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14 cm Minenwerfer M 15

The 14 cm Minenwerfer M 15 was a medium mortar used by Austria-Hungary in World War I. It was developed by Å koda Works as an alternative to a German design from Rheinische Metallwarenfabrik/Ehrhardt for which ammunition could not be procured. It was a rigid-recoil, rifled, muzzle-loading weapon that had to be levered around to aim at new targets. It was lifted onto a two-wheel cart for transport.

An improved version, the 14 cm M16 MW, added a central barrel ring and cutouts on the side of the carriage. Rotation within the barrel was improved, greatly increasing accuracy. It weighed an extra , but had a maximum range of . Its transport cart was also improved.

The first batch of 100 mortars was ordered in May 1915 and a second batch in spring 1916, but deliveries were slow; only 88 of the second batch could be sent to the front by May 1916. A third batch of 300 was ordered in November 1916, but production was such that only 30 had been delivered by the spring of 1917.

References

Bibliography

  • Ortner, M. Christian. The Austro-Hungarian Artillery From 1867 to 1918: Technology, Organization, and Tactics. Vienna, Verlag Militaria, 2007