Mule (half-track)
| Sd.Kfz. 3 "mule" | |
|---|---|
Mule equipped with a Nebelwerfer 42 |
|
| General properties | |
| crew | 3 men |
| length | 6120 mm |
| width | 2220 mm |
| height | |
| Dimensions | 6650 kg |
| Armor and armament | |
| Armor | 8-10 mm |
| Main armament | no |
| Secondary armament | no |
| agility | |
| drive | 4-cylinder Deutz diesel engine 80 hp |
| suspension | Coil springs (chain drive) / leaf springs (on the front rigid axle) |
| Top speed | 38 km / h |
| Power / weight | |
The special motor vehicle 3 "Maultier" (Sd.Kfz. 3) was a half-track vehicle used by the German Wehrmacht during World War II .
history
After the first winter of the war against the Soviet Union in 1941, the German army command realized that their trucks - such as the Opel Blitz 3,6 , the Ford V 3000 S or the Mercedes-Benz L 3000 - were absolutely unsuitable for the terrain and weather conditions there. The vehicles often got stuck in deep snow or mud and thus became the target for attacks by artillery , fighter planes or partisans . Heavy half-chain tractors like the Sd.Kfz. 9 or the Sd.Kfz. 11 were not available in sufficient quantities and could not overcome larger holes in the paths or ditches. Too often combat vehicles such as combat vehicles or armored personnel carriers had to be used for towing, which was then withdrawn from front-line use.
To solve these problems, a unit of the Waffen SS built the Carden-Lloyd chain drive of a captured British Universal Carrier (BUC) under a 3-ton Ford truck as a makeshift in the winter of 1941/42 in order to counter the poor road conditions . Based on this suggestion, the truck manufacturer Klöckner-Deutz constructed the “Maultier” in 1942 : a Klöckner-Deutz truck received a modified Carden-Lloyd chain drive instead of the rear axle. The mule was then made by several manufacturers at the same time: At Opel , the chassis and cab of the Opel Blitz served as the basis , at Ford the V 3000 S truck and at Daimler-Benz the Mercedes-Benz L 4500 .
From 1943 onwards, mules were delivered to the troops in numerous designs - as a 2t (gl) flatbed truck, suitcase or as a weapon carrier. The main task of the mule vehicles was to supply the troops with the necessary materials, such as weapons, ammunition and food. But also the transport of troops as well as the power train of artillery and flak belonged to the tasks of the vehicle. On the basis of the Opel “Maultier”, the Panzerwerfer 42 was also created , which, equipped with a 15 cm fog launcher , formed the German counterpart to the “ Stalin Organ ”, but in contrast to this was only available in small numbers and too late.
Versions
In addition to three special versions, the mule half-track vehicle was mainly built in three main versions.
Major versions
- The vehicle described above is the mule version from Klöckner-Deutz with a load capacity of two tons. It was built in 1741 copies.
- In addition, own versions of Opel were built at the Brandenburg plant (Sd.Kfz. 3a) and at Ford in Cologne (Sd.Kfz. 3b).
Of the three main versions, the Klöckner-Deutz version proved itself best when used at the front.
Special versions Sd.Kfz. 4th
- Daimler-Benz developed a slightly longer version (leaf-sprung chain drive of the Panzerkampfwagen II) with a load capacity of 4.5 tons. Around 1,400 of this version were produced.
- Panzerwerfer 42 , around 300 of these vehicles were produced
- with 2 cm Flak 38 , only a few vehicles were built
See also
literature
- Philip Trewhitt: tanks. The most important combat vehicles in the world from World War I to the present day . Neuer Kaiserverlag, Klagenfurt 2005, ISBN 3-7043-3197-X , ( Worth knowing - Technology )
- Werner Oswald : Motor vehicles and tanks of the Reichswehr, Wehrmacht and Bundeswehr . Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart, various editions.
- Regulation D 666/408 crawler truck 2 t (mule), Klöckner-Humboldt-Deutz AG, type S 3000 / SS M, supplement to the spare parts list D 666/8, 1943.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ cf. Frank, Reinhard: Ford in War , Arsenal, Volume 123, Podzun-Pallas-Verlag, Friedberg (1990), ISBN 3-7909-0394-9