RakJPz 2
Contents
Description
The Raketenjagdpanzer 2 (RakJPz 2) is a Rank V German tank destroyer
with a battle rating of 8.0 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.59 "Flaming Arrows". Featuring the SS.11 anti-tank guided missile, the Raketenjagdpanzer 2 serves as the missile's mobile platform. While lethal, the missile has to be manually guided and leaves the weak hull vulnerable as the operator steers the missile into the target.
General info
Survivability and armour
Armour type:
- Rolled homogeneous armour
Armour | Front | Sides | Rear | Roof |
---|---|---|---|---|
Hull | 50 mm (51°) Front glacis 50 mm (54°) Lower glacis |
30 mm (35°) Top 30 mm Bottom |
30 mm (44°) Top 30 mm (41°) Bottom |
10 mm |
Notes:
- Suspension wheels are 15 mm thick while tracks are 20 mm thick.
- Belly armour is 10 mm thick.
Mobility
Mobility characteristic | ||
---|---|---|
Weight (tons) | Add-on Armor weight (tons) |
Max speed (km/h) |
23.0 | N/A | 76 (AB) |
70 (RB/SB) | ||
Engine power (horsepower) | ||
Mode | Stock | Upgraded |
Arcade | 710 | ___ |
Realistic/Simulator | 442 | ___ |
Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton) | ||
Mode | Stock | Upgraded |
Arcade | 30.87 | __.__ |
Realistic/Simulator | 19.22 | __.__ |
Armaments
Main armament
164 mm LFK SS.11 ATGM | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Capacity | Fire rate (shots/minute) |
Vertical guidance |
Horizontal guidance |
Stabilizer | |
14 | 3 | -10°/+20° | ±90° | N/A | |
Turret rotation speed (°/s) | |||||
Mode | Stock | Upgraded | Prior + Full crew | Prior + Expert qualif. | Prior + Ace qualif. |
Arcade | 22.02 | __.__ | __.__ | __.__ | __.__ |
Realistic | 14.88 | __.__ | __.__ | __.__ | __.__ |
Reloading rate (seconds) | |||||
Stock | Prior + Full crew | Prior + Expert qualif. | Prior + Ace qualif. | ||
12.00 | 12.00 | 12.00 | 12.00 |
Ammunition
Penetration statistics | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Penetration in mm @ 90° | |||||
10m | 100m | 500m | 1000m | 1500m | 2000m | ||
LFK SS.11 | ATGM | 600 | 600 | 600 | 600 | 600 | 600 |
Shell details | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Maximum Velocity in m/s |
Projectile Mass in kg |
Range (m) | Fuse delay
in m: |
Fuse sensitivity
in mm: |
Explosive Mass in g (TNT equivalent): |
Normalization At 30° from horizontal: |
Ricochet: | ||||
0% | 50% | 100% | |||||||||||
LFK SS.11 | ATGM | 150 | 30 | 6,500 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 3,470 | +0° | 80° | 82° | 90° |
Ammo racks
Full ammo |
1st rack empty |
2nd rack empty |
3rd rack empty |
4th rack empty |
5th rack empty |
6th rack empty |
Visual discrepancy |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
14 | XX (X+) | (+) | (+) | (+) | (+) | (+) | no |
Machine guns
7.62 mm MG 3A1 | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pintle mount | ||||||
Capacity (Belt capacity) | Fire rate (shots/minute) |
Vertical guidance |
Horizontal guidance | |||
2,500 (1,000) | 1,200 | -10°/+20° | ±90° |
Usage in the battles
Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Access to ATGM's
- Missiles can penetrate 600 mm of armor
- Two missiles on top allow for another shot while the other reloads
- Shares the same chassis as the Jpz 4-5
- Simple play style
- Can potentially curve the missiles around targets behind cover
- Has smoke grenades
- Exceptionally dangerous behind a low cover or an uphill facing downwards
- Can operate at peak efficiency with just 2 crew member
- Missiles can be used as a close-range weapon
- Excels in maps with a lot of open grounds
- Has a 180 degree firing arc
- Has infinite amount of rockets in AB, though each launcher has to be reloaded after firing 7 missiles
Cons:
- In RB/SB, missiles are manually guided, making them harder to aim at longer distance
- Missile platform cannot traverse past sides
- Controls for missiles are very sensitive and inverted
- Thin armor, but it rarely matters as it relies on concealment to ambush and deal damage
- Unable to fire missiles if the launchers are damaged, will require repairs first
- Vehicle left stationary and vulnerable when firing
- Missiles on top act as exterior ammo racks and can be detonated
- 14 missile stowage on which each launcher carries 7 ammo, having to reload when all 14 missiles are fired
- Very little empty space inside, penetrating shots are going to hit crew, ammo, or both
- Optics prevent the missiles from being fired simultaneously at a certain angle and direction
History
Development
In the 1960s, the German Bundeswehr commenced the development of a missile carrier to fit in a role of a tank destroyer. The result came in 1961 with the Raketenjagdpanzer 1, which features the French SS.11 anti-tank missile. The Raketenjagdpanzer 1 features two mounts for the missiles, but only one is available at a time as while one remains ready to fire, the other is reloading inside the vehicle. The vehicle can hold 10 missiles inside the Hispano-Suiza HS-30 chassis. It also carried existing problems with the HS-30 chassis so only a limited amount of 95 vehicles was produced from 1961 to 1962. A second improved version was designed alongside the Jagdpanzer 4-5 between 1963 and 1965, and the two were designed on the same chassis. The finished model was designated the Raketenjagdpanzer 2 and this was accepted into Bundeswehr service in 1967. The Raketenjagdpanzer 2 were produced from 1967 to 1968 for a total of 318 units produced.
