15cm Kanone 39 (15cm K39)

History

In both world wars, the two major artillery manufacturers proved themselves for the German army, namely Krupp and Rheinmetall. After reconstruction between the two world wars, before Germany's entry into World War II (1939-1945), Krupp designed and developed the 15 cm (150 mm) Karen 39 (K39) serial gun for the Turkish army. The gun and its mounting hardware are mounted on a 360-degree rotating turntable platform, which in turn is mounted on a typical wheeled carriage assembly.

The turntable facilitates some tactical flexibility by allowing essentially unhindered traversal, although this element also adds weight, the third major component of the weapon in transport, and increases production costs. The Turkish Army originally ordered the gun as a field/coastal defense gun, and also ordered matching ammunition from a German supplier.

Design work began in 1938.

When German troops were formally committed to World War II by invading Poland, only two examples were delivered to the Turkish authorities. As a result, all types of field artillery are now sought after and any further production of the Krupp K39 series artillery is now taken over by the German Army. This also includes all finished Turkish ammunition stocks made for firearms.

Only about 60 of these new 150mm systems were eventually produced (the exact caliber was actually 149.1mm) and were manufactured from 1939 to about 1942 before being abandoned.

Like many other weapons of German origin, the K39 was excellent and reliable during the war. His failures are really just his limited overall output. It was also limited by other weapons of the period - weight and portability.

For relocation, the gun system was broken down into three components, including an all-steel turntable, which made the job more difficult. For riflemen trying to get as many guns as possible in the target area, the rate of fire proved to be low - even trained personnel were only able to hit one or two projectiles per minute.

The system weighs 40,300 pounds in cruise mode and is set to 26,900 pounds. The barrel alone is 28 feet long, making it difficult to maneuver repeatedly.

The K39 series uses a proven horizontal block breech arrangement when loading/reloading 150mm rounds, and the gun recoil is counteracted by a hydropneumatic system. The armament components are matched to modern split trailers with a typical two-wheel arrangement, allowing the use of vehicles or pack animals to move as required. The frame has an inherent elevation range of +46 to -3 degrees for variable engagement areas and 60 degrees lateral (in addition to the 360 ??degrees offered by the optional turntable). The 27,000 yd range was excellent, giving the crew a decent range on the modern battlefield of the day.

The muzzle velocity of the fired projectile peaked at 2,840 feet per second.

However, the K39 ended quickly, as its limited availability made it a non-standard gun in the Bundeswehr inventory. It continued to serve as a static, defensive coastal gun along Hitler's "Atlantic Wall" while protecting access to the English Channel.

Other examples are relegated to the training group until their batches are fully retired.

Specification

Basic

Roles

Dimensions

Performance

Performance

for everyone else in our database)

Armor

Depends on the ammunition carrier.

Changes