15 examples of German “miracle weapons” from World War II
The name "wunderwaffe", or "miracle weapon", was coined by the German Ministry of Propaganda and was used by the Third Reich for a number of large-scale research projects aimed at creating a new type of weapon, its size, capabilities and functions many times superior to all existing models.
Wonder weapon, or “Wunderwaffe”...
During World War II, the Ministry of Propaganda of Nazi Germany called this their superweapon, which was created using the latest science and technology and in many ways was supposed to become revolutionary during the conduct of hostilities.
It must be said that most of these miracles never entered production, barely appeared on the battlefield, or were created too late and in too small quantities to have any impact on the course of the war.
As events progressed and Germany's position worsened after 1942, claims about the Wunderwaffe began to cause noticeable inconvenience to the Propaganda Ministry. Ideas are ideas, but the reality is that the release of any new weapon requires lengthy preparation: it takes years to test and develop. So hopes that Germany could perfect its mega-weapon by the end of the war were in vain. And the samples that entered service caused waves of disappointment even among the German military devoted to propaganda.
However, something else is surprising: the Nazis actually had the technological know-how to develop many wonderful innovations. And if the war had dragged on much longer, then there was a possibility that they would have been able to perfect the weapons and establish mass production, changing the course of the war.
The Axis powers could have won the war.
Fortunately for the Allies, Germany was unable to capitalize on its technological advances. Here are 15 examples of Hitler’s most formidable “wunderwaffe”.
Self-propelled mine Goliath
“Goliath”, or “Sonder Kraftfarzeug” (abbr. Sd.Kfz. 302/303a/303b/3036) is a ground-based tracked self-propelled mine. The Allies called "Goliath" by a less romantic nickname - "gold pan".
"Goliaths" were introduced in 1942 and were a tracked vehicle with dimensions of 150 × 85 × 56 cm. This design carried 75-100 kg of explosives, which is a lot, given its own height. The mine was designed to destroy tanks, dense infantry formations and even destroy buildings. Everything would be fine, but there was one detail that made the Goliath vulnerable: the wedge without a crew was controlled by wire at a distance.
The Allies quickly realized that to neutralize the machine, all they had to do was cut the wire. Without control, Goliath was helpless and useless. Although a total of over 5,000 Goliaths were produced, their design was ahead of modern technology, the weapon was not successful: high cost, vulnerability and low maneuverability played a role. Many examples of these “killing machines” survived the war and today can be found among museum exhibits throughout Europe and the United States.
Artillery gun V-3
Like its predecessors, the V-1 and V-2, the "Punitive Weapon", or V-3, was another in a series of "vengeance weapons" aimed at wiping out London and Antwerp from the face of the earth.
The “English gun,” as it was sometimes called, the V-3 was a multi-chambered gun designed specifically for the landscape where Nazi troops were stationed, shelling London across the English Channel.
Although the projectile range of this “centipede” did not exceed the firing range of other German experimental artillery guns due to problems with the timely ignition of auxiliary charges, its rate of fire should theoretically be much higher and reach one shot per minute, which would allow the battery of such guns to literally fall asleep London is shelled.
Tests in May 1944 showed that the V-3 could fire at a range of up to 58 miles. However, only two V-3s were actually built, and only the second was actually used in combat. From January to February 1945 the cannon fired 183 times in the direction of Luxembourg. And it proved its complete… failure. Of the 183 shells, only 142 landed, 10 people were shell-shocked, and 35 were wounded.
London, against which the V-3 was created, turned out to be unattainable.
MP-3008
This submachine gun was built on the basis of the English "Wall". The author of the idea was the famous German intelligence officer Skorzeny. The Germans slightly changed the concept, replacing the side magazine with the usual one from the MP-40 with 32 rounds. The PP worked well and became a worthy replacement for the army MP-40. The cartridge used was 9x19, standard for German SMGs. It was one of the most worthy examples of weapons for the militia. There were two versions: with a metal frame and a wooden butt.
MP-3008 with frame stock
Guided aerial bomb Henschel Hs 293
This German guided bomb was perhaps the most effective guided weapon of World War II. She destroyed numerous merchant ships and destroyers.
The Henschel looked like a radio-controlled glider with a rocket engine underneath and a warhead containing 300 kg of explosives. They were intended for use against unarmored ships. About 1,000 bombs were manufactured for use by German military aircraft.
A variant for use against armored vehicles Fritz-X was produced a little later.
After dropping the bomb from the plane, the rocket booster accelerated it to a speed of 600 km/h. Then the planning stage began towards the target, using radio command control. The Hs 293 was aimed at the target from the aircraft by the navigator-operator using the handle on the Kehl transmitter control panel. To prevent the navigator from visually losing sight of the bomb, a signal tracer was installed on its “tail.”
One of the disadvantages was that the bomber had to maintain a straight trajectory, moving at a constant speed and altitude, positioned parallel to the target in order to maintain some visible line with the missile. This meant that the bomber was unable to divert and maneuver as incoming enemy fighters attempted to intercept it.
The use of radio-controlled bombs was first proposed in August 1943: then the first victim of the prototype of the modern anti-ship missile was the British sloop HMS Heron.
However, it didn’t take long for the allies to look for an opportunity to connect to the missile’s radio frequency in order to throw it off course. It goes without saying that the discovery of Henschel's control frequency significantly reduced its efficiency.
Gewehr 43
German answer.
Before the start of World War II, the Wehrmacht command was least interested in the possibility of using self-loading rifles. It was believed that the infantry should be armed with conventional rifles, and have light machine guns for support. Everything changed in 1941 with the outbreak of war. The Gewehr 43 semi-automatic rifle is one of the best in its class, second only to its Soviet and American counterparts. Its qualities are very similar to the domestic SVT-40. There was also a sniper version of this weapon.
Silver Bird
The Silver Bird is a project of a high-altitude partially orbital bomber-spacecraft by the Austrian scientist Dr. Eugen Senger and physicist Irena Bredt. Originally developed in the late 1930s, the Silbervogel was an intercontinental spaceplane that could be used as a long-range bomber. He was considered for the America Bomber mission.
It was designed to carry more than 4,000 kg of explosives, equipped with a unique CCTV system, and was believed to be invisible.
Sounds like the ultimate weapon, doesn't it?
However, it was too revolutionary for its time. Engineers and designers faced all sorts of technical and other difficulties, sometimes insurmountable, in connection with the “birdie”. For example, the prototypes overheated greatly, and cooling means had not yet been invented...
Ultimately, the entire project was abandoned in 1942, and money and resources were diverted to other ideas.
Interestingly, after the war, Zenger and Bredt were highly regarded by the expert community and participated in the creation of the French National Space Program. And their “Silver Bird” was taken as an example of the design concept for the American project X-20 Daina-Sor...
