Karl-Gerat 040/041

History

Karl-Gerat (040/041) (or "Karl-Device" in German) is a self-propelled siege howitzer, designed and manufactured by Rheinmetall during World War II. The howitzer became the largest self-propelled gun ever used in combat.

Despite its size and available firepower, the system has all the inherent weaknesses of all previous large-caliber artillery platforms and its combat utility is questionable.

Hitler was always willing to invest resources in a new weapon system if it had enormous destructive potential and could terrorize his enemies. The V-2 rocket and the heavy water project, which could produce an atomic bomb, are two other such projects.

In 1936, the ammunition designer and manufacturer Rheinmetall proposed to the German High Command a super-heavy howitzer capable of destroying the Maginot Line defenses protecting France from German invasion. On paper, this was no easy task, as the line of defense that ran along France's eastern border was strong between Germany and Italy, and was built on the French experience of World War I.

The line is between 20 and 25 km deep and consists of a complex base system consisting of 34 turrets with 75mm emplacements, concrete fortifications, 19 turrets with 50mm engines, barricades and 61 provide overlapping and concentrated fire, 17 turrets with 135mm guns, etc. Hitler knew the war was coming and his first blow would be westward. The order to build the 040 was given before Germany officially went to war, but Hitler attacked early when world events seemed to give him an advantage. Therefore, the new howitzers were not ready in time for the German blitzkrieg against Poland and France. It turned out that the French army was not as strong as their Maginot Line, and the fortifications were quickly destroyed by standard German armor and infantry.

Patton once said: "If mountains and seas can be conquered, then everything created by man can be conquered". How true is that for these French defenders.

Seven Karl Gerat howitzers were eventually built. In charge of the weapons program was General Karl Becker, a German weapons engineer and artillery general. He fostered close links between the Bundeswehr and scientists in weapons development. Due to his leadership in the development of this particular weapon, his men named it after him. From November 1940 to August 1941, the Rheinmetall plant delivered six production cars (the seventh was reserved for testing).

All six of these guns were used on many fronts of the war.

During the development phase, the initial concept was that the weapon would be transported by multiple tracked vehicles and assembled on site. These road tests proved that the process took longer to prepare and required more troops than originally planned. These requirements conflicted with the Karl's practicality and prompted the design team to convert the Karl from a towed to a self-propelled gun in 1937. This change reduces the time it takes to get the weapon to the target location, install and fire it with fewer people.

Extensive drive and build testing took place in 1938 and 1939, with full-scale prototype models of the weapon. Road tests were carried out on different types of soil to see if the weight of the super heavy vehicle could traverse the terrain as expected.

Existing tank chassis have been modified for such projects: they chose the Panzer IV as a support vehicle and modified 22 Ausf. D, E and F models.

The turret was removed, and the superstructure was modified for each transport to carry four 3,700-pound shells and a 35-ton crane for loading and transferring ammunition. Depending on the mission, each Carl requires two to three of these support vehicles to transport the appropriate heavy ammunition.

Karl operates from an open flat wedge lock. Mechanical stress will push the shell down the barrel. The entire gun is mounted on a thick base plate to provide massive recoil. The muzzle velocity was measured at 6,950 meters per ton.

A charging tray with rammers is mounted at the rear of the carriage. The loading tray for 60cm shells cannot be used for 54cm shells due to different diameters. There is a large gap between the cabin and the engine bay at the front of the vehicle to allow the entire cabin to bounce back smoothly.

At 124 m/t and 273,374 lbs, the Karl vehicle requires a large engine. General Becker opted for a Daimler-Benz MB 503 or MB 507 C-Series engine - both liquid-cooled 12-cylinder gasoline engines. These engines have a top speed of 6.2 mph (10 km/h). When the target was far enough away and made a 10-mile vehicle impractical, a 35-ton mobile crane mounted on a support vehicle dismantled Karl and loaded it onto seven lighter quad-axle trailers.

The gun chassis was loaded onto a six-axle Kullemeier low loader. The Gerat 041 introduces a new suspension system connected to 11 drums on one side.

A variant of the Schnabel wagon was created for the transport of weapons over long distances through the European railway network. This particular car can suspend the entire chassis of a large vehicle between two massive base-mounted swing arms attached to a five-axle flat car. After reaching the target position, the weapon is released from the support arm, driven to the intended firing point and set up as usual.

At the point of fire, the chassis is lowered to the ground to disperse the recoil during launch. The Karl-Gerat is easy to move on normal ground, but under no circumstances should it be turned on soft ground, as ground conditions may cause it to smear (ie cause the armor pedals to fly away). its wheels). A lone crew arrived at the shooting scene before Carl was fired.

Entry and exit routes must be prepared in time to fill in weak spots along the way and level any ditches. The firing position must be leveled accurately because the chassis must be positioned for firing. The gun could only be loaded at zero altitude and had to be re-aimed after each shot.

Shooting tests were conducted in June 1939 and produced the expected results. The destructive force of 60 cm of concrete penetrating the shell created a crater up to 15 m (49 ft) wide and 5 m (16 ft) deep. However, there were immediate discussions due to concerns about the weapon's range.

The 60cm shell reportedly had a range of up to 4,720 yards (2.68 miles). This distance puts the howitzer within the range of smaller, more accurate enemy artillery. There were also concerns that security staff would use many of their vehicles and operate with long lead times before filming began. The crew and all associated equipment will be vulnerable to enemy fire from land or air.

