Vampir night scope tested by British soldier

The ''ZG 1229 Vampir'' 1229 (ZG 1229), also known by its code name ''Vampir'', was an active infrared device developed for 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 previo ...

'' for the

Sturmgewehr 44 The StG 44 (abbreviation of Sturmgewehr 44, "assault rifle 44") is a German assault rifle developed during World War II by Hugo Schmeisser. It is also known by its early designations as the MP 43 and MP 44 (''Maschinenpistole 43'' and ''44''). ...

assault rifle 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 opposing ...

, intended primarily for night use. Designed by C.G. Haenel, the Vampir was used in small numbers in the Eastern Front. The system was heavy, with the device itself and a bulky battery backpack weighing in total. The grenadier carrying this was known as a ''Nachtjäger'' (night-hunter).

Design

The ZG 1229 Vampir weighed and was fitted with lugs on the StG 44 at C.G. Haenel in

Suhl Suhl () is a city in Thuringia, Germany, located SW of Erfurt, NE of Würzburg and N of Nuremberg. With its 37,000 inhabitants, it is the smallest of the six urban districts within Thuringia. Together with its northern neighbour-town Zella- ...

, the weapons production facility. As well as the sight and infrared spotlight, there was a wooden-cased battery for the light weighing , and a second battery fitted inside a gas mask container to power the image converter. This was all strapped to a Tragegestell 39 (pack frame 1939). The searchlight consisted of a conventional tungsten light source shining through a filter permitting only infrared light. The sensor operated in the

near-infrared Infrared (IR), sometimes called infrared light, is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than those of Light, visible light. It is therefore invisible to the human eye. IR is generally understood to encompass wavelengths from ...

(light) spectrum rather than in the

thermal infrared Infrared (IR), sometimes called infrared light, is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than those of visible light. It is therefore invisible to the human eye. IR is generally understood to encompass wavelengths from around ...

(heat) spectrum and was, therefore, not sensitive to body heat.

Use

Vampir gear was first used in combat in February 1945. However, introduction of infrared devices for small arms began in early 1944. 310 units were delivered to the Wehrmacht at the final stages of the war. Eastern Front veteran reports consist of snipers shooting at night with the aid of 'peculiar non-shining flashlights coupled with enormous optical sights' mounted on their rifles. Similar infrared gear was fitted both to

MG 34 The MG 34 (shortened from German: ''Maschinengewehr 34'', or "machine gun 34") is a German recoil-operated air-cooled general-purpose machine gun, first tested in 1929, introduced in 1934, and issued to units in 1936. It introduced an entirely n ...

and MG 42 machine guns.

References

German Infrared Night-Vision Devices
achtungpanzer.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Zielgerat 1229 World War II German electronics Research and development in Nazi Germany Firearm sights Infrared imaging Night vision devices