Until now, a design design called “Zengera-Bredt” is used for regenerative engine cooling. Thus, the Nazi attempt to create a long-range space bomber to attack the United States ultimately contributed to the successful development of space programs around the world. It's for the better.
Aviation
German designers achieved perhaps the greatest success in the field of aviation. Namely, in terms of jet aircraft. Of course, the first of them were not without their shortcomings, but their advantages were also evident. First of all, it is faster than propeller-driven aircraft and has more powerful weapons.
None of the warring parties used as many jet vehicles in combat as Germany. Here we can recall the first serial jet fighter Me.262, the “people's fighter” He 162, and the world's first jet bomber Ar 234 Blitz. The Germans also had a Me.163 Komet missile interceptor fighter, which had a liquid rocket engine and was capable of staying in the air for no more than eight minutes.
The Heinkel He 162 received the nickname “the people’s fighter” because it was supposed to become a mass-produced and easy-to-use jet machine. It was armed with two 20 mm MG 151 cannons and could reach speeds of up to 800 km/h. By the end of the war, only 116 He 162 fighters were built; they were almost never used in battle.
All these aircraft were mass-produced and took part in the war. For comparison, of all the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition, only Great Britain during the war was armed with a jet combat aircraft - the Gloster Meteor fighter. But the British only used it to intercept German V-1 cruise missiles and did not send it into combat against fighters.
Me.262 fighter / ©Wikimedia Commons
If we talk about German jets, some of them were used more often, others less often. The missile Me.163 made only a few combat missions, but the Me.262 was widely used on the Western Front and was able to chalk up 150 enemy aircraft. A common problem with German jet fighters was their lack of development. This led to a huge number of accidents and disasters. It was in them that the lion's share of the new Luftwaffe vehicles was lost. Systematic raids by American and British aviation led to the fact that by the end of the war the Germans were not even able to overcome the “childhood diseases” of the Me.262 (and the Nazis had great hopes for this particular fighter).
The Messerschmitt Me.262 fighter carried truly formidable weapons - four 30 mm MK-108 cannons. One salvo was enough to send a B-17 heavy bomber to the next world. But it was problematic for the heavy twin-engine Me.262 to compete with maneuverable propeller-driven fighters (the low rate of fire of the MK-108 played a role). By the way, one 262nd was chalked up by the Soviet pilot ace Ivan Kozhedub.
The planes we mentioned have become widely known, but a number of German aviation projects have gone unnoticed. And here we can recall the experimental combat aircraft Horten Ho IX - the world's first jet aircraft built using the “flying wing” aerodynamic design. It was created as part of the 1000*1000*1000 program - this means that the speed was supposed to reach 1000 km/h, the range was 1000 km, and the bomb load was 1000 kg. Horten Ho IX made several test flights in 1944-1945, but did not take part in combat.
Heinkel He 162 fighter / ©Alamy
Even less fortunate was the brainchild of the famous German aircraft designer Kurt Tank - the Focke-Wulf Ta 183 turbojet fighter. This fighter was not destined to take to the skies at all, but at the same time it had a colossal influence on the development of aviation. The design of the aircraft was revolutionary: the Ta 183 had a swept wing and a distinctive air intake arrangement. Later, these technological solutions were used in the design of the Soviet MiG-15 fighter and the American F-86 Saber - iconic aircraft of the post-war era.
Throughout World War II, cannons and machine guns of various calibers remained the main weapon in air combat. But the Germans were among the leaders in the development of air-to-air missiles. One of them, the Ruhrstahl X-4, had a liquid-propellant jet engine and could reach speeds of up to 900 km/h. Control after launch was carried out through two thin copper wires. The missile could be a good weapon in the fight against the large and clumsy B-17 and B-24 bombers. However, there is no reliable data on the combat use of this X-4. It was difficult for the pilot to control the rocket and the plane at the same time, so a second pilot was required.
Ho IX fighter / ©Alamy
The Nazis also created guided air-to-surface weapons. Here it is worth recalling the radio-controlled gliding bomb FX-1400 Fritz X, which was used in the second half of the war against Allied ships. But the effectiveness of these weapons was ambiguous, and as the Allies gained air superiority, attacks on ground targets faded into the background for the Luftwaffe.
All these developments were certainly ahead of their time, but they could not be compared with Silbervogel. “Silver Bird” became the most ambitious military project of the Third Reich in all the years of its existence. The project was a partially orbital bomber-spacecraft designed to strike the territory of the USSR and the United States. The concept itself was proposed by the Austrian scientist Eugen Sänger. The bomber could take on board up to 30 thousand kg of bomb load, but if we were talking about striking US territory, the load was reduced to 6 thousand kg. The weight of the aircraft itself was 10 tons, and its length reached 28 m. In the rear part of the fuselage there was a liquid-propellant rocket engine with a thrust of up to 100 tons, on the sides there were two auxiliary rocket engines.
Focke Wulf Ta-183 "Huckebein" fighter / ©Getty Images
To launch the bomber, Zenger proposed creating a rail track about 3 km long. The plane was placed on a special skid, and additional boosters could also be attached to them. Due to this, the device was supposed to accelerate to 500 m/s on the track, and then gain altitude with the help of its own engines. The “ceiling” that Silbervogel could reach was 260 km, which effectively made it a spacecraft.
There were several options for the combat use of Silbervogel, but all of them were associated with a number of risks (loss of pilot and aircraft) and technical problems that could not be resolved at that time. This was the reason that the project was abandoned in 1941. By that time it was at the paper drawings stage. At the very end of the war, however, the German leadership again became interested in the project, but then no one believed in its implementation. After the war, scientists carried out calculations and found that the device designed by Zenger would have collapsed immediately after entering the atmosphere. At the same time, one cannot help but note the audacity of German engineers, because the concept itself was many decades ahead of its time.
Partially orbital bomber-spacecraft Silbervogel / ©DeviantART
1944 assault rifle StG-44
Many consider the StG 44 assault rifle as the first example of an automatic weapon. The rifle design was so successful that modern assault rifles such as the M-16 and AK-47 adopted it as their basis.
Legend has it that Hitler himself was greatly impressed by the weapon. The StG-44 had a unique design that took advantage of the characteristics of a carbine, an assault rifle, and a submachine gun. The weapon was equipped with the newest inventions of its time: optical and infrared sights were installed on the rifle. The latter weighed about 2 kg and was connected to a battery of about 15 kg, which the shooter carried on his back. It's not compact at all, but very cool for the 1940s!
The rifle could also be equipped with a “curved barrel” to fire around corners. Nazi Germany was the first to try to implement this idea. There were different variations of the "bent trunk": 30°, 45°, 60° and 90°. However, they had a short lifespan. After firing a certain number of rounds (300 for the 30° version and 160 rounds for the 45° version), the barrel could be ejected.
StG-44 was a revolution, but too late to have a real impact on the course of the war in Europe.
