Flames of War - 160mm Mortar Battery (x4)

The 160 mm obr. 1943 mortar was the heaviest mortar used by the Soviets during World War II. It was capable of delivering a heavy payload up to 5000 meters and firing 10 rounds per minute.

Originally, it was simply a larger version of the 120-PM-38 mortar. However, with a 160 mm bomb weighing 40 kg, lifting it to the mouth of a 3 meter long mortar tube was hardly practical! The mortar was therefore redesigned to become a breech loading weapon. A recoil system was added to prevent the shock of firing a 160 mm bomb from driving the base plate into the ground.

Due to the weight of the weapon (over one metric ton), wheels were added to allow it to be towed behind a vehicle. With all these modifications, it began to look as much like a howitzer as a traditional mortar. However, it was less expensive and resource intensive to manufacture than guns and howitzers of the same caliber.