Why German MP40 Terrified U.S. Soldiers

This MP40 submachine gun military history documentary covers why the Germans started using captured Soviet weapons despite having one of the best submachine guns of their own. The answer has everything to do with what happened when they met the Red Army in the rubble of Soviet cities. This WWII weapons history documentary covers the origins of submachine guns in the First World War trenches. The MP18 that armed German stormtroopers in 1918. The MP38 with no wood at all and the first folding stock ever put on a submachine gun. The MP40 optimized for mass production at 57 Reichsmarks per unit. The video covers how the German infantry squad was built around the machine gun. Only NCOs carried the MP40 early in the war. That changed on the Eastern Front where close quarters combat made submachine guns essential again. This firearms documentary covers the comparison with the Soviet PPSh-41. The 1,200 rounds per minute rate of fire versus the MP40's 500. The 71-round drum magazine versus 32. Why German command tried to ban troops from using captured Soviet weapons and then gave up and converted 10,000 of them to 9mm instead. The PPSh became the second most common submachine gun in German service. The video covers the MP40's biggest weakness. The single-feed magazine design. The Sturmgewehr 44 that replaced it in production focus by 1944. Script written by:    / andreja-rakocevic   Contact: [email protected] Unbelievable True Stories covers the forgotten and surprising corners of history. Facebook: facebook.com/profile.php?id=61587274704384 X: x.com/UTStoriesYT Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/utsproducti... Unbelievable True Stories covers the forgotten and surprising corners of history. © Unbelievable True Stories 2025 Chapters: 0:00 They Started Using Captured Soviet Guns 1:13 The World's First Practical Submachine Gun 3:24 The First One With No Wood 4:30 Then Came the MP40 7:00 Only Some Troops Had One 8:14 Then Came Stalingrad 10:58 The Biggest Weakness 13:23 Then Came the Assault Rifle