20 cm Luftminenwerfer M 16
Encyclopedia
The 20 cm Luftminenwerfer M 16 (Pneumatic trench mortar) was a heavy mortar
used by Austria-Hungary
in World War I. It was developed by Austria Metal Works in Brno
from their earlier 12 cm Luftminenwerfer M 16
. It was a rigid-recoil, smooth-bore, muzzle-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. The barrel was fixed at 45° elevation and range was adjusted by varying the air pressure, but an additional barrel could be fitted to extend the range. A single cylinder of compressed air was only good for four to six shots. It was loaded onto a two-wheel cart for transport.
20 were ordered at the end of May 1916 after trials in the spring. Another 80 were ordered in November 1916. In service it wasn't as successful as its smaller brother due to its greater weight and much greater requirement for compressed air. It was superseded by the 26 cm Minenwerfer M 17
.
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 12 cm Luftminenwerfer M 16
12 cm Luftminenwerfer M 16
The 12 cm Luftminenwerfer M 16 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...
. It was a rigid-recoil, smooth-bore, muzzle-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. The barrel was fixed at 45° elevation and range was adjusted by varying the air pressure, but an additional barrel could be fitted to extend the range. A single cylinder of compressed air was only good for four to six shots. It was loaded onto a two-wheel cart for transport.
20 were ordered at the end of May 1916 after trials in the spring. Another 80 were ordered in November 1916. In service it wasn't as successful as its smaller brother due to its greater weight and much greater requirement for compressed air. It was superseded by the 26 cm Minenwerfer M 17
26 cm Minenwerfer M 17
The 26 cm Minenwerfer M 17 was a heavy trench mortar used by Austria-Hungary in World War I. It was developed by Skoda as an alternative to copying captured Italian 240 mm Trench Mortars. Skoda presented two versions, one with a rigid barrel, and the other with a recoil system. The former was...
.