Design
Though slightly larger than the Raketenjagdpanzer 1, the Raketenjagdpanzer 2 had better automotive performances with the newer chassis and a 500 hp diesel engine and torsion bar suspension. The new vehicle chassis design allowed for an increased missile storage of 14 SS.11 missiles. The Raketenjagdpanzer 2 featured two rails for the missiles, both ready to fire and reloads are done automatically by each mount inside the vehicle. The SS.11 missiles allow the vehicle to engage enemy armor up to 3 kilometers away, with the missiles penetrating 600 mm of armor on impact, enough to take out most Soviet armor at the time. For personnel protection, a MG3 machine gun was also available for anti-infantry and anti-aircraft defense purposes.
Usage
The German Bundeswehr used the Raketenjagdpanzer 2 from 1967 as far as to the 1990s. The Raketenjagdpanzer 2's purpose was to engage enemy armor in the ranges between 1.5 to 3 kilometers away, which regular tank armaments' accuracy and power are reduced at the distances. The SS.11 missile's range and lethality made the Raketenjagdpanzer 2 perfect for its role as it could defeat the main Soviet tanks such as the T-54/55 and T-62. The Germans organized the Raketenjagdpanzer 2 in tank destroyer companies attached to Panzergrenadier brigades and Panzer brigades, with eight vehicles per company in the Panzergrenadier brigades and 13 vehicles per company in the Panzer brigades. When the manual-guided SS.11 missiles became obsolete, the Raketenjagdpanzer 2 underwent an upgrade between 1978 and 1982 in armor and in its missile armament from the SS.11 to the HOT (High Subsonic Optical Remote-Guided, Tube-Launched) missiles with improved lethality and guidance system. The upgraded Raketenjagdpanzer 2 was redesignated into the Raketenjagdpanzer 2 HOT. This saw an improvement again between 1993 and 1995 when some extra armor, a new optic, and thermal imaging system were installed into the vehicle, turning it into the Raketenjagdpanzer Jaguar 1. The Raketenjagdpanzers were all retired by the end of the 1990s, never seeing combat in the Cold War.
Media
An excellent addition to the article will be video guides, as well as screenshots from the game and photos.
Read also
Sources
Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
- topic on the official game forum;
- other literature.
Germany tank destroyers | |
---|---|
Pz. I Derivatives | Panzerjäger I |
Pz. II Derivatives | 15cm sIG 33 B Sfl |
Pz. 38(t) Derivatives | Marder III · Marder III H · Jagdpanzer 38(t) |
Pz. III Derivatives | StuG III A · StuG III F · StuG III G · StuH 42 G |
Pz. IV Derivatives | Jagdpanzer IV · Panzer IV/70(A) · Panzer IV/70(V) · Dicker Max · Nashorn · Brummbär · VFW |
Pz. V Derivatives | Jagdpanther G1 · Bfw. Jagdpanther G1 |
Pz. VI Derivatives | Sturer Emil · Elefant · Ferdinand · 38 cm Sturmmörser · Jagdtiger |
Wheeled/Half-track | 8,8 cm Flak 37 Sfl. · Sd.Kfz.251/9 · Sd.Kfz.251/10 · Sd.Kfz.251/22 · Sd.Kfz.234/3 · Sd.Kfz.234/4 · 15 cm Pz.W.42 |
ATGM Carrier | RakJPz 2 · RakJPz 2 (HOT) · Wiesel 1A2 |
Other | Waffenträger · M109G · JPz 4-5 · Raketenautomat · VT1-2 |