10.5 cm Gebirgshaubitze 40
10.5 cm Gebirgshaubitze 40 | ||
---|---|---|
Breech Horizontal sliding-block | | |
Recoil | Hydro-pneumatic | |
Carriage | Split trail | |
Elevation | -4° 30' to +71° | |
Traverse | 51° | |
Rate of fire | 4–6 rpm | |
Muzzle velocity | 565 m/s (1,850 ft/s) | |
Maximum firing range | 12.6 km (7.8 mi) |
The 10.5 cm Gebirgshaubitze 40 (10.5 cm GebH 40) was a 10.5 cm (4.1 in) German mountain howitzer used during World War II. A total of 420 were built during World War II. It saw action with German mountain divisions in Finland, Italy, France, on the Eastern Front and in the Balkans from 1942. It served with a number of European countries into the 1960s.
Development and description
The 10.5 cm GebH 40 was designed to meet an
The design of the 10.5 cm GebH 40 was relatively conventional in regard to the gun itself, with its standard German horizontal sliding block breech,
Two different range figures have been quoted for the 10.5 cm GebH 40, 12,625 metres (13,807 yd)[2][5] and 16,740 metres (18,310 yd).[6] The former figure seems more plausible when compared to 10.5 cm howitzers with roughly similar barrel lengths and muzzle velocities like the 10.5 cm leFH 18 and the American M-2.
Ammunition
The 10.5 cm GebH 40 fired a wide variety of ammunition, with the notable exception of a conventional
References
- ^ "101". quarryhs.co.uk. Archived from the original on 26 February 2015. Retrieved 2 October 2017.
- ^ a b Gander and Chamberlain, p. 289
- ^ "German Weapon and Ammunition Production 1 Sep 39-1 Apr 45". Archived from the original on 2 March 2009. Retrieved 28 May 2009.
- ^ Hogg, p. 34
- ^ "Catalog of Enemy Ordnance". Archived from the original on 9 December 2019. Retrieved 26 October 2009.
- ^ Hogg, p. 35
- ^ Hogg, pp. 35–6
Sources
- Engelmann, Joachim and Scheibert, Horst. Deutsche Artillerie 1934–1945: Eine Dokumentation in Text, Skizzen und Bildern: Ausrüstung, Gliederung, Ausbildung, Führung, Einsatz. Limburg/Lahn, Germany: C. A. Starke, 1974
- Gander, Terry and Chamberlain, Peter. Weapons of the Third Reich: An Encyclopedic Survey of All Small Arms, Artillery and Special Weapons of the German Land Forces 1939–1945. New York: Doubleday, 1979 ISBN 0-385-15090-3
- Hogg, Ian V. German Artillery of World War Two. 2nd corrected edition. Mechanicsville, PA: Stackpole Books, 1997 ISBN 1-85367-480-X
External links
- Pictures of the gun
- 10.5 cm GebH 40 in U.S. Ordnance Catalog Archived 9 December 2019 at the Wayback Machine