| 10 cm Nebelwerfer 40 | |
|---|---|
 Allied intelligence diagram of a 10 cm NbW 40 | |
| Type | Mortar |
| Place of origin | Nazi Germany |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1941–45 |
| Used by |  Nazi Germany |
| Wars | World War II |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Rheinmetall |
| Designed | 1939–40 |
| Manufacturer | Rheinmetall |
| Unit cost | 14000Reichsmark |
| Produced | 1941–42 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 800 kg (1,763.6 lbs) |
| Barrel length | 1.72 metres (5 ft 8 in) L/17.7 |
| Shell | HE: 8.6 kg (18 lb 15 oz) Smoke: 8.9 kg (19 lb 10 oz)[1] |
| Caliber | 105 mm (4.13 in) |
| Elevation | 45° to 84° |
| Traverse | 14° |
| Rate of fire | 8–10 rpm |
| Muzzle velocity | 310 m/s (1,017 ft/s) |
| Maximum firing range | 6.35 km (3.95 mi) |
The 10 cm Nebelwerfer 40 (10 cm NbW 40) was a heavymortar used by Germany during theSecond World War. Much like the AmericanM2 4.2 inch mortar it was intended to deliver chemical munitions, such as gas and smoke shells, as well as ordinaryhigh-explosive shells. It was derived fromRheinmetall'sNebelwerfer 51 and 52 prototypes of the late 1930s which were attempts to develop a more accurate and longer-ranged mortar than the10 cm Nebelwerfer 35. The NbW 40 is one of the better examples of Germanoverengineering since it fired a slightly heavier bomb over twice as far as the NbW 35, but weighed almost eight times more than the earlier model.
It was an innovative breech-loading design with the wheels permanently attached to the carriage, from which it was fired, and which wasn't disassembled for transport. It replaced the NbW 35 in (German:Nebelwerfer "smoke-mortar") battalions belonging to the Chemical Corps of theHeer; exactly how the American fielded their own M2s inchemical mortar battalions. It was replaced by the 15 cmNebelwerfer 41multiple rocket launcher from 1941.
They began to replace the10 cm Nebelwerfer 35 mortars from late 1941 in theNebelwerfer battalions, and were used byGebirgs-Werfer-Abteilung (Mountain Mortar Battalion) 10 plus the first battalion of theNebel-Lehr Regiment (Demonstration Regiment) and saw service in theNorth Africa, Finland and Russia.[2]
