"Panzerfaust": On the effectiveness of the anti-tank grenade launcher of the Wehrmacht

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"Panzerfaust": On the effectiveness of the anti-tank grenade launcher of the Wehrmacht

The German disposable anti-tank grenade launcher "Faustpatron" or later "Panzerfaust" was actively used by the Wehrmacht against the armored vehicles of the Red Army during the Great Patriotic War.

One of the main advantages of this weapon was its simplicity (a thin tube with a cumulative grenade) and low cost. In total, since 1943, about 9 million units of this “miracle” have been produced.weapons».



At the same time, there is still debate about the effectiveness of the Faustpatron.

Without resorting to purely subjective assessments, let us turn to impartial statistics. So, according to German sources, in February 1944, 1219 tanks Red Army. Of these, the Panzerfaust-30 grenade launcher accounted for only 35 vehicles.

Marking 30 means the aiming range of fire, corresponding to 30 meters. In fairness, it is worth noting that at such a distance in open areas, even a trained soldier will not always be able to use this weapon effectively. After all, a tank located 30 meters away greatly reduces the psychological stability of a fighter.

Another thing is fighting in dense urban areas, where an armored vehicle no longer poses such a threat. At the same time, the distance for a shot is sharply reduced, which practically eliminates a miss. However, according to historians, even in the Berlin operation, the share of losses of armored vehicles of the Red Army from attacks by the Panzerfaust-30 grenade launcher did not exceed 10% on average. Only the 2nd Guards Tank Army lost 22,5% of its vehicles due to the actions of the Faustniks.

It is worth emphasizing that in 1944 the RPG underwent a deep modernization, having received significantly improved characteristics, including an aimed fire range of up to 100 meters.

However, such low rates cannot be completely attributed to the technical characteristics of the grenade launcher. The training of the Wehrmacht soldiers, which left much to be desired at the end of the war, as well as the tactics of the Red Army, also played an important role.

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  1. +1
    13 December 2022 16: 59
    Of these, the Panzerfaust-30 grenade launcher accounted for only 35 vehicles.

    Probably precisely because of the "low efficiency" of the Panzerfaust, almost all the armies of the world began to copy it or develop something similar.
    1. +1
      13 December 2022 17: 19
      Probably precisely because of the "low efficiency" of the Panzerfaust, almost all the armies of the world began to copy it or develop something similar.

      The effectiveness of a concept and the effectiveness of a product created in accordance with the concept are two different things.
      1. 0
        15 December 2022 08: 05
        Quote: Nefarious skeptic
        Concept efficiency and product efficiency

        It depends on what kind of "concept" to consider .. Dynamo-reactive guns - they were in service in the USSR, ramrod grenades - everyone had a cumulative mass projectile (grenade) for the pre-war USSR, the problem is problems - there is no production of explosives with such a detonation speed. One cannot say which is not at all, but the cost of production is such that there is nothing to think about ..
        1. 0
          15 December 2022 09: 26
          It depends on what other "concept" to consider.

          In the interpretation that has been voiced, this is generally unimportant - the product, according to the concept, is inseparable from the concept, regardless of what concept. This is not about comparing the effectiveness of products of different concepts or about comparing different concepts, but about comparing the effectiveness of different products of the same concept. hi
          1. 0
            15 December 2022 09: 50
            Well then, the RPG-7 has no equal .. within the framework of this concept.
            1. 0
              15 December 2022 10: 19
              Well then, the RPG-7 has no equal .. within the framework of this concept.

              In the 60s and even the 70s, yes. But to say this in 2022 is no longer serious. RPG-7 is cheap and cheerful, but not the top of efficiency, which is reflected in engineering solutions.
              1. 0
                15 December 2022 10: 30
                And what are the problems? A new grenade is a solution to new problems ..
                1. 0
                  15 December 2022 11: 17
                  The problem is that they don't exist. And no, because there is nothing really new to do there. And over the warhead of the grenade, there is still at least some room for experimentation, then you can’t clear up with the mover. Not to mention newfangled things with controlled explosions, inertial guidance and the like.
                  1. 0
                    15 December 2022 11: 26
                    Quote: Nefarious skeptic
                    The problem is that they don't exist.

                    So this is the problem of those who distribute tasks ..
                    Quote: Nefarious skeptic
                    then you can’t roam with the mover.

                    Is there something new? Different from a jet engine?
                    1. 0
                      15 December 2022 12: 44
                      Is there something new? Different from a jet engine?

                      And not in the "new" case. And the fact that the size of the launcher limited the size of this very engine. Which is still the same, from the 60th year. And in a diameter of 40 mm, you can no longer cram any engineering refinements into its design. And this is also the reason why they will no longer increase the caliber of over-caliber grenades, as they did before - they hit the ceiling of reducing the firing range.
                      1. 0
                        15 December 2022 12: 56
                        Quote: Nefarious skeptic
                        hit the ceiling to reduce the range of the shot.

