of a projectile is the distance it penetrates into a target before coming to a stop. The physicist Sir Isaac Newton first developed this idea to get rough approximations for the impact depth for projectiles traveling at high veloc ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rochling Shell Artillery shells Anti-fortification weapons Weapons and ammunition introduced in 1942