infantry AT weapons against buildings

Moderators: Vis Bellica, Laffe

Post Reply
ocollens
Posts: 37
Joined: Tue May 20, 2014 9:38 am

infantry AT weapons against buildings

Post by ocollens »

This is not a new topic but in the spirit of playing the period not the rules I offer a new scrap of evidence.

This is from Lt John Stevenson's diary. He was in the Recce Squadron of 1st Airborne at Arnhem.
'as the building dominated our other positions we thought it best to knock it down completely. We turned the PIAT on it from 50 yards which knocked a great hole in the wall.'
Quoted in Beevor Arnhem.
N.B. He does not say this caused the building to collapse and they grenaded it to make sure no Germans were still alive.
User avatar
Tom Ballou
Posts: 590
Joined: Tue Sep 03, 2013 9:00 pm
Location: Boston, MA

Re: infantry AT weapons against buildings

Post by Tom Ballou »

There is the famous incident of a paratrooper popping a German sniper in a church tower near Pegasus Bridge. Seems the PIAT was a fine breaching weapon.

https://normandybattlefields.com/pegasus-bridge/

With an image of the hole blown in the tower...

https://cryo.home.xs4all.nl/pegasuschurch.htm
--Tom

Never drive a car when you're dead
--Tom Waits "Telephone Call From Istanbul"
User avatar
Truscott Trotter
Posts: 8789
Joined: Mon Sep 09, 2013 11:11 pm
Location: Tasmania the Southernmost CoC in the world

Re: infantry AT weapons against buildings

Post by Truscott Trotter »

Bet the sniper surprised when the first PIAT bomb went off :o :lol:
Last edited by Truscott Trotter on Mon Jun 18, 2018 9:32 am, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
Seret
Posts: 4155
Joined: Sat Jul 05, 2014 7:45 pm
Location: Kent UK
Contact:

Re: infantry AT weapons against buildings

Post by Seret »

Tom Ballou wrote: Sun Jun 17, 2018 8:04 pm With an image of the hole blown in the tower...

https://cryo.home.xs4all.nl/pegasuschurch.htm
Well, yeah, multiple PIAT shots from short range.

The PIAT used a shaped charge warhead. While not optimised for knocking down masonry they'll certainly make a hole, especially if you can make follow-up shots.
jdg
Posts: 180
Joined: Sat Sep 07, 2013 6:08 am
Location: Near Phoenix, Arizona

Re: infantry AT weapons against buildings

Post by jdg »

Bazooka were also used to blast entrance holes in buildings.
User avatar
Seret
Posts: 4155
Joined: Sat Jul 05, 2014 7:45 pm
Location: Kent UK
Contact:

Re: infantry AT weapons against buildings

Post by Seret »

Indeed they were. Obviously there were things which would do a better job of knocking a hole in a building (charges, large calibre HE, etc) but the AT weapons had several main advantages;
  1. Stand-off range.
  2. Accuracy, especially from rocket projectiles like the bazooka and panzerschreck.
  3. Availability. These were infantry weapons that were available quickly. No need to arrange engineering support ahead of time, just go with what you have now.
Their main drawback was their small warheads, which were not of a type that's especially effective against buildings. A shaped charge will punch through a lot of wall, but it'll make a fairly small hole because that's exactly what it's designed to do. The spalling effect on the inside is therefore limited, and if you're trying to make a man-sized hole you'll probably need multiple hits. What you rally want for knocking buildings about is HE or even better HESH/HEP.
User avatar
Truscott Trotter
Posts: 8789
Joined: Mon Sep 09, 2013 11:11 pm
Location: Tasmania the Southernmost CoC in the world

Re: infantry AT weapons against buildings

Post by Truscott Trotter »

Thats why Soviet Assault Engineers used multiple panzerfaust shots.
richard
Site Admin
Posts: 1767
Joined: Sat Aug 17, 2013 7:50 am

Re: infantry AT weapons against buildings

Post by richard »

Truscott is right, the Sovs used the faust for mouseholing their way through Germany.

Rich
jdg
Posts: 180
Joined: Sat Sep 07, 2013 6:08 am
Location: Near Phoenix, Arizona

Re: infantry AT weapons against buildings

Post by jdg »

And so did the 82nd Airborne.
Post Reply