                        So is the "concept" like - to replace a hand grenade?
                      2. 0
                        15 December 2022 13: 41
                        Not?

                        Not. Talking about what
                        RPG-7 has no equal .. within the framework of this concept

                        does not correspond to today's reality. Because a number of RPGs "replace a hand grenade" are better than a well-deserved veteran.
      2. TIR
        0
        15 December 2022 15: 39
        Before that, with a bunch of grenades, they crawled onto the tank or with a mine. Faustpatron will be any more effective
    2. +1
      13 December 2022 17: 29
      No copy, but the concept is quite itself
      1. +3
        13 December 2022 18: 27
        Quote from voffka
        No copy, but the concept is quite itself

        Well, how to understand it? Many countries, acquiring a "raw" sample (concept, sir!), Immediately began to improve the "product", eventually getting OK-gun! An example is the RPG-7 ... You can also remember the Swedes! Having developed the very famous in the world "K. Gustav" (in fact, "a recoilless gun at minimum wages"), the Swedes were armed with and improved the "Panzerfaust"!

        Pansarskott m/46 (Sweden)
    3. +2
      13 December 2022 18: 09
      Some countries have taken the path of developing over-caliber grenades and grenade launchers for them. Others made caliber grenades and, accordingly, grenade launchers for them.
      The Germans themselves copied the "Bazooka" of the Yankees and called "their pipe" "Ofenror" and "Pantsershrek".
      The British had their own PIAT. And they were very unhappy with it. But the industry could not give them another! I had to use PIAT.
    4. -4
      13 December 2022 18: 27
      The Panzerfaust, unlike the post-war grenade launchers, was not reactive, hence the low performance in terms of range and accuracy.
      In the post-war, as in the Bazooka, and the German RPGs based on it, rocket-propelled ammunition was used.
    5. 0
      14 December 2022 09: 07
      In the post-war period, they began to create real grenade launchers, and not "something similar."
      That is, in a real grenade launcher, a grenade has a jet engine and makes an active flight, and in a "panzer" it is stupidly pushed out of the pipe and flies by inertia.
      The difference is significant, and above all, it determines the increase in the range of the shot, which for real grenade launchers can be measured in hundreds of meters.
    6. 0
      14 December 2022 17: 46
      Quote: Amateur
      Probably precisely because of the "low efficiency" of the Panzerfaust, almost all the armies of the world began to copy it or develop something similar.

      There is also such a thing as POTENTIAL
      But that's interesting. In the Red Army, along with amphibious vehicles, American "bazookas" arrived and were used at the front, but they did not receive such popularity as the German "fausts", although objectively they were better


      1. 0
        15 December 2022 08: 11
        Quote: svp67
        but they did not receive such popularity as the German "fausts"

        There were so many trophies that it made no sense to divert their industry (although scientific and experimental work never stopped). And the political departments from the regiment to the army disseminated and implemented the experience of using fausts. shrenov.
        1. 0
          15 December 2022 10: 00
          Quote: mat-vey
          There were so many trophies that there was no point in distracting your industry

          Actually, the "bazookas" went on "lend-lease"
          1. 0
            15 December 2022 10: 09
            Actually, the panzerfaust (faustatron) is a military trophy.
            1. 0
              15 December 2022 10: 19
              Quote: mat-vey
              Actually, the panzerfaust (faustatron) is a military trophy.

              But who argues, but I talked about the "bazooka" in the Red Army
              1. 0
                15 December 2022 10: 27
                Quote: svp67
                but they did not receive such popularity as the German "fausts"
                1. -1
                  15 December 2022 11: 02
                  Quote: mat-vey
                  but they did not receive such popularity as the German "fausts"

                  So what? In the Red Army, German pistols, submachine guns and machine guns were very popular, and nevertheless the army was supplied with its own weapons, since "trophies" are a very unreliable source of replenishment of weapons
                  1. 0
                    15 December 2022 11: 21
                    Quote: svp67
                    since "trophies" are a very unreliable source of replenishment of weapons

                    There hasn’t been anything new in VO for a long time ... the topic of panzerfausts has already been discussed ... in my opinion, it hasn’t even been two years .. There were so many trophies that it didn’t make sense to make our own. And they were used, mainly not as anti-tank weapons, but during the assault on cities and fortifications.
                    1. 0
                      15 December 2022 11: 57
                      Quote: mat-vey
                      There were so many trophies that there was no point in making our own.

                      Amphibious vehicles, the equipment of which included a bazooka, entered our troops long before the Fausts became our "trophies" on an "industrial scale" and our specialists had time to study it, and therefore make an order for Lend-Lease supplies, but this was not done ... So I think, why?
                      1. +1
                        15 December 2022 12: 09
                        Quote: svp67
                        So I think why?

