Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

Discussions on the equipment used by the Axis forces, apart from the things covered in the other sections. Hosted by Juha Tompuri
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Sturm78
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Re: Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

#571

Post by Sturm78 » 15 Oct 2019, 21:13

Bert wrote
that´s a "schwere Schiffsbrücke", here a pic and and some information about this heavy pontoon equipment.
Thanks a lot, Bert... :wink:

A pity that I don´t understand a word of German.... :roll:
Do you know the method of transport of this equipment ??

Regards
Sturm78

SIS 5
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Location: Germany

Re: Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

#572

Post by SIS 5 » 21 Oct 2019, 20:20

Hi Strum 78,

excuse me, plwase, for my late answer, but it was not so easy for me to translate the text. Here it is:

S-bridge (heavy ship bridge)

Technical data: load bearing capacity: two lanes: 36ton tanks - narrow-gage field railway and normal railway (42 tons locomotive + one empty wagon + loaded wagon with 32 tons, on the contrary lane light traffic (400 kg - cm2); when going in the middle single vehicles up to 60 tons in one lane; heavy loads until to tanks (60/63 tons) only in the middle of the bridge.

Distance / span between supports: on the bank 20,7 m; on swimming supports: length of the ferries 24 m; width of the roadway: 5,55 m with two lanes, 3,70 m with one lane.

Supports: bank trestles and 10-piece pontoons, end partspartly with engines (each with 2 Ford V 8 truck engines).

Transport: on railway wagons,to the place of the bridhe trestles on trailers for long wood, pontoons on normal trailers.

Need of steel for one unit: 1300 tons

Capacity of one unit: two lanes 272 m bridge ( 8 ferries + four bank bridges); one lane 322 m (10 ferries + 4 bank bridges).

Building performance: one unit - one engineer batallion 1 to 1 1/2 days

Weight of the heaviest part: end part of the pontoon 3130 kg, motorised end part 5200 kg.

Fitting the bridge: motorised crane, floating the bridge sections by motor boat.

State of development: equipment in use by the troops; available for employment; separate parts in further development, not yet completed.

State of procurement: 3 units model II in use by the troops; 7 units model III in procurement, 2 delivered, 3 end of 1942, rest November 1943.

I hope You can understand what I have writte. If not, please tell me. Here two pics of trailer models of this bridge. I´m sorry, I don´t have a pic of these trailers.

Best regards

Bert
Attachments
trailer S-Brücke - 1.png
trailer S-Brücke - 1.png (223.94 KiB) Viewed 3030 times
trailer S-Brücke - 2.png
trailer S-Brücke - 2.png (242.5 KiB) Viewed 3030 times


Sturm78
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Re: Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

#573

Post by Sturm78 » 22 Oct 2019, 14:56

Thank you very much for your help, Bert... :)

It is a very little known equipment, at least for me.

Regards
Sturm78

SIS 5
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Re: Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

#574

Post by SIS 5 » 23 Oct 2019, 19:56

Hi Sturm 78,

here two more pics, when a crane on a Faun truck (LK 5) is fitting parts of the bridge.

Best regards

Bert
Attachments
S-bridge 3.png
S-bridge 3.png (299.28 KiB) Viewed 2996 times
S-bridge 4.png
S-bridge 4.png (270.92 KiB) Viewed 2996 times

Sturm78
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Location: Spain

Re: Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

#575

Post by Sturm78 » 23 Oct 2019, 21:23

Thanks, Bert. :wink:

Sturm78

RandJS
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Joined: 04 Oct 2008, 12:36

Re: Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

#576

Post by RandJS » 25 Oct 2019, 01:50

Yes, Thank you Bert! I always wanted more detailed information regarding the bridging units.
Thanks
Rand

ayovtshev
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Location: Sofia

Re: Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

#577

Post by ayovtshev » 04 Nov 2019, 18:26

SIS 5 wrote:
02 Dec 2018, 21:30
Hi Sturm 78,

an interesting question. I was comparing the pontoons of all countries in Europe with these Bulgarian ones, but I could find only a similar type of the German Army used during WW I, a so-called "Halbponton" of the "Divisionsbrückentrain".

Best regards

Bert
Thanks too, Bert!

You answered a question that bothered me for quite some time...

A picture of a Bulgarian "Halbponton" from the Museum of Battle Glory,Yambol
Halbponton.jpg
Here is the producer data on such Halbponton from National Museum of Millitary History,Sofia:
Halbponton NMMH Sofia.jpg
Halbponton NMMH Sofia.jpg (40.29 KiB) Viewed 2908 times
Cheers,
Angel

SIS 5
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Re: Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

#578

Post by SIS 5 » 06 Nov 2019, 13:48

Hi Angel,

thank You very much for Your reply and posting the very interesting pics of Halbpontons in Bulgarian Museums. The German company Wolf Netter & Jacobi, which obviously produced these Halbpontons, had company seats in Berlin and Strassburg. The producer data: Bauanstalt für Wellblech, Eisenkonstruktion, Verzinkerei, Verzinnerei, Verbleierei (construction institution for corrugated iron, iron construction, galvanising, tinning, lead-coating). During WW I the company changed the production and extensively delivered material for the war, especially pontoons. The second pontoon was produced in 1914 at the beginning of the war. Each division had a so-called Divisonsbrückentrain (division bridge column) with 12 half-pontoons (Halbpontons). Each corps had a Korpsbrückentrain (corps bridge column) with longer pontoons. After the end of WW I the pontoons of the Korpsbrückentrain were used within the Brückengerät A (bridge building material A). Maybe the rest of the existing half-pontoons of the Divisonsbrückentrains were sold to other countries, among them Bulgaria, because I have not seen any pic with such half-pontoons in use of the Reichswehr or Wehrmacht.

