StuH.42 Ausf.F

_PabloSniper_ · September 10, 2018

Hello everyone!
The suggestion that I bring today is the predecessor of StuH 42 G we have in the game today.

It is basically a StuG III Ausf.F / 8 armed with the light field howitzer leFH 18/40 caliber 105 mm.
And what was his purpose in the game?

It would be similar to the StuH 42 G, however with less armor and more mobility.

Perfect to 2.7

So you must be wondering.
But why this?

Well, we have three alternatives:
1-We can put it between Stug A and StuH 42 G in the main tree. (probably a BR 2.7)
2-It can be a premium vehicle.
3-And it can also be a rare vehicle.

Quote

Official designation: 10,5cm SturmHaubitze 42 Alternative designation: Sd.Kfz.142, StuH 42 Year of foundation : 1941 Year of construction of the first prototype: 1942 Completion stage: one prototype and 1211 serial copies were built. Evaluating the campaign that ended in France, the command of the Army highly appreciated the actions of self-propelled artillery units. Nevertheless, in a number of cases, the capacity of the high-explosive shotgun of 75-mm short-barreled guns was clearly not enough to combat the clusters of enemy manpower and long-term field fortifications. In this connection, in the beginning of 1941, a requirement was announced for the installation on the chassis of the middle tank of a light field howitzer leFH 18/40 caliber 105 mm. The new car received the official designation 10.5cm SturmHaubitze 42 (Sd.Kfz.142) , but it is more known to us simply as StuH 42 . The design and manufacture of 12 pre-production samples was carried out by Alkett. As a base variant, the ready-made chassis of self-propelled guns StuG III Ausf.F. Accordingly, the undercarriage was similar to the Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf.G tank and, on one side, included the following components: six rubberized torsion bar support rollers, three supporting rollers, a front drive gear wheel, a rear guide wheel, a finely caterpillar track with steel tracks. The body of the self-propelled gun underwent minor changes - the installation of a larger gun required the completion of the front part of the felling. In addition, the 10.5cm StuH 42 adapted for the installation in the automatic control unit had a separate loading, which required changing the combat layout for 36 rounds (26 high-explosive fragmentation and 10 cumulative). The gun was able to be guided within 20 ° horizontally and in the range from -6 ° to + 20 ° vertically. In the rest, the StuH 42 body repeated the design of StuG III Ausf.F, preserving its layout and the booking scheme. Additional weapons consisted of one 7.92 mm MG34 machine gun with an ammunition of 600 rounds. The crew of the self-propelled gun consisted of 4 people: the commander, the gunner, the loading and the mechanic driver. The design work for StuH 42 was completed by the end of 1941, but due to numerous delays and a changed situation on the fronts, the assembly of the first prototype was delayed until March 1942. Further supplies were very modest. By October 1942, only 5 machines were assembled on the basis of StuG III Ausf.F and 4 on the basis of the newer StuG III Ausf.F / 8 self-propelled guns. Nevertheless, the issue was constantly growing and in the course of 1943 204 StuH 42 were already produced. The largest deliveries took place in 1944, when 903 self-propelled guns were collected, and in February 1945 the last 95 vehicles were released. The last series was distinguished by the installation of a gun in the mask of the "boar head" type. Another part of the self-propelled guns received 105-mm howitzers without a muzzle brake. The first serial StuH 42 entered the troops in March 1943 and by the beginning of the offensive on the Kursk Doug there were 68 units. Subsequently, 105-mm self-propelled guns were actively used on all fronts, and the most significant battles in their career were the battle in Hungary and the defense of Berlin. At present, not less than three StuH 42 have survived. One sample is in the exposition of the museums in Kubinka and Sinsheim.

Источник: http://aviarmor.net/tww2/tanks/germany/stuh42.htm

One such vehicle can still be seen at the Technikmuseum Sinsheim.

Spoiler

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