IS-2 vs. 30cm rocket.
IS-2 vs. 30cm rocket.
hi. I have been reading on the big Russian IS-2 tank. this tank is mean with a 122mm main gun and 5.2 inches of armor. If the tank was hit on the front with the German 30cm rocket ,would it take the crew out, and would it crack the armor? thank you for your help.
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Christian Ankerstjerne
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Re: IS-2 vs. 30cm rocket.
Welcome to the forum.
US post-war tests using 155 mm HE ammunition, the explosive contents of which is about seven kg, revealed that impacts within 30 meters would cause serious damage, and even destroy, tanks. Direct hits would result in massive damage, of the mangled armor plates type.
The 30 cm Wk 42 Spr contained 45 kg of explosives. Here's a video of what 30 kg of C4, approximately the equivalent of 45 kg of TNT, looks like when it explodes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wg9hx6rVsw
In other words, it would more or less rip any tank apart.
The tricky part is actually hitting the tank. I don't have the firing table of the 30 cm Nb W, but the accuracy of the 15 cm Nb W 41, which I would assume was more accurate, show that at 1000 meters, only half the rockets would fall within an area of 5000 square meters (a circle of about 40 meters; a cicle with an area of 30 meters would cover just under 3000 square meters).
In other words, while you could destroy a tank with rocket fire, you would likely have more luck using a weapon of greater accuracy.
US post-war tests using 155 mm HE ammunition, the explosive contents of which is about seven kg, revealed that impacts within 30 meters would cause serious damage, and even destroy, tanks. Direct hits would result in massive damage, of the mangled armor plates type.
The 30 cm Wk 42 Spr contained 45 kg of explosives. Here's a video of what 30 kg of C4, approximately the equivalent of 45 kg of TNT, looks like when it explodes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wg9hx6rVsw
In other words, it would more or less rip any tank apart.
The tricky part is actually hitting the tank. I don't have the firing table of the 30 cm Nb W, but the accuracy of the 15 cm Nb W 41, which I would assume was more accurate, show that at 1000 meters, only half the rockets would fall within an area of 5000 square meters (a circle of about 40 meters; a cicle with an area of 30 meters would cover just under 3000 square meters).
In other words, while you could destroy a tank with rocket fire, you would likely have more luck using a weapon of greater accuracy.