In short, the 040 is not your typical hit-and-run weapon.

Rheinmetall's development department began designing longer-range barrels to alleviate short-range issues, and in May 1942 ordered a shorter-range, longer-range weapon system, which eventually came with a 54cm barrel. The 041 has a range of 11,000 yards and 10,500 meters (6.25 miles). Hitler was informed that the weapon would enter service in March 1943, and the first three 54cm Gert 041s would be delivered to field troops between June and August 1943.

By the end of the war, only three 54cm barrels were actually completed, assembling Adam, Odin and Loki. In the event of a malfunction, the smaller, longer-range 040 barrel can be used with any other weapon with minimal switching.

In the summer of 1941, part of Operation Barbarossa (German invasion of the Soviet Union) planned to capture the Russian fortress of Brest. The Brest fortifications were laid out such that their defenses were overlapped by a star pattern. For intruders, these fortifications are quite difficult to overcome. The fort was built by military engineers with walls embedded in a moat and flanked by earth slopes to protect the fort from direct fire.

On top of the walls are mounds that absorb (and largely dissipate) the energy of the collapsing fire. This type of fortress is more or less the incarnation of the Middle Ages and has held a key position in warfare in Europe and Asia for centuries. The trenches and walls concentrated the attacking force into concentrated "kill zones" where artillery, machine gun or small arms fire could inflict the greatest concentration of slaughter on the attacking force. The core of the fortress, called the Citadel, is a two-story red-brick circular building, 1.8 kilometers long, with 500 rooms, 4 gates and 4 half-towers, which can accommodate about 12,000 infantrymen. In addition, the castle is located on an island formed by the two tributaries of the Westworm and Muhavec rivers.

The castle is surrounded by 3 bridgeheads and fortified with 10m high earthen walls surrounded by red brick forts. So far, the Germans have made little progress against the Soviet structure, suffering heavy casualties in the process. That's how Carl was called.

On April 2, 1941, the new battalion No. 833 heavy artillery battery was established, each battery had two howitzers. On May 1, 1941, before the start of Operation Barbarossa, the order to prepare for battle was given. First, one battery was deployed to the Brest-Litovsk fortress, while the second battery was ordered to support the offensive of the 4th Army of Army Group Center on the Brest fortress.

As this is their first combat deployment, little is known about the operation of the battery, except that the IV Army Corps reported in late June that the battery itself was inoperable due to technical fire issues. The second battery gun had some assembly issues as well as issues with the electron firing mechanism.

The dimensions of the shells need to be produced individually in some armouries, so each shell is manufactured as non-standard ammunition, not really for precise calibration. By June 24, Carl-Geralt's second battery was in combat mode, firing 31 of 36 rounds at the fort.

In August 1941, the battalion regrouped with eight 21cm Morser 18 howitzers, which were brought home by order of Army Group Center. Due to targeting problems, Carl did not break down the fortifications as expected, which effectively reduced concentrated fire and exacerbated their already existing mechanical problems.

Karl was used by the Germans to shell Sevastopol in 1941 and 1942. Sevastopol was besieged and imprisoned by German troops for 250 days until the city fell in July 1942. In February 1942, the 833rd Heavy Artillery Battalion was ordered to form a company of three Karl howitzers and support vehicles. Support units of Carr's armed forces traveled to Sevastopol to inspect the shooting range in preparation for a planned attack on the city in early summer.

The support team dug up these future secret firing positions so the battalion could reach firing positions quickly without wasting time. Each of Karl's pits was 15 m (49 ft) long, 10 m (33 ft) wide and 3 m (9.8 ft) deep and had to be dug for each howitzer to minimize Soviet artillery fire.

On 20 May 1942, the 11th Army reported that all three Karls were on the Sevastopol front with a total of 72 heavy and 50 light concrete grenades. The LIV Army Corps reported that between June 2 and June 6, only six heavy shells were fired per gun. 54 rounds were fired on June 7-8, and 50 light rounds were fired on June 13, increasing the rate of fire of the batteries. The Army fired another 79 rounds at the battery by the end of the month, all of which were fired. The main objective of most shells was to protect the two 305mm anti-tank turrets of the Maxim Gorky coastal defense battery in Sevastopol.

The Russians converted these guns into shells weighing 321351 kg (710770 lb) with a maximum range of 31,130 m (34,040 yd). The maximum elevation angle of the rail support is 40 degrees.

The German shells fired at the Russian turret from the Carr battery had little effect, except for a slight hit to one of the turrets that cut off the power, which the Russians quickly resolved. Major damage affected the concrete structures supporting the turret and the artillery command center.

In mid-July 1942, due to its long service life, the Carr battery was ordered to transport its guns to Hillersleben for necessary repairs.

In July 1942, Heavy Artillery Battalion 833 was ordered to form another battery. This continued until mid-August as Battery 628 was armed with two guns. For unknown reasons, 833 personnel of the heavy artillery battalion were assigned to three artillery pieces. In late July, Army High Command (OKH) ordered a battery to be sent to Army Group North to support their planned offensiveOperation Georgeon the Soviet city of Leningrad.

The orders for Operation George indicated that Battery 628 would be sent to the front with three guns, two guns, one as a spare.