The 8.8 cm Raketenwerfer 43 Puppchen was an 88 mm
calibre reusable
anti-tank
Anti-tank warfare originated from the need to develop technology and tactics to destroy tanks during World War I. Since the Triple Entente deployed the first tanks in 1916, the German Empire developed the first anti-tank weapons. The first deve ...
rocket launcher developed by
Nazi Germany during
World War II.
''Raketenwerfer 43'' was given to
infantry to bolster their anti-tank capability. The weapon was fired from a small two-wheeled gun carriage which fired a percussion-primed, rocket-propelled, fin-stabilized
grenade
A grenade is an explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade genera ...
RPzB. Gr. 4312
with a
shaped charge warhead. The grenade had a shorter tailboom of compared to the tailboom for the electrically-primed grenade RPzB. Gr. 4322 for the ''
Panzerschreck''.
Both grenades used identical warhead and fuzing.
Approximately 3,000 units were completed from 1943 to 1945. It was made in much smaller numbers than either the ''Panzerschreck'', which was based on the American
Bazooka rocket launcher, or the ''
Panzerfaust'', which was a disposable anti tank
recoilless rifle
A recoilless rifle, recoilless launcher or recoilless gun, sometimes abbreviated "RR" or "RCL" (for ReCoilLess) is a type of lightweight artillery system or man-portable launcher that is designed to eject some form of countermass such as propel ...
. This is partly because it was realized that a simple hollow tube with an ignition device was all that was needed to launch the 88 mm rocket, rather than an elaborate miniature artillery piece with carriage and breech. Due to the carriage and better sights, the accuracy was better, and the range more than double that of the ''Panzerschreck''. However, ''Raketenwerfer 43'' was more expensive, heavier and had longer production time than ''Panzerschreck'' or '' Panzerfaust''.
See also
*
Shoulder-launched missile weapon
*
List of common World War II infantry weapons
References
Notes
External links
* http://www.lonesentry.com/articles/rocket/index.html
{{DEFAULTSORT:Raketen-Panzerbuchse 43
Anti-tank rockets
World War II infantry weapons of Germany
Weapons and ammunition introduced in 1943