Panzer 35(t)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Panzer 35(t), Belgrade Military Museum, Serbia.
LT vz.35
General characteristics
Crew 4
Length 4.90 m
Width 2.16 m
Height 2.20 m
Weight 11 tonnes
Armour and armament
Armour 25 mm
Main armament Skoda 37 mm Model 1934 gun
Secondary armament 2×7.92 mm MG
Mobility
Power plant gasoline Škoda T11
120 hp (90 kW)
Suspension leaf spring bogie
Road speed 34 km/h
Power/weight 11 hp/tonne
Range 193 km

The LT-35 or LT vz. 35 was a Czechoslovakian light tank used by Germany during World War II under the designation Panzerkampfwagen 35(t) (Pz.Kpfw. 35(t)) and commonly referred to as the Panzer 35(t).

Contents

[edit] Description

The LT-35 had a conventional tank design for the late 1930s, with riveted armor, a two-man turret, and rear-engine and drive. Main armament was a Škoda vz 34 37.2 mm gun operated by the tank commander for which 72 rounds were stored on board. A coaxial 7.92 mm machinegun was fitted as well. The second crewman in the turret was the loader for the main gun. In the front hull sat the driver to the right side with the bow machine gunner, who also served as the radio operator, to his left, manning the 7.92 mm machine gun fitted in the front armor plate. A total of 1,800 rounds of 7.92 mm ammunition was carried.

The Škoda six-cylinder engine produced 120hp. It was mounted in the rear along with the six-speed transmission and drove the rear drive wheel. Eight road wheels on four bogies carried the tank, with a single front idler, and four track return wheels. Both transmission and steering were mechanically assisted with compressed air, reducing driver fatigue. This last feature proved problematic in the extreme conditions of the Eastern Front.

[edit] Development

The LT vz35 was constructed in the Czech factory Škoda Works, and produced from 1936. Eighty were built by ČKD in 1937. Total production was 434, including 298 for the Czechoslovak Army, 126 for Romania (under designation Škoda R-2) and ten for Bulgaria (T-11). The Czechoslovak army had placed the initial order for the S-ll-a in October 1934, and had rushed development of the tank despite a great number of faults that came to light. The first production order for 160 tanks was placed on 30 October 1935, and deliveries began in July 1936. The Czechoslovak army placed a follow-on order for 103 in November 1937, and a third for 35 in 1938. In August 1936 Romania placed an order for 126; these were delivered from May 1937. Afghanistan ordered ten in 1938. The Afghan vehicles were exported to Bulgaria in 1939 on German orders. The Wehrmacht used 219 vehicles captured from the Czechoslovak army in March 1939.

[edit] Variants

  • S-ll-a - Original designation for prototypes
  • LT vz. 35 - basic Czechoslovak variant (37 mm A-3 gun)
  • T-11 - export variant for Bulgaria with better 37 mm A-7 gun
  • LTM 35 – designation when used by the German Cavalry until January 1940
  • Panzerkampfwagen 35(t) - German designation of LT-35
  • Panzerbefehlswagen 35(t) - German command tank variant
  • Mörserzugmittel 35(t) - German armored mortar tractor
  • R2 - Romanian designation of LT-35
  • TACAM R2 - Romanian tank destroyer on R-2 (LT-35) chassis
  • T21 - bigger prototype, produced in Hungary as Turan

[edit] Operational history

The LT vz.35 tanks were used in the Czechoslovak Army from 1937 until 1939.

In 1939, 219 vehicles of the Czechoslovak army were seized by the Germans. They were first used, from 5 June 1939, by the Cavalry as LTM 35. After 16 January 1940 they were used under the designation Pz.Kpfw. 35(t) by the German armored units, the Panzertruppe. Letter (t) stood for tschechoslowakisch (Czechoslovak), an assignment for captured equipment. The German 6th Panzer Division began the war (then still as the Cavalry 1st Leichte Division) equipped with them and the tanks served in Poland (1939), France (1940) and USSR (1941). The fighting in Russia exposed the vehicle's unsuitability for cold weather operations and general unreliability. Late November all PzKpfw 35 (t)s were reported inoperational. This weakness, in additon to their thin armor and inadequate firepower resulted in most being withdrawn from tank units and all 26 in working condition in 1942 sold to Romania. From 1940 on there had not been any spare parts available and tanks had in the end to be completely rebuilt to remain operational, so it had already been decided the summer campaign of 1941 was to be their last. The tank continued for another year in service with Slovakia and Romania. Some were later rebuilt by Germany as munition carriers.

The Axis Slovak army used 79 tanks against the USSR. Bulgaria used 26 tanks, delivered by Germany in March 1940, with the normal A-3 gun and 10 tanks with the better A-7 gun delivered in 1939. By Romania, the original 126 tanks were used against the USSR in 1941 and 1942. Twenty vehicles were rebuilt as tank destroyers TACAM R-2 with a 76.2 mm gun.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  • Bishop, Chris (ed.) 1998, The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II, Barnes & Noble, New York. ISBN 0-7607-1022-8.

[edit] External links


German armored fighting vehicles of World War II
Tanks
Panzer I | Panzer II | Panzer III | Panzer IV | Panther | Tiger I, II | Panzer 35(t) | Panzer 38(t)
Self-propelled artillery
Wespe | Hummel | Grille | Panzerwerfer | sIG 33 | Wurfrahmen 40
Assault guns
StuG III | StuG IV | StuH 42 | Brummbär | Sturmtiger
Tank destroyers
Panzerjäger I | Marder I , II , III | Hetzer | Jagdpanzer IV | Jagdpanther | Nashorn | Jagdtiger | Elefant
Half-tracks Armored cars
SdKfz 4 | 6 | 7 | 10 | 11 | 250 | 251 | 252 | 253 | 254 Sdkfz 221/22/23 | Sdkfz 231/32/34/63
Self propelled anti-aircraft
Flakpanzer IV: Möbelwagen, Wirbelwind, Ostwind, Kugelblitz | Gepard
Prototypes
Maus | E- series | Panther II | Waffenträger | Neubaufahrzeug
Proposed designs
Panzer VII 'Löwe'
German armored fighting vehicle production during World War II
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../p/a/n/Panzer_35%28t%29.html"