Panzer 38(t)

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Panzer 38(t)

Panzerkampfwagen 38 (t) Ausf. S
Specifications
Weight 9.5 tonnes
Length 4.61 m
Width 2.14 m
Height 2.40 m
Crew 4
Armour 8-30 mm Model A-D
50 mm Model E
Primary
armament		 1x 3.7 cm KwK 38(t) L/47.8
Secondary
armament		 2 x 7.92 mm ZB53 (Model 37) MG
Engine gasoline Praga EPA 6-cylinder
126 hp (95 kW)
Power/weight hp/tonne
Suspension Leaf Spring
Operational
range		 160 to 250 km
Speed 42 km/h (road)
15 km/h (off-road)

The Panzerkampfwagen 38(t) was a Czechoslovakian tank used by Germany during World War II. (The Czechoslovak military designation was LT-38. Manufacturer's designations included TNH series, TNHPS, LTP and LTH). The special vehicle designation for the tank in Germany was SdKfz.140.

Contents

[edit] Description

The Panzer 38(t) was a conventional pre-World War II tank design, with riveted armor and rear engine.

The riveted armor was not sloped, and varied in thickness from 10 mm to 25 mm in most versions. Later models (Ausf E on) increased this to 50 mm.

The two man turret was centrally located, and housed the tank's main armament, a 37 mm Skoda A7 gun with 90 rounds stored on board. It was equipped with a 7.92 mm machine gun to the right of the main ordnance. Interestingly, the turret machinegun was in a separate ball mount rather than a coaxial mount. This meant the machinegun needed to be trained on targets independently, rather than being aimed with the main gun. The driver was in the front right of the hull, with the bow machinegunner seated to the left, manning a 7.92 mm machine gun. As with many 1930s tanks, the bow gunner was also the radio operator. A total of 2,550 rounds were carried for the bow and coaxial machine guns.

The engine was mounted in the rear of the hull and drove the tank through a transmission with five forward gears and one reverse gear. It drove a forward drive sprocket, with the track running under four rubber tire road wheels and back over a rear idler and two track return rollers. The wheels were mounted on a leaf-spring double-bogie mounted on two axles. Despite the large wheel size, the tank did not use a Christie suspension.

[edit] Development

In 1935, the Czechoslovak tank manufacturer ČKD were looking at as replacement for the LT-35 tank they were jointly producing with Škoda Works. The LT-35 was complex and had shortcomings, and ČKD felt there would be orders both from the expanding Czechoslovak army and for export.

ČKD decided to use a suspension with four large wheels for their new tank. It resembled the Christie suspension outwardly, but was actually a conventional leaf spring unit. The resulting vehicle was reliable, and an export success: 50 were exported to Iran, 24 each to Peru and Switzerland. Latvia also ordered some. Britain evaluated one tank, but rejected it.

On July 1, 1938, Czechoslovakia ordered 150 of the TNHPS model, although none had entered service by the time of the German occupation. After the German takeover, Germany ordered continued production of the model, as it was considered an excellent tank, especially compared to the Panzer I and Panzer II tanks that were the Panzerwaffe's main tanks. It was first introduced into German service under the name LTM 38; this was changed on 16 January 1940 to Panzerkampfwagen 38 (t). Production of tanks for Germany continued into 1942, and amounted to more than 1,400 examples. Examples were also sold to a number of German allies, including Hungary (102), Slovakia (69), Romania (50), and Bulgaria (10). In German service the 38(t) was used as a substitute for the Panzer III.

A modified Panzer 38(t) chassis was also the basis for a number of self-propelled gun mountings and tank destroyers, including the highly successful German Jagdpanzer 38 Hetzer tank-destroyer.

The Panzer 38(t) was manufactured up to the middle of World War II. Manufacture ceased because the small turret wasn't capable of taking a weapon big enough to destroy the latest tanks. However, because the chassis was mechanically reliable, turretless versions were built with a weapon mounted on the superstructure. Assault guns, anti-tank guns and anti-aircraft guns were mounted on the chassis. A Swedish variant, the Sav m/43, remained in use until 1970, which is probably a longevity record for a pre-WW2 tank.

