Raupenschlepper Ost
| Raupenschlepper Ost (RSO) | |
|---|---|
RSO towing 105 mm howitzer | |
| Type | Tracked prime mover |
| Place of origin | Nazi Germany |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1942 — 1945 |
| Wars | World War II |
| Production history | |
| Designed | Mid 1941 — Mid 1942 |
| Manufacturer | Steyr |
| Produced | September 1942 — 1945 |
| No. built | ~23,000 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 2.5-3 t |
| Length | 4.425 m (14 ft 6 in) |
| Width | 1.99 m (6 ft 6 in) |
| Height | 2.53 m (8 ft 4 in) |
| Crew | 2 (including Driver assistant) |
| Engine | Steyr V8 3.5l / 8-cylinder Petrol/ 85 PS (RSO/01)
5.5l / 4cyl Deutz diesel / 66 PS (RSO/03) 85/66 PS |
| Suspension | 4 quarter-elliptic leaf springs |
Operational range | 300 km (190 mi) |
| Maximum speed | 30 km/h (19 mph) |
Raupenschlepper Ost (German: "Caterpillar Tractor East", more commonly abbreviated to RSO) was a fully tracked, lightweight vehicle used by the Wehrmacht in World War II. It was conceived in response to the poor performance of wheeled and half-tracked vehicles in the mud and snow during the Wehrmacht's first autumn and winter on the Soviet Front.
The RSO was a contemporary with somewhat similar Allied full-tracked small artillery tractors in use in other armies (such as the Soviet STZ-5 "Stalingradets", and the U.S. Army's M4 tractor), mostly originated from the pre-war light to medium series of Vickers artillery tractors.
Two variants of this vehicle were built: the basic cargo carrier, and a self-propelled antitank vehicle armed with a PaK 40 gun. Both shared the same chassis.