| Footslogger | 20 May 2016 3:17 a.m. PST |
As the topic says. Did Nebelwerfer units dig in, or were they more concerned with rapid relocation after firing? It makes a difference as to how I depict a 20mm unit I'm working on. |
| Sundance | 20 May 2016 4:40 a.m. PST |
Not that I ever saw or read about. The backblast would make a mess. |
| Crazyfrenchteacher | 20 May 2016 4:41 a.m. PST |
I remember reading about dug in positions along the Gustav Line in Italy. Found that information in the Osprey series on German fortifications in Italy. |
Frederick  | 20 May 2016 4:48 a.m. PST |
I think you would need to consider long and hard about how to dig in a rocket launcher as Sundance noted – makes sense in Italy as the Germans had lots and lots of time to think about their emplacements |
| yankincan | 20 May 2016 6:19 a.m. PST |
Rapid relocation was a priority. The smoke trails had them spotted almost right away. Shoot and scoot! |
| Kelly Armstrong | 20 May 2016 8:01 a.m. PST |
The pictures I have seen show the Nebelwerfers sitting proud on the ground while the crew has slit trenches to the rear. |
| donlowry | 20 May 2016 8:36 a.m. PST |
I think yankincan has the right of it. |
| Footslogger | 20 May 2016 9:26 a.m. PST |
Thank you, I think that answers that one. I might even do some heads in slit trenches now! |
| panzerCDR | 20 May 2016 9:58 a.m. PST |
All of the YouTube video I have seen have the launchers in relatively exposed positions. This is not definitive, but does lend credence to the "shoot and scoot" tactics being preferred. |
| Martin Rapier | 20 May 2016 10:49 a.m. PST |
Here is the relevant Lone Sentry article (taken from the Nbw41 manual) link 'digging in' consists of the crew digging a slit trench – which was presumably dropped later in the war when they had to do more shoot & scoot. |
| Sean Barnett | 21 May 2016 6:54 p.m. PST |
In "Operation Epsom" by Tim Saunders, p. 64, there's a drawing of a small trench system for a Nebelwerfer. It looks like the launcher is dug in to a depth of about 0.7 m with a berm of about 0.55 m in front of and behind what I presume are positions for the crew and ammunition on either side of the launcher. The position for the launcher is sloped downward from the rear to the front so the launcher can be rolled in and out of it. |
| Jemima Fawr | 23 May 2016 6:32 a.m. PST |
Yes they did, as others have discussed above. There are official 'how to' diagrams in surviving manuals (basically a pit with a rear ramp and L-shaped 'wing' trenches for the crew). I've also got photos showing dug-in werfers in Normandy. |