[edit] Variants

LTH
LTH
  • TNHP Initial export version to Iran (50 ordered in 1935) (Iran was the first customer)
  • LTP export version to Peru
  • LTH export version to Switzerland
  • LT vz. 38 Czechoslovak Army designation (none entered service)
  • Strv m/41 version built under license in Sweden
  • Sav m/43 assault gun on TNH hull, built by Sweden
  • PzKpfw 38(t) A-D TNH tank in German manufacture
  • PzKpfw 38(t) E-G Pz 38(t) with frontal armour increased to 50 mm
  • PzKpfw 38(t) Ausf S Ordered by Sweden but seized by Germany
  • SdKfz 138 Marder III carried German 75 mm gun in open-top superstructure
  • SdKfz 139 Marder III carried Soviet 76.2 mm gun in open-top superstructure
  • SdKfz 138/1 Grille carried German 150 mm infantry gun; also munition variant which carried ammunition
  • SdKfz 140 Flakpanzer 38(t) carried a 20 mm anti-aircraft gun
  • SdKfz 140/1 reconnaissance tank
  • SdKfz 141/1 reconnaissance version with 20 mm turret from a SdKfz.222 armored car
  • Jagdpanzer 38(t) Hetzer a tank destroyer carrying a 75 mm L/48 anti-tank gun
  • G-13 Swiss designation for Hetzers sold to Switzerland by Czechoslovakia after the war

[edit] Characteristics

[edit] TNH P-S

  • General
    • Role: Light/medium tank
    • Manufacturer: ČKD
    • Crew: Commander, gunner, driver, bow machine gunner-operator of radio
  • Armament and armor
    • Main armament: 37.2 mm Skoda A7 gun
    • Coaxial armament: 7.92 mm machine gun
    • Bow armament: 7.92 mm machine gun
    • Ammunition: 90 rounds of 37.2 mm and 2,550 rounds of 7.92 mm
    • Armor: 10 mm to 25 mm
  • Power and weight
    • Engine: Praga EPA six-cylinder inline water-cooled petrol
    • Transmission: 5 forward, 1 reverse
    • Power: 112 kW (150 hp)
    • Weight: 9,700 kg (21,400 lb)
    • Power/Weight: 11.5 kW/metric ton (14.0 hp/short ton)
  • Performance
    • Max road speed: 42 km/h
    • Max range: 200 km
    • Fording: 0.9 m
    • Gradient: 60%
    • Vertical obstacle: 0.8 m
    • Trench: 1.9 m
  • Dimensions
    • Length: 4.55 m
    • Width: 2.13 m
    • Height: 2.31 m

[edit] Panzer 38(t) Aus. A-C

  • General
    • Role: Medium tank
    • Crew: 4
  • Armament and armor
    • Main armament: 37.2 mm Skoda A7 (L/47.8) gun with 90 rounds
    • Secondary armament: 2 x 7.92 mm MG 37(t) (Model 37) machine gun with 2,550 rounds.
    • Armour: front 25 mm, side 15 mm
  • Power and weight
    • Engine: Prage EPA Model I inline six-cylinder liquid cooled petrol
    • Transmission: 5 forward, 1 reverse
    • Power: 95 kW (126 hp)
    • Weight: combat: 9.5 tonnes, dry: 8.5 tonnes
    • Power/Weight: 10 kW/metric ton (13.0 hp/short ton)
  • Performance
    • Speed: 56 km/h (35 mph)
    • Range: 200 km (125 miles)
  • Dimensions
    • Length: 4.61 m
    • Width: 2.14 m
    • Height: 2.40 m

[edit] Operational history

Panzer 38(t) performed well in the Polish campaign in 1939 and the Battle of France in 1940. It was also used in the German invasion of the Soviet Union from 1941 onwards but was outclassed by Soviet tanks such as the T-34. The vehicle continued to serve after 1941 as a reconnaissance vehicle and in anti-partisan units for some time.

Flakpanzer 38(t) was not a success as it was too poorly armed. In fact, it often became the target of allied fighter-bombers.[citation needed] Its armour was too thin to prevent damage from heavy aircraft machine guns.

The Hetzer and Marder models of tank destroyers were very successful, in particular the Hetzer. 2,584 Hetzers were produced during the war, with production continuing for the Czechoslovak Army after the war. 158 post-war examples were sold to Switzerland and served into the 1960s.

Removal of turrets from Panzer 38(t) tanks for conversion of the chassis to tank destroyer and other uses freed 351 turrets for use in fortifications in various locations. Almost half of these (150) were used in Southwest Europe, while 78 went to the Eastern Front, 75 to Norway, 25 were used in Italy, 20 in Denmark, and 9 were emplaced in the Atlantic Wall. The small-bore armament and thin armor of the turrets made them insignificant as an anti-tank pillbox by the later stages of the war, but they were still useful in combating infantry attacks.

[edit] Campaigns

[edit] Further resources

[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

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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 | ADGZ
Self propelled anti-aircraft
Flakpanzer IV: Möbelwagen, Wirbelwind, Ostwind, Kugelblitz | Flakpanzer 38(t)
Prototypes
Maus | E- series | Panther II | Waffenträger | Neubaufahrzeug
Proposed designs
Panzer VII 'Löwe' | Panzer IX | Panzer X | Ratte | Monster
German armored fighting vehicle production during World War II
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