Panzerfaust 30

Disposable Anti-Tank Rocket Launcher [ 1943 ]

The Panzerfaust 30 was an ingenious German disposable anti-tank rocket-launching system of World War 2.

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 02/26/2018 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site.

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The Panzerfaust series of hand-held disposable anti-tank rocket systems was a highly-feared adversary to American tank and vehicle crews. The large caliber projectile could defeat any level of armor available to Allied crews and the system as a whole could be quickly produced - appearing in large numbers from 1943 up through the last months of World War 2.

The Panzerfaust was an ingenious design, providing the firer little more than flip-up leaf sights and a firing-ready disposable tube. The operator need only to aim at the target with the launcher tucked under his arm (to protect from the projectiles exhaust) and fire the weapon. The destructive power of the projectile would usually render Allied armor ineffective or damaged for the remainder of the engagement. Such was the crippling power of the Panzerfaust that Allied tank and vehicle crews took steps to defeat the penetration power by applying makeshift armor protection. German infantry were almost exclusively fielded with the system, sometimes in lieu of a primary rifle, when defending territory.

If the Panzerfaust maintained any deficiencies they lay in the rather-infant stage of strategic thinking when fielding a weapon of this type. Range of early Panzerfaust systems was limited to about 30 meters with future systems becoming progressively more versatile. The effective range was indicated in the designation, hence the Panzerfaust 30, Panzerfaust 60 and the Panzerfaust 100. The initial Panzerfaust became the Panzerfaust 30 "klein", to which Klein indicated "small" as in the size of the projectile (these fielded with 100mm types). The second Panzerfaust 30 system utilized a 150mm projectile and appeared soon after the first. The consecutively larger Panzerfaust 60 and Panzerfaust 100 systems fielded the same 150mm projectile but had increased range.©MilitaryFactory.com

Plans and testing were already underway for the Panzerfaust 150 and Panzerfaust 200 series systems which would have allowed for a reusable firing tube as opposed to the previous series' disposable types. Additionally, range was to be increased thanks to added amounts of propellant for the rocket grenades. In the end, however, these two systems ran out of time with the fall of Germany in 1945.

An effective weapon, considering the ease of use, ease of production in great quantity and the lethality of the projectile, the Panzerfaust was the German infantryman weapon of choice when defending against Allied armor. The drawbacks of limited range was certainly a feature worth noting, as was the use of a disposable firing tube - an act that use up and permanently discarded some much needed German production resources that would never be recouped.©MilitaryFactory.com

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Specifications

Basics [+]

Manufacturer(s)

Various - Germany

Operators

Nazi Germany; Finland; Soviet Union

Service Year

1943

National Origin

Nazi Germany

ANTI-ARMOR / ANTI-TANK / ANTI-MATERIAL
Designed to engage and defeat armor / enemy tanks at range.

Overall Length

985 mm / 38.78 in

Barrel Length

985 mm / 38.78 in

Weight (Empty)

7.05 lb / 3.20 kg

Action

Propellant-Launched Rocket; Single Use Tube

Caliber(s)*

100mm; 149mm
*May not represent an exhuastive list; Calibers may be model-specific dependent; Always consult official manufacturer sources.

Feed

1

Sights

Flip-up Sight

Material presented above is for historical and entertainment value and should not be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation - always consult official manufacturer sources for such information.

Max.Effective Range

98 ft / 29.9 m | 32.7 yds

Rate-of-Fire

1 rpm

Panzerfaust 30 (klein) - 100mm projectile; 30 meter range.

Panzerfaust 30 - 149mm projectile; 30 meter range.

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Images

1 / 1

Side profile image of the Panzerfaust 30 on display; note simple flip-up leaf sight

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