8.8 cm Raketenwerfer 43

8.8 cm Raketenwerfer 43
The 8.8 cm Raketenwerfer 43 and its ammunition being inspected by Allied troops.
Type	Anti-tank rocket launcher
Place of origin	Nazi Germany
Service history
In service	1943–45
Used by	Nazi Germany
Wars	World War II
Production history
No. built	3000
Specifications
Weight	143 kg
Length	2.972 m
Width	1.016 m
Height	0.899 m
Crew	2
Cartridge	RPzB. Gr. 4312
Caliber	88 mm
Action	breech loaded, fired from closed breech
Muzzle velocity	140 m/s
Effective firing range	230 m for moving targets, 500 m for stationary targets
Maximum firing range	750 m

The 8.8 cm Raketenwerfer 43 Puppchen was an 88 mm calibre reusable anti-tank 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 RPzB. Gr. 4312 with a shaped charge warhead. The grenade had a shorter tailboom of 490 mm (19 in) compared to the 650 mm (26 in) 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. 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.