Sturmgewehr 46
Modernization was carried out already in 1946. The new weapon still used the 7.92x33mm cartridge. It has become much cheaper, and work has also been done to stabilize the machine gun during shooting, which has increased the accuracy of shooting from it.
Fat Gustav
"Fat Gustav" is the largest artillery piece that was built during World War II and used for its intended purpose.
Developed at the Krupp factory, the Gustav was one of two super-heavy railway guns. The second was "Dora". The Gustav weighed about 1,350 tons, and could fire a 7-ton projectile (bullets the size of two oil drums) at a range of up to 28 miles.
Impressive, isn't it?! Why didn't the Allies surrender and admit defeat as soon as this monster was released on the warpath?
It took 2,500 soldiers and three days to build double train tracks to maneuver the thing. For transportation, “Fat Gustav” was disassembled into several components and then assembled on site. Its size prevented the cannon from being assembled quickly: it took only half an hour for just one barrel to be loaded or unloaded. Germany was reported to be attaching an entire Luftwaffe squadron to the Gustav to provide cover for its assembly.
The only time the Nazis successfully used this mastodon for battle was the siege of Sevastopol in 1942. "Fat Gustav" fired a total of 42 shells, nine of which hit the ammunition depots located in the rocks, which were completely destroyed.
This monstrosity was a technical marvel, as terrifying as it was impractical. Gustav and Dora were destroyed in 1945 to prevent them from falling into Allied hands. But Soviet engineers were able to restore the Gustav from ruins. And his traces are lost in the Soviet Union.
Luger pistol
Austrian pistol.
This 9mm pistol was designed by Georg Luger back in 1900. Modern experts consider this pistol to be the best during the Second World War. The design of the Luger was very reliable, it had an energy-efficient design, low accuracy of fire, high accuracy and rate of fire. The only significant flaw of this weapon was the inability to close the locking levers with the structure, as a result of which the Luger could become clogged with dirt and stop shooting.
Fritz-X radio controlled bomb
The Fritz-X guided radio bomb, like its predecessor Hs 293, was created to destroy ships. But, unlike the Hs, the Fritz-X could hit heavily armored targets. "Fritz-X" had excellent aerodynamic properties, 4 small wings and a cruciform tail.
In the eyes of the Allies, this weapon was the embodiment of evil. The ancestor of the modern guided bomb, the Fritz-X could carry 320 kg of explosives and was controlled using a joystick, making it the world's first precision-guided weapon.
This weapon was used very effectively near Malta and Sicily in 1943. On September 9, 1943, the Germans dropped several bombs on the Italian battleship Rome, claiming to have killed everyone on board. They also sank the British cruiser HMS Spartan, the destroyer HMS Janus, the cruiser HMS Uganda and the hospital ship Newfoundland.
This bomb alone put the American light cruiser USS Savannah out of action for a year. In total, more than 2,000 bombs were made, but only 200 were dropped on targets.
The main difficulty was that if they could not suddenly change the direction of flight. As in the case of the Hs 293, the bombers had to fly directly over the object, which made them easy prey for the Allies - the Nazi aircraft began to suffer heavy losses.
Nuclear program
The Nazi nuclear program is a separate topic for research, and we will not delve into its essence. Let us only note that although Nazi scientists made some progress, by 1945 they were far from creating nuclear weapons. One of the reasons for this is that the Germans chose a concept using so-called “heavy water” (also called deuterium oxide; this term is usually used to refer to heavy hydrogen water, which has the same chemical formula as ordinary water, but instead of two atoms the usual light isotope of hydrogen contains two atoms of the heavy isotope of hydrogen - deuterium, and its oxygen isotopic composition corresponds to air oxygen. The most important property of heavy hydrogen water is that it practically does not absorb neutrons, therefore it is used in nuclear reactors for neutron braking and as a coolant - NS). This concept was not the best when it comes to quickly achieving the nuclear chain reactions needed to create nuclear weapons. The heavy water production plant itself was located in the Norwegian administrative center of Rjukan. In 1943, the Allies carried out Operation Gunnerside, as a result of which saboteurs destroyed the enterprise. The Nazis did not restore the plant, and sent the remaining heavy water to Germany.
It is believed that the Western allies were very surprised after the war to learn how far the Nazis were from creating nuclear weapons. Whether this is true or not, we will probably never know. This hypothesis is supported by the fact that Germany spent about 200 times less money on the creation of nuclear weapons than the United States needed to implement the Manhattan Project. Let us recall that the nuclear weapons development program cost the Americans $2 billion, a huge amount by the standards of that time (if we convert it to the modern dollar exchange rate, it will be about 26 billion).
Sometimes German submarines of type XXI and type XXIII are considered to be examples of “miracle weapons”. They became the world's first submarines capable of constantly being under water. The boats were built at the very end of the war and almost did not take part in hostilities. Strictly speaking, the war in the Atlantic was lost for Germany back in 1943, and the fleet gradually lost its former importance for the Nazi leadership.
Mouse
The full name of this fully enclosed armored vehicle is Panzerkampfwagen VIII Maus, or “Mouse”. Designed by the founder, it is the heaviest tank in the entire history of tank building: the German super-tank weighed 188 tons.
Actually, its mass ultimately became the reason why “Mouse” was not put into production. It didn't have a powerful enough engine to propel this beast at acceptable speeds.
According to the designer's specifications, the "Mouse" was supposed to run at a speed of 12 miles per hour. However, the prototype could only reach 8 mph. In addition, the tank was too heavy to cross the bridge, but it had the ability to pass under water in some cases. The main use of the Mouse was that it could simply push through enemy defenses without fear of any damage. But the tank was too impractical and expensive.
When the war ended, there were two prototypes: one was completed, the second was under development. The Nazis tried to destroy them so that the Mice would not fall into the hands of the Allies. However, the Soviet army salvaged the wreckage of both tanks. At the moment, only one Panzerkampfwagen VIII Maus tank has survived in the world, assembled from parts of these specimens, in the Armored Museum in Kubinka.
Rat
Did you think the Mouse tank was big? Well... Compared to the Landkreuzer P. 1000 Ratte projects, it was just a toy!
"Rat" Landkreuzer P. 1000 - the largest and heaviest tank designed by Nazi Germany! According to the plans, this land cruiser was supposed to weigh 1000 tons, be about 40 meters long, and 14 meters wide. It housed a crew of 20 people.
The huge size of the car was a constant source of headaches for designers. It was too impractical to have such a monster in service, since, for example, many bridges would not support it.
Albert Speer, who was responsible for coming up with the idea for the Rat, thought the tank was ridiculous. It was thanks to him that construction did not even begin, and not even a prototype was created. At the same time, even Hitler doubted that the “Rat” could actually perform all its functions without special preparation of the battlefield for its appearance.
