Warszawa II (28 page)

Description: Regarded by many as the war's best mediumheavy tank, the Russians chose to classify it as a heavy tank. Originally set into production in 1942 as a solution the Soviet T-34, it was the first German tank with effectively sloped armour. Its design was complicated and it was often taken out of action, beset with problems in its hydraulic, gear-change, and wheel mounting systems. In the hands of well-train tank personnel, it was a life-threatening weapon even to the crews manning the allies' heaviest tanks. Fortunately, “Panthers” were never produced in sufficient number to meet the Germans' needs. All told, 3,750 variation G tanks were produced. And the combined production total for all variations was 6,100 Panthers.

Germany's most important tank during the entire war, along with being the most produced. Blueprinted before the war, its more traditional square appearance was kept throughout the war. In terms of its weaponry and armour protection, they were upgraded constantly and while this caused the weight of the vehicle to increase, its engine performance did not and its overall manoeuvrability consequently suffered. By the end of the war, the development of most allied tanks had surpassed and outclassed the model in terms of both armaments and protection. However, there was no alternative available in sufficient number to replace the tank with the German army. In addition, the chassis was used as the basic platform for a flood of special vehicles and variations of weaponry, for example, the Brummbär and the Jagdpanzer IV, etc. Altogether, 5,400 examples of both variations were ultimately manufactured.

Italy's most vital tank and the model they produced the most examples of. Typically, the Germans seized all functioning models of the tank as well as all functioning Italian transportation, on their capitulation in 1943. The Germans gave the tank their own id-number and used them as German Police tanks in the occupied territories: As a combat threat, the vehicle was insufficiently armed and the armour plating was designed for conditions in 1938/39 – Mechanically, they were unreliable and, in addition, the Germans lacked spare parts for them for obvious reasons. The M13/40 was the 1940 model, and likewise, the M14/41, the 1941model. The 1942 version, the M15/42, had hardly any production time before Italian capitulation.

Germany's most produced special purpose AT (All-terrain) vehicle, or self-propelled, so-called “Armoured hunter.” Ironically enough, they were built on a chassis from Czechslovakia, and stretching this irony even further is the fact that it was the Czechs who succeeded in producing them great quantity and not the Germans,

It had a very simple and robust design, which even came to be used by the Swiss Army after the war. A low silhouette, relatively good armour protection and a reliable main gun, but above all, it was the ease of its operation that made it popular amongst the troops. In total, some 2,700 Hetzers were built between the summer of 1944 and the cessation of the war.

Description: The predecessor of the Sturmtiger. Modelled on the Pz Kpfw IV and was armed with a 15 cm StuH L/12. Actually highly successful as it could also be used for indirect artillery support for infantry forces. Over 300 were manufactured.

A variation on the renowned Tiger. Behind its reinforced armour was installed a massive 38 cm howitzer which fired 344 kg shells. Partly due to experience gained from the battle for Stalingrad, the Germans knew that offensive warfare in an urban environment required powerful weapons to obliterate buildings constructed of concrete and stone. The Sturmstiger could solve this problem thanks to its massive armament. The only problem was that, at that point in time, the Germans didn't need massive offensive weapons for urban warfare, quite the opposite. As a result, only eighteen were ever manufactured.