June 21, 2025

Preview: Stuka Zu Fuss in 1/35th scale from Snowman Model...

For their second 1/35th scale Sd.Kfz.251 kit, Snowman Model is releasing the famous Stuka zu Fuss ("Stuka on Foot" or "Walking Stuka") mit 28 or 32cm Wurfrahmen 40 rockets on the sides. See the CADs, features, art & the real machines in our preview...

Preview: Stuka Zu Fuss in 1/35th scale from Snowman Model...

Sd.Kfz.251/1 Ausf.D mit 28/32cm Wurfrahmen 40 Stuka Zu Fuss.
From Snowman Model
Kit No: SP-8004
1/35th scale
Three marking choices included in the box
The Subject: Sd.Kfz.251/1 Ausf.D mit 28/32cm Wurfrahmen 40 Stuka Zu Fuss.
The Sd.Kfz.251 half-track was an armoured fighting vehicle (AFV) that was deployed by the Wehrmacht on all operational fronts during the Second World War. Powered by a Maybach 6-cylinder petrol engine, it was able to reach a speed of 55 km/h even on ‘off-road’ terrain. Produced in huge numbers, it was mainly used to transport ‘Panzergrenadiers,’ but during the war several versions were developed to meet differing operational requirements. The Wurfrahmen rocket launcher version was built on the Sd.Kfz.251. Equipped with 6 compartments, 3 on each side, intended for the launch of rockets of different sizes, it was nicknamed “Stuka zu Fuss.” Although not precise, it could have an important psychological effect on enemy troops and still proved to be a valid support for ground troops, especially in urban fighting.

Loading the heavy rockets onto the half-track's side-launching crates.
Sd Kfz 251 Stuka Zu Fuss quipped with side-mounted frames for launching Wurfrahmen 40 rockets
The Wurfrahmen 40 (“launch frame 40”) was a German World War II multiple rocket launcher, typically mounted on the Sd.Kfz. 251 half-track to form a mobile and better-protected artillery platform than the towed Nebelwerfer. It was colloquially known as the Stuka zu Fuß (“Stuka on Foot”) and Heulende Kuh (“Bellowing Cow”), nicknames inspired by its distinctive sound and devastating barrage.

SdKfz 251 Stuka zu Fuss of 12th Panzer Division entering Minsk 1941
First introduced in late 1940, the system comprised adjustable launch frames mounted along the vehicle’s flanks, typically arranged in two rows of three base plates each. These frames supported 300 mm high-explosive rockets, as well as 280 mm HE and 320 mm incendiary variants—each fired directly from their wooden transport crates. Though spin-stabilised, the rockets lacked the precision of conventional artillery, and their considerable weight made reloading cumbersome. As a result, salvo firing in massed formations was preferred to maximise area saturation.

SdKfz 251 “Stuka zu Fuss” of 16 Panzer Division loading their projectiles.
The Wurfrahmen 40 proved effective as a close support weapon for armoured formations, particularly in urban combat, where its mobility and high-explosive punch complemented German mechanised assaults.

SdKfz 251 Stuka zu Fuss schwerer Wurfrahmen rocket launcher Russia

The kit, Snowman Model's Sd.Kfz.251/1 Ausf.D mit 28/32cm Wurfrahmen 40 Stuka Zu Fuss in 1/35th scale, is the second in the Sd.Kfz.251/Ausf.D series. This one would be an easy change in the adding of the rocket-launching crates and the projectiles themselves, but more about them in a second.
From the ground up, this is a full interior kit, with the whole engine and chassis, plus suspension and running gear included.
You can depict this as a working engine with the bonnet (hood)/cowling off the front of the half-track.
All of the usual features are shown in these CADs, with the light green shapes showing the extras added from their first edition kit.
Two types of rocket projectiles are included in this kit, with the 28cm & 32cm weapons a choice for the modeller.
The first batch of limited editions will come with two metal rocket projectiles.


This kit should be available in a month or two from Snowman Model's distributors