Speer, being one of the few who could imagine land battleships and high-tech miracle machines in Hitler's fantasies, canceled the program in 1943. The Fuhrer was satisfied, since he relied on other weapons for his quick attacks. Interestingly, in fact, during the winding down of the project, plans were drawn up for an even larger land cruiser, the P. 1500 Monster", which would carry the heaviest weapon in the world - the 800-mm cannon from "Dora"!
MP 38/40
The same submachine gun.
Thanks to Soviet and Russian cinema, this “Maschinenpistole” became one of the symbols of the Nazi war machine. The reality, as always, is much less poetic. The MP 38/40, popular in media culture, has never been the main small arms for most Wehrmacht units. They armed them with drivers, tank crews, special forces detachments, rear guard detachments, as well as junior officers of the ground forces. The German infantry was mostly armed with Mauser 98k. Only occasionally MP 38/40s were handed over to assault troops in some quantity as “additional” weapons.
Horten Ho 229
Today it is spoken of as the world's first stealth bomber, with the Ho-229 being the first jet-powered flying device.
Germany urgently needed an aviation solution, which Goering formulated as “1000x1000x1000”: aircraft that could carry 1000 kg bombs over a distance of 1000 km at a speed of 1000 km/h. A jet plane was the most logical answer - subject to some modifications. Walter and Reimar Horten, two German aviator inventors, came up with their solution - the Horten Ho 229.
Externally, it was a sleek, tailless, glider-like machine, powered by two Jumo 004C jet engines. The Horten brothers claimed that the mixture of charcoal and resin they used absorbed electromagnetic waves and made the aircraft "invisible" on radar. This was also facilitated by the small visible area of the “flying wing” and its smooth, drop-like design.
Test flights were successfully carried out in 1944, a total of 6 aircraft were in production at various stages of production, and components for 20 aircraft were ordered for the needs of Luftwaffe fighter aircraft. Two cars took off into the air. At the end of the war, the Allies discovered a single prototype in the factory where the Hortens were produced.
Reimar Horten went to Argentina, where he continued his design activities until his death in 1994. Walter Horten became a general in the West German Air Force and died in 1998.
The only Horten Ho 229 was taken to the USA, where it was studied and used as a model for today's stealth aircraft. And the original is on display in Washington, DC, at the National Air and Space Museum.
Acoustic cannon
German scientists tried to think non-trivially. An example of their original approach is the development of a “sound gun”, which could literally “tear a person” with its vibrations.
The sonic gun project was the brainchild of Dr. Richard Wallauszek. This device consisted of a parabolic reflector, the diameter of which was 3250 mm, and an injector with an ignition system supplying methane and oxygen. The explosive mixture of gases was ignited by the device at regular intervals, creating a constant roar of the required frequency of 44 Hz. The sound impact was supposed to destroy all life within a radius of 50 m in less than a minute.
Of course, we are not scientists, but it is quite difficult to believe in the plausibility of the directed action of such a device. It has only been tested on animals. The huge size of the device made it an excellent target. And any damage to the parabolic reflectors would make the gun completely unarmed. It seems that Hitler agreed that this project should never go into production.
Hurricane Cannon
Aerodynamics researcher Dr. Mario Zippermeyer was an Austrian inventor and member of the Austrian National Socialist Party. He worked on designs for futuristic guns. In his research, he came to the conclusion that “hurricane” air under high pressure is capable of destroying much in its path, including enemy aircraft. The result of the development was the “hurricane gun” - the device was supposed to produce vortices due to explosions in the combustion chamber and directing shock waves through special tips. The vortex flows were supposed to shoot down planes.
The gun model was tested with wooden shields at a distance of 200 m - from hurricane vortices the shields shattered into splinters. The gun was considered successful and was put into production at full size.
A total of two hurricane cannons were built. The first tests of the combat weapon were less impressive than the tests of the models. The manufactured samples were unable to reach the required frequency to be effective enough. Zippermeyer tried to increase the range, but that didn't work either. The scientist did not have time to complete his development before the end of the war.
Allied forces discovered the rusty remains of one hurricane cannon on the Hillersleben training grounds. The second cannon was destroyed at the end of the war. Dr. Zippermeyer himself lived in Austria and continued his research in Europe, unlike many of his fellow tribesmen who happily began working for the USSR or the USA after World War II.
"MIRACLE WEAPONS" OF THE THIRD REICH (Part II)
(End. Beginning in the article “MIRACLE WEAPONS” OF THE THIRD REICH (Part I
))
On November 18, 1942, signed by the head of the HWaA, General of Artillery Emil von Leeb, memorandum N 03369/42g on the development of the Maschinenkarabiner was drawn up, which formulated the characteristics necessary for the new weapon and cartridge. The memorandum mentioned the Mkb automatic carbine. 42 (W), the G.41 self-loading rifle, a prototype of the G.43 self-loading rifle, the newly created Fallschirmjagergewehr 42 automatic rifle and an improved example of the Haenel automatic carbine, which was designated "MKb.42 (H) aufschiessend".
By this time, the designers of CG Haenel had indeed succeeded in significantly and radically modernizing the Mkb 42 (H) aufschiessend automatic carbine. The use of the rear sear in the Mkb.42 (H) ensured single and continuous fire, however, the production of single shots, and even with a striker-fired trigger mechanism, raised reasonable doubts regarding the accuracy of shooting due to the impact of the bolt on the stump of the barrel at the moment of firing. Therefore, to improve the accuracy of the fire, the original design of the trigger mechanism was replaced with a more reliable trigger mechanism, with the moving parts of the bolt stopping in the forward position. The Mkb 42 (H) aufschiessend carbine was now fired from a closed bolt; he got a new stock; The sights were changed, making their profile lower. The carbine also received a sheet metal forend. In addition, a blade bayonet known as Seitengewehr 42 (SG.42) was designed specifically for the improved Mkb 42, which was a combination of a bayonet-knife with a special insert in the handle in the form of a universal tool (a simplified folding knife, screwdriver, awl, corkscrew, etc. .P.).
In the same November, this weapon was demonstrated to senior OKN officers, who were very pleased with the new model. The adoption of such automatic carbines could significantly increase the firepower of the Wehrmacht infantry, the model was easy to produce (HWaA planned to go into production with the production of 25,000 units monthly by September 1943), the new type of cartridge was superior to pistol cartridges. Moreover, the Germans could not afford to continue to lag behind Soviet automatic weapons - the ABC and SVT rifles and the American Garand self-loading rifle.
