I'm reading something called The Longest Battle, by Harry Yeide. It's a very comprehensive story about the push to the Rhine, encompassing the Siegfried Line, Aachen and so on. Anyway, at Aachen the Germans deployed the Funklenk, a miniature armored vehicle packed with explosives and controlled via radio from a specially outfitted Panzer nearby. Apparently, these were first used to push a roller to clear a gap through minefields, then later adapted to carry a very large explosive charge into enemy positions. At Aachen they failed miserably, probably because in city fighting they simply couldn't see far enough to direct them very well and it was likely troublesome to negotiate them through all the rubble. They were easily destroyed with bazookas or even .50 caliber rounds. I'd never heard of these before. Neat idea!
I'd never heard of this either. It prompted me to go look for it. I found this book, but it's kind of expensive. Funklenkpanzer: A History of German Army Remote- and Radio-Controlled Armor Units: Markus Jaugitz, David Johnston: 9780921991588: Amazon.com: Books Evidently, not many were produced, and they never saw combat. Too bad, because the concept was a good one, although maybe it's better that this was a wonderwaffen that never saw the light of day.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Springer_(tank) Goliath tracked mine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia There is video of some on Youtubes........just search Goliath or radio Controlled German mine.....I think Funklenk refers to the controller end of the operation
The book I mention in the OP details their use at Aachen by Panzer Abteilung (Funklenk) 301. They were used, they just weren't very successful.
I imagine the lack of sucess with this weapon can be explained by the very limited time that the German Army had to develop a doctrine for their specialist use, nor were units practiced enough with them to get the most out of the system. Their use at night against prepared positions could be very effective, or as part of an ambush. The 'Goliath' was quite vulnerable to small arms fire, so it's effective use became a matter of delivering it to the target without incurring too much in the way of return fire. More development and mass production of this weapon may well have changed the face of the battlefield in World War 2. Difficult to quantify, though, since the German Army was still a little conservative, despite being one of the innovators in their participation in that conflict.
Henschel Hs 293 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Henschel Hs 293 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Ideas such as the Funklenk sound clever until they become a real nuisance and the counter measures come into play. The Henschel HS 293 air launched radio guided missile scored some early successes but the Allies simply developed effective jamming equipment. End of story - maybe the same fate awaited the Funklenk
Couple of little threads on a Funklenkpanzer-ish theme: http://www.ww2f.com/weapons-technology-wwii/20514-tele-tanks.html http://www.ww2f.com/information-requests/38551-french-remote-control-tanks-1940-a.html Never did buy that book... Hmmmm... ~A
In the Yeide book, the failure is attributed to using them on very poor terrain. They were directed from a Panzer with poor visibility to begin with, and used in a city environment filled with rubble and burning buildings. The operator simply couldn't see well enough to keep the vehicle from running into things and getting to its target. They apparently weren't very well armored either, since they were simply shot up on approach. The GI's saw enough of these in Aachen to give them the nickname "Doodlebugs." I wonder how fast these things were? If they had some speed, they might have been quite effective in open terrain or down a straight road into a roadblock/AT gun where the speed and low profile might have kept them from being hit. Of course, German Panzers and Stugs had better range than most any allied gun, so it would be more efficient to simply stay out of range and shoot up such a target rather than sending in a Funklenk.
