15 cm K (E)
15 cm Kanone (E) | ||
---|---|---|
Breech vertical sliding-block | | |
Elevation | +10° - +45° | |
Traverse | 360° | |
Muzzle velocity | 600–805 metres per second (1,970–2,640 ft/s) | |
Maximum firing range | 22.5 kilometres (24,600 yd) |
The 15 cm Kanone in Eisenbahnlafette (gun on railroad mounting) (15 cm K (E)) was a type of German
Design
This weapon was the first modern railroad gun to enter service with the
Ammunition
The standard
Combat history
Two guns were damaged by premature detonations in their barrels on 20 May 1940 while bombarding Liège.[2] They spent most of the war assigned to Artillery Battery (Artillerie-Batterie) 655 (E) in Belgium on coast-defense duties along the Channel coast.[3]
Note
Sources are contradictory on the gun used and numbers produced of this weapon. The most recent source, François, has been generally been followed, not least because he cites serial numbers. Do not confuse this gun with those of Naval Artillery Battery (Marine-Artillerie-Batterie) "Gneisenau" that used a slightly more modern 15 cm SK L/45 gun with a gun shield.
Citations
References
- 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
- François, Guy. Eisenbahnartillerie: Histoire de l'artillerie lourd sur voie ferrée allemande des origines à 1945. Paris: Editions Histoire et Fortifications, 2006
- 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
- Kosar, Franz. Eisenbahngeschütze der Welt. Stuttgart: Motorbuch, 1999 ISBN 3-613-01976-0