7.92 mm MP.43 assault rifle and “short” cartridges for it
Therefore, in the same month, during a meeting between Hitler and the head of the OKN, the Fuhrer was again informed about the replacement of self-loading rifles and submachine guns with a new universal model of automatic infantry weapons with a new type of ammunition. But the Fuhrer again refused. However, the Wehrmacht defended its own opinion. In November, comparative tests were again carried out at the Infantry School in Doberitz, for which the K.98k carbine, Mkb.42 (H) aufschiefiend and Mkb.42 Walther automatic carbines were presented. The Infantry School clearly approved the Haenel carbine, with its more robust construction, ease of disassembly and longer sighting line. In an Infantry School report on comparative tests between the 98k carbine and the 42 automatic carbines dated December 3, 1942, the Walther design was considered extremely complex and sensitive to contamination, since even under normal shooting conditions the gas piston quickly seized. At the same time, the very favorable characteristics in the report regarding the Mkb.42 (H) clearly showed that Schmeisser was able to significantly improve his weapon. At the same time this meant the end of the Walther project. The Infantry School report shows that once the noted shortcomings are eliminated, this weapon will be able to compete in shooting accuracy with the K.98k carbine at distances of up to 500 meters.
Based on the results of tests of the new weapon, HWaA decided to give preference to the Schmeisser design, but only after introducing some changes to it.
After modernization on January 15, 1943, the weapon received a new name “submachine gun 43” (Maschinenpistole 43). At the same time, Mkb.42 (H) received the index “MP.43 A”, and the improved model - “MP.43 B”. For camouflage, the term “submachine gun” returned to the designation of this weapon in order to overcome Hitler’s hostility towards it.
Thus, MP.43 was the only example of a new automatic infantry weapon completely ready for production.
In April 1943, Haenel Mkb.42 automatic carbines underwent combat tests on the northern sector of the Eastern Front. The active use of Mkb.42(H) automatic carbines in front-line conditions made it possible to objectively evaluate not only the strengths, but also the weaknesses of the new weapon and, after drawing the appropriate conclusions, make the necessary changes to their design.
7.92 mm MP.43 assault rifle
Thanks to the direct support of Albert Speer, in June 1943 the MP.43 assault rifle went into mass production, and the minister himself took charge of its implementation. But still, during June - September it was possible to assemble only approximately 2000 MP.43 assault rifles.
And in August of the same year, German machine guns unexpectedly changed their designation again, this time from MP.43 B to MP.43/1, and from MKb.42 (H) to MP.43/2. The new name of the weapon “MR.43/1” was stamped on the left side of the receiver. As expected, the MP.43/1 assault rifle should become a universal infantry weapon, so it was planned to equip it with the new Gw.Gr.Ger rifle grenade launcher. Some experiments were carried out with the Mkb rifle grenade launcher attachment. Gewehrgranatengerat 43, which was mounted on the muzzle of the barrel on a threaded fit. Although it would be more logical to use the standard K.98k rifle grenade launcher - Gewehrgranatgerat 42. However, this turned out to be impossible due to the larger diameter of the muzzle of the barrel. In the modified version of MP.43/1, it was necessary to reduce the diameter of the barrel at the muzzle and redesign the front sight post. Now the Gw.Gr.Ger.43 grenade launcher could be mounted on a machine gun, but to do this it was necessary to remove the extended barrel safety coupling each time.
In June of the same year, the first large-scale military tests of the MP.43 took place on the Eastern Front in the elite German formation - the 5th SS Motorized Division "Viking" from Army Group South. In a report on the combat use of the new assault rifles, dated September, more than half of the shooters noted that the MP.43 was an effective replacement for submachine guns and rifles. The combination of its firepower and the ability to conduct two types of fire made such an impression on the SS generals that already in the first report they asked Hitler to allow immediate mass production of the machine gun. The main emphasis was on the superiority of the new weapon in combat over the most widespread example of Russian automatic weapons - the PPSh submachine gun. The successful combination of a machine gun and “intermediate” cartridges gave German soldiers great advantages when conducting combat operations both during the offensive and in defense. To destroy the enemy to a depth of 400 m, single fire was fired, and then the machine gunners switched their weapons to automatic fire on the near approaches (it was recommended that the shooters fire short bursts of 2-3 shots each), while the Red Army soldiers could fire effective fire at ranges of no more than 200 m. Continuous fire was also widely used by the Germans, who strictly adhered to the concept of fire-maneuver combat tactics.
Thus, the creation of MP.43 assault rifles significantly influenced the increase in the firepower of infantry units, increasing the fire power of a single shooter, and thereby reducing the need for them to use light machine guns for fire support.
Controls of the MP.43 assault rifle: fire type translator button (top);
fuse box (bottom). The fuse is on - the letter “S” is visible. According to the front-line soldiers, the MP.43 assault rifle was reliable in operation. Ease of maintenance and operation was noted, including incomplete disassembly and assembly. It was also captivating that the weapon provided good accuracy in combat when firing with single fire at a distance of up to 600 m (at long distances shooting was carried out by specially trained snipers), and when firing in short bursts, effective fire was carried out up to 300 m. At a distance of 50 m, the bullet pierced the package pine boards 250 mm thick, and at 600 m - a steel helmet (helmet). When firing continuously at 100 m from the MP.43, the dispersion was 11.5 cm, with r50 being 5.4 cm.
The new cartridges have also proven themselves to be better, being lighter, smaller in size and with less recoil energy. The relative recoil force of the MP.43 assault rifle was 0.68 kg x m/s, while that of the standard Mauser K.98k carbine was 1.32 kg x m/s, which had an extremely positive effect on shooting accuracy.
With the “short” 7.92 mm cartridge, it became possible to increase the ammunition load of each infantryman by reducing the mass of the cartridge. Ammunition for 150 rounds of ammunition for the Mauser 98k carbine weighed 3.9 kg, and 150 “short” cartridges for the MP.43 weighed 2.6 kg, which made it possible to increase their supply to 180 rounds. Although it would be a mistake to believe that in this way it was actually possible to save a lot of military equipment. Soldiers armed with a machine gun were forced to carry more ammunition due to its higher rate of fire. (In March 1945, wearable ammunition was reduced to 120 rounds.) In total, the total weight of the machine gun with full ammunition did not exceed 10.3 kg, which was approximately one kilogram heavier than the Mauser K98k carbine with bayonet and ammunition.
At the same time, certain shortcomings of the new machine were noted. These included, first of all, its greater heaviness compared to a carbine or submachine gun; small survivability of the machine gun (5000 rounds). Complaints from combat units about the MP.43 were caused by the fact that when firing at night, a strong muzzle flame erupts from the barrel of this weapon, unmasking the shooter; unsuccessful high-profile sector sights reduced the speed and ease of aiming; the mechanism for switching the type of fire was not connected to the safety mechanism; the speed of target detection was slowed down by the mass of the weapon (6.1 kg when loaded) and the triangular mane of the sight.
