10.5 cm leFH 18

10.5 cm leFH 18
LeFH 18 in camouflage at the Museum of the Polish Army in Warsaw
Type	Howitzer
Place of origin	Germany
Service history
In service	1935–45 (Germany) 1939–82 (Sweden)
Used by	Germany See Operators
Wars	World War II Slovak–Hungarian War Portuguese Colonial War Syrian Civil War[1]
Production history
Designer	Rheinmetall
Designed	1927–30
Manufacturer	Rheinmetall Krupp
Unit cost	16,400 RM (1943)
Produced	1935–45
No. built	11,848 (original variant)[2] 10,265 (10.5 cm leFH 18/40)[2]
Variants	leFH 18M, leFH 18/40
Specifications
Mass	Travel: 3,490 kg (7,690 lb) Combat: 1,985 kg (4,376 lb)
Length	6.100 m (20 ft 0.2 in)
Barrel length	2.941 m (9 ft 8 in) (28 calibers)
Width	1.977 m (6 ft 5.8 in)
Height	1.880 m (6 ft 2.0 in)
Crew	6
Shell	cased separate-loading (6 charges) 105 x 155mm R [3]
Shell weight	14.81 kg (32.7 lb) (HE)
Caliber	105 mm (4.13 in)
Breech	horizontal sliding-block
Recoil	hydro-pneumatic
Carriage	split trail
Elevation	-5° to +42°
Traverse	56°
Rate of fire	6-8 rpm
Muzzle velocity	470 m/s (1,500 ft/s)
Maximum firing range	10,675 m (11,674 yd)
Sights	Model 34 Sighting Mechanism
Filling	TNT
Filling weight	1.845 kg (4.07 lb)

The 10.5 cm leFH 18 (German: leichte Feldhaubitze "light field howitzer") is a German light howitzer used in World War II and the standard artillery piece of the Wehrmacht, adopted for service in 1935 and used by all divisions and artillery battalions. From 1935 to the end of the war, 11,848 were produced, along with 10,265 of the leFH 18/40 variant.

Designed in the late 1920s, it represented a major advance on its predecessor the 10.5 cm leFH 16. It was superior in caliber to its early opponents in the war, with adequate range and firepower, but the modern split trail gun carriage that provided it with more stability and traverse also rendered it overly heavy for a mobile role in the largely horse-drawn artillery battalions of the German army, particularly in the mud and snow of the Eastern Front.

The leFH 18 was further developed as the leFH 18M and leFH 18/40. Beginning in 1942, self-propelled versions were created by fitting the howitzer on a Panzer II, H35, Char B1 or 37L chassis. It was also used to equip German allies and neutral countries in Europe prior to and during the war.