History of Weapon

Judicious use of military production has always been a sign of intelligence and stewardship of the winners. However, the ancient Romans decorated wooden noses dismantled Carthaginian ships rostral columns. In XVIII-XIX centuries triumphant winners of the captured guns poured copper bells, and in this century more trophies handed over to the old metal …

Nevertheless, during the Second World War, many experts puzzled over how to better use captured from the enemy’s weapons against him. Particularly successful in this regard the Germans as Nazi Germany’s industrial base is often inferior to the industry of which it had intended to enslave. Not for nothing did the famous “quick Heinz, a German general Guderian tanker, claimed that the” Third Reich “lost the war against the USSR in 1940, when German plants produced per month up to 40 tanks, while the Soviets – more than 200.

Clearly, therefore they have become famous and modifications captured tanks in various combat vehicles, and already a number of modified self-propelled guns, converted from Czech, Polish, French and even British tanks, the Wehrmacht did not know none. But as it was received with the towers?

The Germans allowed them to adopt defenses, including “Atlantic Wall” and “Siegfried Line”. Most suitable for antilanding defense felt thik armour tower of French tanks, “Reno” and “Hotchkiss”, with quick-37-mm cannons, whose sighting range reached 2 tys.m.

They are mounted on concrete bunkers “A”, climbed into the calculation above, through the hatch. More sophisticated bunkers were type “B” and “C”, had armored doors and passages related to the message. Over time, self-propelled guns and began to turn the aging German-made tanks T-II – they went to the tower Pillbox type “B”.

In the second half of the war, it became clear that weak gun captured tanks do not present any tangible threat to the new machines of the USSR and its allies. Thus fortified areas were equipped with towers quite good German tank “Panther”. This position represents a small armored fortress two stories high, with housing for the calculation, warehouse shells, and there was a back-door for an inconspicuous emergency exit.

Moreover, the Germans have mastered the production of a simplified version of such a tower, transported together with ground-armoured box. It was enough to dig a hole and drop it all the construction. This allowed us to quickly put the firing points on the tank hazardous areas, and move them depending on the combat situation. In the extreme case of a fire could lead to the ground.

The German experience benefited from our experts during the exacerbation of relations with China in the 60 – 70-ies. Then, on the border broke ground in old heavy tank without engines, but with the increased supply of food, drinking water and shells.

At the end of the war the Germans found another use for the tank turret “Panther” – their set at armoured box, which is distributed to the positions and with the help of a crane mounted on the pre-dug pit, or simply on the ground, thus achieving the ability to quickly cover the tank hazardous areas.