By September 1943, all preparations for mass production were completed, and it was concluded that the MP.43 could soon be officially adopted by the infantry. However, one formal obstacle was not overcome. Although the new weapon was produced and sent to the front, Hitler repeatedly gave orders to ban the development of MR. His approval or disapproval of the new weapon took precedence over any subsequent action by the Ministry of Armaments. And here Karl Otto Saur, head of the technical department of the Ministry of Armaments, played an important role. He managed to convince the Führer of the benefits of the new weapon, partly thanks to favorable front-line reports and partly due to the prospect of a fantastic amount of production, since the Wehrmacht would soon be able to obtain between three and four million MP.43 and approximately eight billion “short” cartridges. As a result of this, Hitler finally changed his mind. He ordered OKW to adopt the MP.43 assault rifle into service with motorized infantry regiments of tank divisions and SS field troops and to launch its large-scale production (30 thousand assault rifles and 30 million rounds of ammunition monthly) to replace the MP.38 and MP.40, at the same time Hitler gave instruction to suspend the production of MP.40 submachine guns. The Fuhrer's order immediately made the production of new weapons and ammunition a matter of first necessity.
Automatic grenade launcher complex MP.43/1
This decision of Hitler accelerated Schmeisser's further work to improve his weapons.
Already in the fall of 1943, the second modification of the MP.43/1 assault rifle appeared. To more securely mount the rifle grenade launcher, German designers changed the configuration of its barrel. The outer section of the barrel became cylindrical-stepped, in contrast to the barrel of the first MP.43/1 model, which had one diameter, so that a standard 30-mm rifle grenade launcher 42 (Gewehrgranatgerat 42) from the Mauser K.98k carbine could be mounted on the barrel of the machine gun. Later the grenade launcher received the designation “MP.Gr.Ger. 42". It was intended to combat enemy personnel and armored vehicles. It could be fired with fragmentation, armor-piercing cumulative and propaganda grenades. In connection with this, the butt of the machine gun was redesigned, and in order to reduce the recoil of firing from a grenade launcher, it was necessary to increase the height of the back of the butt. But the changes made to the manufacturing technology of the machine gun, however, did not automatically mean that all MP.43/1 would henceforth be equipped with a rifle grenade launcher. The new weapon required the creation of a special type of grenade launcher “short” cartridge. In addition, since the MP.43/1 could only fire single shots from a rifle grenade launcher, the weapon required a special device that would eliminate the harmful effects of excess powder gases during a shot from a grenade launcher on the moving parts of the weapon’s automation. The weapon still needed improvement.
Only by July 1944 did the task of creating special grenade launcher cartridges seem to have finally been solved. German ammunition designers managed to create two grenade launcher cartridges, one with a powder charge of 1.5 g for a rifle fragmentation grenade (Gewehrsprenggranate), the second with a powder charge of 1.9 g for a rifle anti-tank grenade (Gewehrpanzergranate). The corresponding bushing, installed in the gas chamber instead of the powder gas regulator, now blocked the gas exhaust system when firing single shots. This allowed the machine to solve most of the tasks assigned to it.
Testing of the MP.43 sniper assault rifle with a 4x ZF.4 optical sight at the infantry school training ground in Doberitz in October 1943.
From a prone position, the machine gunner is forced to hold his head high due to the significant height of the magazine. At the same time, work continued on the creation of a sniper version of the machine gun. In October 1943, the Doberitz Infantry School was able to test the shooting accuracy of the improved MP.43/I assault rifle in comparison with the G.43 self-loading rifle. Both samples were equipped with new 4x ZF.4 optical sights (which were an improved Zf.39 sight) with the ability to make corrections in two planes - horizontally and vertically. Therefore, the guide lugs for the ZF.41 sight were removed from the base of the sight of the MP.43/1 assault rifle.
In addition, in the same year, another sniper version MP.43/1 appeared, on which the Zielgerat 1229 (ZG.1229) “Vampir” infrared night vision sight was installed, intended for observation of the battlefield in natural night light; determining the range to the target using angular values; aiming the weapon at the target and observing the results of the fire and adjusting it. The night vision sight was designed at the Forschungsanstalt der Deutschen Reichspost (RPF) in Berlin, and its production was mastered by the leading German optical-mechanical enterprise - the Ernst Leitz factory in Wetzlar. For trial operation, a batch of 310 MP.43/1 assault rifles equipped with the Vampire night sight was manufactured. The sight mount in this MP.43/1 sample was also mounted on the right side of the receiver. The sight with an infrared searchlight weighed 2.26 kg, and its batteries, carried in a special wooden box and a gas mask tank, weighed another 13.59 kg.
Production of the MP.43/1 assault rifle, mastered in June 1943, apparently was discontinued in December in favor of the MP.43. In documents on the production of machine guns there is no division between these two models, but it can be assumed that approximately 14,000 MP.43/1 were produced in total. Having stopped the production of MP.43/1, Wehrmacht specialists proceeded from the principle of unification of weapons and the advisability of having machine guns with one type of rifle grenade launcher instead of two. In this regard, only the Gw.Gr.Ger universal rifle grenade launcher was left in production. 42, suitable for use in both MP.44 assault rifles and Mauser 98k carbines.
Another modernization of the MP.43 assault rifle
On the basis of the new MP.43 assault rifle, development work was extensively carried out to increase its capabilities. The Germans sought to take it from an individual model of small arms to a new level - into a multifunctional infantry weapon complex.
As a result, changes were made to its design, including a redesigned accessory for disassembling the weapon - a new drift was introduced into the kit for unscrewing the gas chamber regulator, and a through hole was made on the head of the regulator for this drift. The same drift should have helped, during incomplete disassembly, to remove the metal forend, which was held on the barrel by spring-loaded walls and guide ridges (extrusions). Moreover, it was initially assumed that this drift would serve for these purposes and at the same time would be used instead of a pin for attaching a metal forend to a machine gun, since a wooden forend was considered as unnecessarily increasing the cost of weapon production. Along with this, a proposal was made to abolish both the threads on the muzzle of the barrel and the barrel safety clutch itself, which were intended for mounting a dry-fire device on a weapon. Some HWaA officers felt that such a device was unnecessary during the war, while its abandonment promised simplification of production. In addition, they cited as an argument the fact that blank “short” cartridges were not produced in Germany in large quantities. However, it was decided to keep the threads on the muzzle of the barrel, since it was assumed that the MP.43 would soon be equipped with a device for silent and flameless shooting.
German gunsmiths paid a lot of attention to the development of silencers, which was a response to the extremely successful operations of Soviet snipers both at the front and in the German rear. Special units of the Red Army and partisan formations had at their disposal a device for silent and flameless shooting "Bramit", which reduced the sound of a shot to a minimum.
Therefore, in 1943 - 1944, work was carried out in Germany to equip MP.43 assault rifles with devices for silent and flameless shooting, which were intended to effectively combat enemy snipers. The Schneider-Opel company, having copied the design of the Soviet PBS "BRAMIT", manufactured 30 "Schalldampfer L25" mufflers for military testing and a batch of 500 pieces in its image. for the troops.
