21 cm GrW 69

21 cm Granatwerfer 69
A GrW 69 at the U.S. Army Field Artillery Museum,Ft. Sill,OK
Type	Mortar
Place of origin	Nazi Germany
Service history
In service	1944–45
Used by	Nazi Germany
Wars	Second World War
Production history
Designer	Skoda
Manufacturer	Skoda
Produced	1944–45
No.built	200
Specifications
Mass	2,800 kg (6,173 lbs)
Barrellength	3 metres (9 ft 10 in)
Caliber	210.9 mm (8.30 in)
Elevation	40° to 70°
Traverse	60°
Muzzle velocity	285 m/s (935 ft/s) light bomb 247 m/s (810 ft/s) heavy bomb
Effective firing range	5,190 m (5,676 yds) heavy bomb
Maximum firing range	6,300 m (6,890 yds) light bomb

The21 cm Granatwerfer 69was amortarused by Germany duringWorld War II.This weapon may also be known as the GR 19 and B 19 or by its nickname "Elefant".

The prototype was built bySkodaas the 22 cm sGrW B 14, but was redesigned to 21 cm atOKH's request to use existing ammunition. In firing position, the wheels rested in shoes that rested on a semicircular rail track. The baseplate was attached to the mount by a ball joint to allow for traverse without reseating the baseplate. Elevation was obtained byrack and pinionon the upright legs. The firing mechanism was built into the breech ring and was of the continuous pull type. It was designed to be towed as a complete unit, the baseplate riding above the tube.

It fired a light bomb of 85 kilograms (187 lb) and a heavy bomb of 110 kilograms (240 lb).

Sources

• Gander, Terry and Chamberlain, Peter.Weapons of the Third Reich: An Encyclopedic Survey of All Small Arms, Artillery and Special Weapons of the German Land Forces 1939-1945.New York: Doubleday, 1979ISBN0-385-15090-3