                        The question is ... somehow I didn’t think about it ... I was interested in Faustami - they were part of the armament of the engineering assault battalions ...
  2. +3
    13 December 2022 17: 15
    They also had a more serious thing - "Panzerschreck" (German: Panzerschreck - "horror of tanks"; officially RPzB. 54, from Raketenpanzerbüchse - "reactive anti-tank gun")

    Adopted in 1943.
    Total issued 289 151
    The cost of a copy of 70 Reichsmarks
    Variants of RPzB. 43, RPzB. 54/1
    Features
    Weight, kg 9,5
    with a shield - 11,25
    Length, mm 1640
    Crew (calculation), pers. 2
    Reactive anti-tank grenade with cumulative warhead
    Grenade mass, kg 3,3
    Caliber, mm 88
    starting speed
    grenades, m / s 110
    Sighting range, m 150
    Direct range
    shot, m 100-200
    Head diameter
    grenade parts, mm 88
    Armor penetration, mm 220



    1. +2
      13 December 2022 17: 21
      Here is their entire anti-tank "company"



      "Ofenror" is practically the same "Pantsershrek" only without a shield on the pipe.
      1. +1
        14 December 2022 09: 08
        Here is their entire anti-tank "company"

        What a small company you have.

        The designation Panzerfaust F-1 and Panzerfaust F-2 was never used by the Germans. “Ofenrohr”, “chimney” is not a name, it is a “nickname”, like “Katyusha”, of the Panzerschreck 43 grenade launcher. Received from behind a column of smoke that stands out when fired. Panzerschreck 54 was with a shield. There was also a Panzerschreck 54/100 mm variant.
        1. +1
          14 December 2022 13: 49
          What a small company you have.

          Here, as they say, than rich. smile And their "Sturmpistol", of course, is a funny thing, I wonder how they didn't think of a grenade launcher when they invented the "Panzerknacke."
          1. 0
            14 December 2022 14: 26
            by inventing the "Panzerknacke.

            With this weapon, the history is very muddy. In German sources, where you can find anything, it is not. It is mentioned in only one highly controversial book by Hans-Ulrich von Krantz, the book is called Die Geheimwaffe des Dritten Reiches (Secret Weapon of the Third Reich). Moreover, the author does not name any performance characteristics, as well as the source of information. Therefore, the existence of this "wunderwaffe" raises real doubts. Perhaps this is a purely "dramatic production" to give special weight to the efforts made by the Soviet "competent authorities" to save the "leader of the peoples".
            1. +2
              14 December 2022 14: 49
              And here, it seems, and ammunition for it. From what was online. request

              Someone, I don’t remember exactly, but like Bogomolov, I read about this thing, but I won’t say anything.
              How is the weather with you, we poured snow, both with my wife on shovels - rowing. sad
              1. +1
                14 December 2022 17: 25
                The trick is that the materials on the net, both in Russian and in foreign languages, are based on information from the NKVD. Which is alarming, given the fact that you can find "original" information about other, most secret developments.
                The weather is still unstable. Yesterday it rained, today it froze.
                1. +1
                  14 December 2022 17: 37
                  It is clear that the lack of information is always alarming, but the question is: why the hell do the NKVD people need to fence the garden with some kind of technical "fiction", if they have always managed without it just fine? It's one thing to concoct false information or documents, that's understandable, but what's the point here? What difference does it make with the help of what the attack was planned, the alternative is simple: "either the cat is alive or has already died." request
                  1. +1
                    14 December 2022 18: 00
                    I just voiced the option. Possibly fantastic.
                    1. +1
                      14 December 2022 18: 02
                      I'm not arguing, just speculation.
                      1. 0
                        14 December 2022 18: 30
                        The site has already faded to the point that it only remains to fantasize.
                      2. +1
                        14 December 2022 19: 28
                        Well, as long as there is at least where to dream up, do not go into the "big garbage dump".
  3. -1
    13 December 2022 17: 46
    if our army had such weapons in sufficient quantities, they might not have fled at 41 to Moscow itself and there would have been no need to rush under tanks with bundles of grenades. After all, apart from anti-tank rifles, grenades, Molotov cocktails, the infantryman had nothing to fight with tanks.
    1. 0
      13 December 2022 18: 04
      If the French army had such weapons, would they have declared Paris a free city???
    2. +3
      13 December 2022 18: 54
      Quote: wladimirjankov
      would not run at 41 until Moscow itself

      To put it this way, you insult those soldiers of the Red Army who fought at every kilometer on the way from the border to Moscow! Who fought even surrounded! If the entire (!) Red Army fled frantically to Moscow, then it would hardly have lingered there, but would have run further! Even the generals of the Wehrmacht admitted in their memoirs that the stubborn, "senseless" resistance of the "broken" Russian troops, in the end, broke the offensive agility of the Wehrmacht! And about "throw under tanks with bunches of grenades", they rushed in the 45th year! Even when there was a "full" of anti-tank rifles in the troops ...

      A German soldier inspects Soviet (captured) anti-tank rifles...
    3. 0
      15 December 2022 08: 20
      If the USSR had inherited at least some kind of chemical industry, then maybe they would have. .
  4. 0
    15 December 2022 16: 07
    , the author change the profile, write about history ..

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