The cylindrical body of the L25 muffler contained rubber membranes that divided the device into several chambers, which to a certain extent helped limit the rate of flow of powder gases from the barrel, thereby reducing the sound level when fired. Part of the powder gases formed after the shot was dispersed in these chambers and passed into the second chamber formed by the internal cavity of the muffler housing. To ensure the effective operation of the silencer, the shooter had to replace the wearing rubber seal membranes after 10-12 shots. Shooting from machine guns with silencers was carried out at distances not exceeding 100 m, since cartridges with a reduced powder charge and therefore with a lower initial speed were used, although the bullet had a sufficient lethal effect. However, these tactical suppressors never made it beyond testing.
A squad of machine gunners, armed with MP.43/1 machine guns.
Eastern front. 1943 To launch large-scale production of MP.43, enterprises with an appropriate production base were required, and the launch of the new product had to be carried out without reducing the output of other military products. The issue of introducing the machine gun into mass production was resolved through broad cooperation between many large and small firms, a system of contracts and subcontracts.
The production of German machine guns (“assault” rifles) was carried out in the Third Reich during the Second World War on a very large scale, both by the main manufacturing companies and by a large number of subcontractor companies that produced individual parts and assemblies, and entire assemblies. The manufacture of the most critical parts (barrel, bolt, bolt frame with gas piston) and the final assembly of MP.43/MP.44/Stg.44 were carried out by the largest arms companies: CG Haenel Waffen - und Fahrradfabrik in Suhl (code fxo); Walther in Zella Melis (code ac); Steyr-Daimler-Puch in Steyr (code bnz) and JP Sauer & Sohn in Suhl (code ce). The production of stamped parts was carried out by the following companies: Merz-Werke in Frankfurt am Main (code cos) and Wurtembergische Metallwarenfabrik (WMF) in Geislingen (code awt). At the end of the war, the parent company of Mauser-Werke AG from Oberndorf also received an order for the manufacture and assembly of receivers.
The purposeful work of the Ministry of Armaments and HWaA on new weapons has yielded results. As a result of significant efforts of German engineers, technicians and workers, the MP.43 became a truly simple, cheap and technologically advanced product. The production of one MP.43 required 12.5 kg of metal, with the mass of the weapon itself being 3.9 kg; and 19 man/hours and 14 machine/hours. The cost of this automatic weapon became only 66 Reichsmarks, while the main weapon of the Wehrmacht infantry, the Mauser 98k repeating carbine, continued to cost 70 marks. The tough measures taken of both an organizational and production nature already at the beginning of 1944 bore fruit. By April, the production level of MP.43 reached 9,000 units per month.
7.92 mm MP.44 assault rifle
Revealed at the turn of 1943 - 1944. the advantages of German machine guns contributed to the development of a new concept of combat tactics. With the help of MP.43 assault rifles, which had a firing range of 600 - 800 m, the Wehrmacht infantry had to gain fire superiority over the enemy in the offensive. With the adoption of these weapons, the impact force of the German infantry increased, which was influenced by the high practical rate of fire and a significant increase in effective fire.
On March 16, 1944, the head of the 2nd department for testing and designing technical means of small arms of the Army Armament Directorate presented a report to the OKH, which stated that the MP.43 assault rifle was completely ready for adoption by the Wehrmacht and mass production. And already on April 25, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the German Armed Forces A. Hitler issues a new order dedicated to the Wehrmacht small arms system, where the name MP.43 is replaced by MP.44 (in order to distinguish the newly adopted model of the machine gun from the original MP.43). Apart from the marks, no changes were made to the weapon itself.
If initially it was planned to arm only two platoons in an infantry regiment with MP.44 assault rifles, the high combat qualities of this weapon forced us to reconsider the concept of its use.
Adjustments are being made to the previously adopted arms production plans for 1944, and the MP.44 assault rifle is officially included in them as a single infantry weapon, intended to replace Mauser 98k carbines, MP.38/40 submachine guns, and also partially solving the problems of light machine guns MG.34 and MG.42. Evolution of the development of the gas exhaust system of automatic machines designed by H. Schmeisser: - Mkb.42 (H) - 1st option;
— Mkb.42(H) — 2nd option; - MP.43/1; - MP.43/MP.44; — Stg.44 The MP.43/MP.44 assault rifles were used primarily by selected troops: motorized units and formations of the Wehrmacht and SS field troops. According to the 1944 states, the German infantry division should have been armed with: 8598 repeating carbines; 309 self-loading rifles; 513 self-loading sniper rifles; 2013 pistols; 325 submachine guns; 1270 machine guns (in a regiment - 330, in a battalion - 165, in a company 55 units); 614 light machine guns; 102 heavy machine guns and 108 hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers.
It was planned to equip other types of troops with approximately the same number of MP.43/Stg.44. In addition, provision was made for fully arming the crews of tanks and self-propelled artillery and assault mounts with machine guns. One of the most unusual options for using assault rifles was to replace the on-board weapons of the latest German T-VIB “Royal Tiger” and “Panther II” tanks. Instead of standard MG.34/MG.42 machine guns, they provided for the installation of cheaper MP.44 machine guns.
However, as one famous Russian proverb says: “It was smooth on paper, but they forgot about the ravines.” By June 1944, the situation with the new machine gun was as follows: on the Eastern Front, only the 1st Infantry Division was able to completely rearm the MP.44. Each infantry squad was issued one or two machine guns, and in some cases the entire unit received them. Moreover, even in this case, a complete replacement of the K.98k magazine carbines turned out to be impossible, since the MP.44 could not fully replace the rifle grenade launcher. In addition, since the sniper model of the assault rifle never went beyond the scope of experiments, all K.98k sniper carbines had to be retained in the units.
In September of the same year, front-line units presented their reports on the use of new weapons. There was a consensus among the troops: the MP.44 is an excellent universal infantry weapon. There were only minor criticisms regarding its design, including the weak springs of the magazine feeder and dust shield. Some reports suggested introducing a longitudinal hole in the buttstock of a smaller diameter to more firmly secure the recoil spring. The widest road opened up for new weapons in the German armed forces.
But despite all the efforts of the German armed forces, the problem of a shortage of new ammunition continued to hang over the Infantry Armament Program like a sword of Damocles. This was clearly stated in the OKW report dated June 16, 1944: “MP. 44 can really become a universal model of infantry weapon only when the problem of producing the required number of cartridges is solved.”
Along with this, a number of innovations were nevertheless implemented in the design of the machine. These included a modernized shutter. Since mid-1944, a small perpendicular cutout under the extractor was milled into the bolt. This was done to prevent the extractor tooth from becoming clogged with varnish residues that were stripped from the steel cartridge cases during their extraction.
Another change affected the butt. The MP.43 assault rifle had a wooden stock, redesigned by WaPruf 2 officers. As soon as this weapon arrived for military testing in front-line units, it turned out that this stock was not suitable for installation in a standard clip mounted in vehicles. Therefore, already in March 1944, two machine guns with newly improved butts appeared. The back of the new stock had dimensions identical to the butt of the standard K.98k carbine. These samples were transferred for military testing to the infantry school, which was to give its conclusion. Tests proved that the choice was correct, so a new type of stock for the MP.44 assault rifle went into mass production from mid-1944.