Regards

Bert

ayovtshev
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Re: Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

#579

Post by ayovtshev » 07 Nov 2019, 00:14

Hi Bert,

Thanks for the explanations!

According to the official History of Bulgarian Engineer Troops- both the Halbpontons(Divisonsbrückentrain) and the longer pontoons(Korpsbrückentrain/Brückengerät A) were delivered to Bulgaria in Mai 1916, 6 months after my country joined the Central Powers in the Great War.

Here is a picture of the longer pontoon kept at a millitary museum in Bulgaria:
IMG-7f26ab9040ee5e745242a8cd049cae23-V.jpg
Said museum has also a preserved Pf.11 Pontonwagen from Brückengerät B on display:
IMG-33a8ced70b45d114cbfdcb769b23bfc4-V.jpg
Cheers,
Angel

SIS 5
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Re: Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

#580

Post by SIS 5 » 08 Nov 2019, 00:32

Hi Angel,

thank You very much for the pics You posted, especially the pontoon of Brückengrät A. I have also discovered such a pontoon in Neckarhausen on the river Neckar not so far away from Mannheim and made three pics. Here they are.

Best regards

bert
Attachments
Ponton A - 1.png
Ponton A - 2.png
Ponton A - 2.png (291.92 KiB) Viewed 2825 times
Ponton A - 3.png

fireindi64
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Location: Northern-Germany, Hamburg

Re: Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

#581

Post by fireindi64 » 13 Nov 2019, 16:13

ayovtshev wrote:
07 Nov 2019, 00:14
Hi Bert,

Thanks for the explanations!

According to the official History of Bulgarian Engineer Troops- both the Halbpontons(Divisonsbrückentrain) and the longer pontoons(Korpsbrückentrain/Brückengerät A) were delivered to Bulgaria in Mai 1916, 6 months after my country joined the Central Powers in the Great War.

Here is a picture of the longer pontoon kept at a millitary museum in Bulgaria:
IMG-7f26ab9040ee5e745242a8cd049cae23-V.jpg

Said museum has also a preserved Pf.11 Pontonwagen from Brückengerät B on display:
IMG-33a8ced70b45d114cbfdcb769b23bfc4-V.jpg

Cheers,
Angel
Hello,
that is a very interessting pontoon trailer! Is it possible for you to take a detailpicture of the typeplate. And post it here?
So we can read year of building and the factory.
here is a other example.

best regards
Henning
Attachments
11910950_987098438008453_468847214_n.jpg
IMG-33a8ced70b45d114cbfdcb769b23bfc4-V Bularien farbe.jpg

ayovtshev
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Re: Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

#582

Post by ayovtshev » 13 Nov 2019, 17:05

Hi Henning,

I checked all my pictures and the typeplate is nowhere to see...
I'll do my best to find and photograph it next time I go there.

I have a special interest for those Brückengerät B trailers (I am also a scale modeller) and have gathered some information about them.
My country ordered in Oct.1942 2 Brückengerät B sets, together with 32 Henschell 33D1 and 30 Büssing-NAG 4500S trucks to tow the trailers.
These arrived in the summer of 1943.

Cheers,
Angel

SIS 5
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Location: Germany

Re: Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

#583

Post by SIS 5 » 14 Nov 2019, 17:09

Hi all,

here another interesting pontoon of the National Army Museum in New Zealand. It is a German pontoon of WW I, but used by Turkish troops to cross the Suez Canal on 3 February 1915, but they were repulsed by the New Zealand and Indian troops. The Turks suffered heavy losses. The pontoons were taken as ‘war trophies’ and four of them were transported to New Zealand. It appears three have suffered the ravages of time while one has been in storage at the National Army Museum. I think it is a half-pontton like the pontoon on the first pic. Here a pic of this pontoon and also a pic with the inscription panel on the side of this pontoon. Source: https://www.armymuseum.co.nz/blog/artef ... ntoon.html

Regards

Bert
Attachments
pontoon New Zealand.png
pontoon New Zealand.png (188.54 KiB) Viewed 2652 times
SAG 1913.png
SAG 1913.png (234.42 KiB) Viewed 2652 times

SIS 5
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Re: Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

#584

Post by SIS 5 » 14 Nov 2019, 17:43

Hi,

here three more pics of this half-pontoon of the New Zealand National Army Museum.

Regards

Bert
Attachments
half-pontoon - 1.png
half-pontoon - 1.png (406.32 KiB) Viewed 2650 times
half-pontoon - 2.png
half-pontoon - 2.png (279.23 KiB) Viewed 2650 times
half-pontoon - 3.png
half-pontoon - 3.png (468.95 KiB) Viewed 2650 times

Sturm78
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Posts: 17927
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Location: Spain

Re: Pontoon Bridges and assault boats

#585

Post by Sturm78 » 01 Dec 2019, 20:48

Hi all,

According to photo caption, Italian pontoon. Is this correct.
Designation ?

Sturm78
Attachments
Italian pontoon trailer in tow.jpg

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