Educational Thread about Educational Stuff.

[lordofthesilver]

German Tanks of  World War II

Panzers, the German tanks which stormed all of Europe in World War II

Panzer I

Spoiler :

A very small light tank (6 tons) with a crew of two, driver and commander, armed with two light 0.3" machine guns (with 1500 rounds), which was produced in the mid 1930s as a training tank. Over 800 tanks were produced in 1935, and the tank was used by the German forces which participated in the Spanish civil war. When World War 2 started the German army had nearly 1500 Panzer I tanks. They participated in the Blitzkrieg invasion of Poland in 1939, although it was known that they are not suitable for front line fighting because of their lack of firepower and very thin armor. In the Blitzkrieg invasion of France in 1940 only 500 of them participated. The others remained in Germany and Poland. By the end of 1941 they were no longer used in front line service, except a command tank version, which contained a small map table and extra radio equipment for use by Panzer unit commanders. The chassis of the obsolete tanks was converted for carrying ammunition or an anti-tank gun, but these also became obsolete and were phased out.

Panzer II

Spoiler :

[i]A light tank (10 tons) with a crew of three, developed in the mid 1930s as an interim until the arrival of the Panzer III and Panzer IV medium tanks. Despite being primarily intended as a training tank, it was the main tank in the Blitzkrieg invasions of Poland and France, where about 1000 Panzer IIs participated. It also participated in the invasion of Russia in 1941, although it was already obsolete, and lacked armor and firepower. It was armed with a 20mm gun (with 180 rounds) and a coaxial 0.3" machine gun. The Panzer II was also the basis for several special tank types: a fast recon tank, an amphibious tank, equipped with a propeller, developed for the intended invasion of England in 1940, and a flamethrower tank ( called Flammpanzer II ) equipped with two flamethrowers (100 were in service by 1942). When the Panzer II tank became obsolete, it was converted to a self-propelled anti-tank gun, using captured Russian 76mm guns ( called Marder I ) and German 75mm guns ( Marder II ). A self-propelled 105mm artillery gun version ( called Wespe ) was produced in occupied Poland.[/i]

Panzer III

Spoiler :

[i]A medium tank (22 tons) with a crew of five, the main German tank in 1940-1942. Initially it had a 37mm gun (and two machine guns), but was planned for future use of bigger guns. It participated in small numbers in the invasion of Poland, but mass production began after the beginning of World War 2, with a 50mm gun . Since the new gun was too weak against Russian T-34 tanks, a more powerful 50mm gun was installed. Later types had an even bigger 75mm gun, same as that of the Panzer IV, with 64 rounds. Production ended in mid 1943, but production of a self-propelled gun version continued until the end of the war. There were also a command tank version and other versions. A total of 15,000 were produced.[/i]

Panzer IV

Spoiler :

[i]A medium tank (25 tons) with a crew of five, which was produced since 1936 and until the end of the war, and became the main German tank. It carried a short-barreled 75mm gun, later replaced by a stronger long-barreled 75mm gun (with 87 rounds), and two machine guns (one coaxial and one anti-aircraft on top, with 3000 rounds). Its excellent chassis remained unchanged despite many modifications and additions of extra armor, and was also the base for many variants, such as tank destroyers ( Jagdpanzer IV ), self-propelled guns and anti-aircraft guns, and others. [/i][i]9,000 Panzer IV's were produced, and more would have been produced as Guderian recommended, if it was not for Hitler's obsession for complex and very expensive advanced weapons, the Panther, Tiger, and King Tiger heavy tanks in that case, which reduced the production of the Panzer IV even before they were fully developed and tested.[/i]

Panther

Spoiler :

[i]The Panther ( Panzer V ) was a heavy tank (45 tons) with a crew of four, which was designed to counter the excellent Russian T-34 tank. It had a sloped armor (for better protection) and carried a long-barreled 75mm gun (with 79 rounds) and two machine guns (one coaxial and one anti-aircraft on top). Production began at the end of 1942 . The plan was to produce 600 Panthers per month, but its complexity (there were hundreds of production sub-contractors) and the allied bombing campaign against the German industry cut production to half of that, and even less. A total of just 4,800 were produced. It was rushed into production without proper trials, and as a result more Panthers were initially lost to mechanical problems than to enemy action. [/i][i]The problems were later fixed, and the Panther is considered the best German tank of the war. The Panther tank initially fought in the battle of Kursk in July 1943, the greatest tank battle of the war, and served in all fronts until the end of the war. It was widely used in Normandy after D-Day.[/i]

Tiger

Spoiler :

[i]Extremely lethal and extremely armored, the Tiger and its later version Tiger II ( King Tiger ) were the most dreaded German tanks. Their technical complexity limited their production and field use. [/i][i]After years of research for a heavy next generation tank, German designers were eventually required to quickly produce one by Hitler's 53rd birthday in April 1942. It would be armed with the most powerful German gun, the 88mm, which was used both as a heavy anti-aircraft gun and as an anti-tank gun. Two prototypes were ready for Hitler's birthday, and one, by Henschel, was selected for production. Officially marked Panzer VI, it was the first German tank which was given a name, they named it Tiger. 1350 Tigers were produced between August 1942 and August 1944, when production shifted to the heavier and even more powerful Tiger II, which was named King Tiger. There were only two variants of the Tiger, a gunless command tank, and a strange heavy rockets launcher version of which only 10 were produced. The gunless command tank was equipped with a winch for its secondary role of tank tow, a sign of the many technical problems that caused the loss of many German tanks. The Tiger was an outstanding design. Many modern tanks are remote descendants of it. It had an extremely powerful gun and matching optics, which allowed it to kill every other tank from a longer range. It had very thick armor which made it almost indestructible from front. But it was also very complex for production and maintenance, unlike its American and Russian enemies which were mass produced in great numbers and were very reliable in the field. Its complex suspension wheels system, designed to carry its heavy weight, could get stuck with stones and even with mud, a severe problem for a tank. This was particularly severe in the Russian winter, where frozen mud totally immobilized Tigers during the night, making them sitting ducks in the morning, when the Russians attacked. It also had two sets of tracks, one for roads and one for the field and combat, an even greater complexity. The Tiger was a heavy tank (55 tons) with a crew of five. It carried 84 rounds for its killer 88mm gun, and was also armed with two machine guns, one coaxial and one above the front hull, with almost 6000 rounds. It was slower than other tanks and had a road range of just 100km, which was an increasing problem as Germany's fuel supply was decimated towards the end of the war, but in the battlefield its firepower and protection were unmatched.[/i]