28 / 32 cm Nebelwerfer 41 The 28 / 32 cm Nebelwerfer 41 ( 28 / 32 cm NbW 41 ) was a German multiple rocket launcher used in the Second World War . It served with units of the so called " Nebeltruppen " , the German equivalent of the U . S . Army ' s " Chemical Corps " . The " Nebeltruppen " had responsibility for poison gas and smoke weapons that were used instead to deliver high - explosive s during the war . The name " Nebelwerfer " is best translated as " fog - thrower " . It saw service from 1941 – 45 in all theaters except Norway and the Balkans . Description . The " 28 / 32 cm NbW 41 " was a six - barrelled rocket launcher mounted on a two - wheeled carriage . Two stabilizer arms and a spade under the towing ring served to steady the carriage while firing . It used two different rockets . The open metal frames of the launcher were sized to fit the rocket , but adapter rails were provided to allow the rockets to fit . The " 28 cm Wurfkörper Spreng ( Explosive missile ) " rocket weighed and had a high - explosive warhead . The " 32 cm Wurfkörper Flamm ( Incendiary missile ) " was normally filled with ( ) of incendiary oil ( " Flammöl " ) , but could carry poison gases or decontamination fluids . The oil could cover Both rockets were spin - stabilized and electrically - fired . They had a prominent exhaust trail that kicked up a lot of debris , so the crew had to seek shelter before firing . This meant that they were easily located and had to displace quickly to avoid counter - battery fire . The rockets were fired one at a time , in a timed ripple , but the launcher had no capability to fire single rockets . Many launchers were converted from 1943 to use the new " 30 cm Wurfkörper 42 " rockets as the 30 cm Nebelwerfer 42 . Schweres Wurfgerät 40 / 41 . The 28 and 32 cm rockets could also be fired from their packing cases ( " Packkiste " ) which had short hinged legs to adjust elevation . They could also be mounted in groups of four on wooden ( " schwere Wurfgerät 40 – heavy missile device " ) or tubular metal ( " schwere Wurfgerät 41 ( sWG 41 ) " ) launch frames . The external dimensions of the packing cases were identical so no adapter was needed for the smaller rockets . The packing cases could also be mounted on " schwere Wurfrahmen 40 ( sWuR 40 ) " frames attacked to the sides of " Sd . Kfz . 251 / 1 " half - track armored personnel carrier or various captured French tracked vehicles . The " sWuR 40 " was nicknamed the " Stuka - zu - Fuß ( Stuka on foot ) " . SWG 40 in action . A sequence showing " sWG 40 " launchers being used against Warsaw , during the Warsaw Uprising in 1944 . Organization and use . The " 28 / 32 cm NbW 41 " was organized into batteries of six launchers with three batteries per battalion . These battalions were concentrated in independent " Werfer - Regiments " and " Brigades " . The rockets in their packing cases could be used by units ranging from mechanized infantry ( " Panzergrenadier " ) to engineers to positional rocket regiments ( " Stellungs - Werfer - Regimenter " ) . The first units were organized after the Battle of France in 1940 and they saw service on the Eastern Front , Italian Campaign and the defense of France and Germany from 1940 – 45 .