7.92 mm “assault rifle” 44
The complication of the military situation for the Third Reich influenced the fact that on October 22, 1944, Hitler had to issue another order, according to which the MP.44 assault rifle received a new (for the fourth in two years) and this time the latest name - Stg.44 (Sturmgewehr, German - assault rifle model 1944), which was most likely undertaken under the influence of political and propaganda considerations as part of a large project of names for new types of weapons. In February 1944, for example, Hitler had already approved names like: “Panther”, “Tiger”, “Elephant”, “Goliath”, “Jagdtiger”, “Jagdpanther”, “Marder” for heavy weapons. Changing the designation from “submachine gun” to “assault rifle,” along with strengthening the morale of Wehrmacht soldiers, made it possible to more accurately reflect the role and main purpose of this weapon in battle.
German infantrymen-machine gunners.
Germany. Spring 1945 The only change made to the design of the Stg.44 (to simplify its production) was the removal of the threads on the muzzle of the barrel and the barrel safety clutch, intended for fastening a device for silent-flameless shooting L25, which never went beyond the experimental samples. In addition, the front sight post is made using a simpler technology.
The deterioration of the conditions for the production of weapons and military equipment in the Reich at the end of 1944 - beginning of 1945 had virtually no effect on the production processes of MP.44/Stg.44, and they did not undergo visible deterioration characteristic of all other types of German small arms. Only the last batches of machine guns produced in 1945 were coated instead of bluing using the bonderization (phosphating) method; instead of wood, butts were made of textolite materials (which significantly increased the total weight of the weapon); wooden cheeks on pistol grips were replaced with cheap plastic ones. In addition, in March 1945, the adapter for equipping the magazine was discontinued, since from that time on, to reduce the cost, all “short” cartridges were now packed in cartridge boxes without clips, in bulk.
Although part of the German territories ended up in the hands of the allies in the anti-Hitler coalition, which disrupted the relationships between individual production links, nevertheless, in November 1944 - February 1945, the production of weapons, despite the powerful bombing of the Allied aviation of industrial centers, continued to remain at a high level, even blocking combat losses. This was achieved not only by standardization and typification of production, but also by the distribution of orders among enterprises dispersed far from each other. Such foresight allowed military factories to transfer 55,100 assault rifles to the Wehrmacht in November 1944. If on October 1, 1944, there were 110,000 units in the front-line units of the German army, then by January 1, 1945, there were already 191,408 MP.43/MP.44/Stg.44. According to the plans of the Infantry Armament Program, it was assumed that while maintaining monthly production in volumes of 195,000 units. the Wehrmacht will receive 1,380,000 assault rifles by April 1946.
However, the dynamics of events and the course of the war itself inexorably brought Germany closer to military collapse. The total availability of small arms in the German army in the summer of 1944, judging by the level of consumption at that time, could have been enough for another 25 months of hostilities, and in October - only for 7 months. In March 1945, the supply of small arms was only a third, however, of the particularly high level of consumption at the fronts in August 1944. Already in December, a decline in the production of assault rifles began, associated with the loss of some related enterprises and most raw materials, which forced both the leadership of the military industry and entrepreneurs and gunsmith designers to look for ways out of the current situation.
Currently, there is no documentary evidence of the number of MP.43, MP.44 assault rifles and Stg.44 assault rifles produced. The most reliable data on the production of all types of Maschinenkarabiner 42, Maschinen-pistole 43, Maschinen-pistole 44 and Sturmgewehr 44 are given in the German monthly “Review of weapons adopted for service” (“Uberblck uber Rustungsstand von Waffen”). According to this survey, a total of approximately 446,000 machine guns (assault rifles) were manufactured between November 1942 and April 1945.
Subsequently, one of the Wehrmacht’s greatest specialists in the field of weapons, Lieutenant General Erich Schneider, wrote about assault rifles: “Only in 1935, after Germany again became a sovereign state, was it able to resume research work on the creation of modern types of weapons... There was a need to create a hand weapon of a completely new design, which must simultaneously perform the tasks of a submachine gun, a self-loading rifle and a light machine gun. The result of this long-term work was the well-known carbine of the 1944 model, which was used as a semi-automatic rifle (self-loading rifle) for aimed fire with single shots and as an automatic weapon for firing in bursts of 8 shots per second... The infantry and all other branches of the military were in great need of this weapons, and the demand for it could not be fully covered. The new weapon significantly increased the firepower of the infantry. After the war, the construction of such weapons began in other countries.”
Sergey Monetchikov Illustrations from the author’s archive
Space gun
Well, since there were acoustic and hurricane cannons, then why not make a space cannon? Its development was carried out by Nazi scientists. Theoretically, it should have been a weapon capable of focusing directed solar radiation onto a point on Earth. The idea was first voiced in 1929 by physicist Hermann Oberth. His design for a space station with a 100-meter mirror that could capture and reflect sunlight, directing it to Earth, was adopted.
During the war, the Nazis used Oberth's concept and began developing a slightly modified version of the "solar" gun.
They believed that the enormous energy of the mirrors could literally boil the water of the earth's oceans and burn out all living things, turning them into dust and ashes. There was an experimental model of a space gun - it was captured by American troops in 1945. The Germans themselves recognized the project as a failure: the technology was too avant-garde.
V-2
Not as fantastic as many Nazi inventions, the V-2 was one of the few examples of the wunderwaffe that proved its worth.
The "weapon of retaliation", the V-2 missiles, were developed quite quickly, went into production and were successfully used against London. The project began in 1930, but was not finalized until 1942. Hitler was not initially impressed by the missile's power, calling it "just an artillery shell with a long range and enormous cost."
In fact, the V-2 became the world's first long-range ballistic missile. An absolute innovation, it used extremely powerful liquid ethanol as fuel.
The rocket was single-stage, launched vertically; in the active part of the trajectory, an autonomous gyroscopic control system, equipped with a software mechanism and instruments for measuring speed, came into action. This made it almost elusive - no one could intercept such a device on the way to the target for a long time.
Once the descent began, the rocket traveled at speeds of up to 6,000 km per hour until it penetrated several feet below ground level. Then she exploded.
When the V-2 was sent to London in 1944, the death toll was impressive - 10,000 people died and areas of the city were leveled almost to rubble.
The rockets were developed at the research center and manufactured in the underground Mittelwerk factory under the supervision of the project leader, Dr. Wernher von Braun. Mittelbau-Dora concentration camp prisoners used forced labor at Mittelbauerk. After the war, both Americans and Soviet troops tried to capture as many V-2 samples as possible. Dr. von Braun surrendered to the United States and was instrumental in the creation of their space program. In essence, Dr. von Braun's rocket ushered in the space age.
