Panzer nest (German machine gun armoured bunker)

Panzer nest (from a German word meaning “an armoured nest” ) is a a mobile steel pillbox weighing more than 3 tons. This sample was found by “The memory of Afgan” search team on the outskirts of Borisov, not far from the Beresina River. The thickness of armour plate in the front is 191 mm, and on the sides and ceiling it is 45 mm.

The gun was operated by two gunmen - one of them was shooting and the other was watching the battlefield. The surveillance was performed through the periscopes. The openings for the periscopes are situated on top of the pillbox and are closed with the gate valves 30 mm each.

The armoured firing post is designed for the MG-34 or MG-42 machine guns. The gun was mounted on a special bracket and could be moved freely on a horizontal semi-circular board. The zone of fire is 60 degrees. The ammunition supply was arranged on the shelves below the machine gun in the front part of the pillbox. A leather case was installed in front of the trigger assembly to remove the explosive gases and to collect empty cartridge cases. The explosive gases were removed by a small ventilator operated by two foot-pedals. The pillbox was heated by a small heating stove. To avoid detection the operational manual recommends to use only charcoal for its heating.

The pillbox was transported to the place of installation in inverted position on special wooden wheels. On the sides and on top of the pillbox there are two openings for the semi-axes used during the wheel transportation. Later it was overthrown in a previously prepared pit, and the top part of the pillbox was covered with stones, earth and some local vegetation. The entrance to the pillbox was a small door in the rear, 50 x 60 cm in size.

According to the handbook for infantrymen of the Red Army, the aimed fire from anti-tank or artillery weapon was the most effective way to destroy an armoured pillbox. First and foremost the periscopes had to be destroyed by artillery, mortar or shooter’s fire.

Since the zone of fire was 60 degrees only, some of the pillboxes could be destroyed by the attack teams moving from the assailable flanks and from the backside. While reaching the pillbox the infantrymen had to pelt the embrasure with sandbags and then blast it with concentrated charge of explosives. If there were no explosives or Molotov cocktails, stones and logs could successfully block the entrance.