12 cm Luftminenwerfer M 16
Encyclopedia
The 12 cm Luftminenwerfer M 16 (Pneumatic trench mortar) was a medium mortar
used by Austria-Hungary
in World War I. It was developed by Austria Metal Works in Brno
from their earlier, rejected, 8 cm project. It was a rigid-recoil, smooth-bore, breech-loading design that had to be levered around to aim at new targets. It was very simple in that the shell closed the top of the chamber and was retained by a "gripper" until the air pressure was deemed sufficient and the gripper was manually released, which fired the weapon. An additional barrel could be fitted to extend the range. A cylinder of compressed air was good for eleven shots.
After an evaluation on 23 November 1915 it was deemed superior to the German designs already in service (10.5 cm Luftminenwerfer M 15
and 15 cm Luftminenwerfer M 15 M. E.
) in range and accuracy and a batch of 100 mortars and 50,000 bombs was ordered at the beginning of 1916. Some 280 were at the front by the end of 1916 and 930 by the end of 1917. In addition to Austria Metal Works it was produced by Brand & L'Huillier and the machine factory at Brno-Köningsfeld. Some improvements must have been made over the course of the production run because late-war documents refer to the original design as the M 16a (alte?), but what exactly was changed is unknown.
Mortar (weapon)
A mortar is an indirect fire weapon that fires explosive projectiles known as bombs at low velocities, short ranges, and high-arcing ballistic trajectories. It is typically muzzle-loading and has a barrel length less than 15 times its caliber....
used by Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
in World War I. It was developed by Austria Metal Works in Brno
Brno
Brno by population and area is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, the largest Moravian city, and the historical capital city of the Margraviate of Moravia. Brno is the administrative centre of the South Moravian Region where it forms a separate district Brno-City District...
from their earlier, rejected, 8 cm project. It was a rigid-recoil, smooth-bore, breech-loading design that had to be levered around to aim at new targets. It was very simple in that the shell closed the top of the chamber and was retained by a "gripper" until the air pressure was deemed sufficient and the gripper was manually released, which fired the weapon. An additional barrel could be fitted to extend the range. A cylinder of compressed air was good for eleven shots.
After an evaluation on 23 November 1915 it was deemed superior to the German designs already in service (10.5 cm Luftminenwerfer M 15
10.5 cm Luftminenwerfer M 15
The 10.5 cm Luftminenwerfer M 15 was a medium mortar used by Austria-Hungary in World War I. It was developed by the German firm of Ehrhardt & Sehmer. It was a rigid-recoil, muzzle-loading mortar on a fixed base that used compressed air to propel the mortar bomb to the target. Each cylinder of...
and 15 cm Luftminenwerfer M 15 M. E.
15 cm Luftminenwerfer M 15 M. E.
The 15 cm Luftminenwerfer M 15 M. E. was a medium mortar used by Austria-Hungary in World War I. It was developed by the German firm Maschinenfabrik Esslingen in response to a German requirement...
) in range and accuracy and a batch of 100 mortars and 50,000 bombs was ordered at the beginning of 1916. Some 280 were at the front by the end of 1916 and 930 by the end of 1917. In addition to Austria Metal Works it was produced by Brand & L'Huillier and the machine factory at Brno-Köningsfeld. Some improvements must have been made over the course of the production run because late-war documents refer to the original design as the M 16a (alte?), but what exactly was changed is unknown.