Panzerjäger I
Template:Use dmy dates Template:Short description Template:Italic title Template:Infobox weapon
The Template:Lang I (English: "tank hunter mark I") was the first German Template:Lang ("tank hunter") to see service in the Second World War. It mounted the Czech 4.7 cm KPÚV vz. 38 (German designation "4.7 cm Template:Lang (t)") anti-tank gun on a converted open-topped Panzer I Template:Lang chassis. It was intended to counter heavy French tanks like the Char B1 bis that were beyond the capabilities of the 3.7 cm Pak 36 anti-tank gun and extended the life of the obsolete Panzer I chassis.Template:Sfn A total of 202 Panzer I chassis were converted to Template:Lang I standard in 1940–41, and were employed in the Battle of France, in the North Africa campaign and on the Eastern Front.
Design and production
The Panzer I turret was removed and a fixed gun shield added to protect the armament and crew. The anti-tank gun was mounted on a pedestal in the fighting compartment after wheels, axle and trails were removed, but retained its original gun shield.Template:Sfn It normally carried 74 antitank and 10 HE shells.Template:Sfn Alkett and contractors built 202 vehicles, the first series of 132 by Alkett in 1940. Ten of the second series of 70 were assembled by Alkett while the remainder were assembled by Klöckner-Humboldt-Deutz in 1940 and 1941. The first series had a five-sided shield.;Template:Sfn vehicles in the second series are recognizable by their seven-sided gun shield.
The formal name was Template:Lang, translating as "4.7 cm antitank gun (Czech) (self-propelled) on armoured combat vehicle I without turret".
| Front | Side | Rear | Top/bottom | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gun shield | Template:Cvt at 27° |
Template:Cvt at 27° |
none | none |
| Superstructure | Template:Cvt at 22° |
Template:Cvt at 12° |
Template:Cvt at 0° |
Template:Cvt |
| Hull | Template:Cvt at 27° |
Template:Cvt at 0° |
Template:Cvt at 17° |
Template:Cvt |
Organization
Panzerjägers were organized into companies of nine vehicles, with three companies per battalion,Template:Sfn although for the French Campaign, anti-tank battalion Panzerjäger-Abteilung 521 had just six vehicles in each company.Template:Sfn For the remainder of the war, they were used solely by independent antitank battalions, with two exceptions post the Balkans campaign, one company was assigned to the SS-Brigade Leibstandarte der SS Adolf Hitler and another to Template:Lang 900 of Template:Lang ("900th Motorized Training Brigade") in preparation for Operation Barbarossa.Template:Sfn
Combat history
Template:Lang 521, 616, 643 and 670 had 99 vehicles in the Battle of France. Only Template:Lang 521 participated in the campaign from the beginning; the other three were still training until a few days after the campaign began but were sent to the front as training finished.Template:Sfn
Twenty-seven Template:Lang equipped Template:Lang 605 in North Africa. It arrived in Tripoli, Libya between 18 and 21 March 1941. Five replacements were sent in September 1941 but only three arrived on 2 October, the others being lost when the freighter Castellon was sunk by the submarine HMS Perseus. At the start of the British Operation Crusader the battalion was at full strength but lost thirteen vehicles during the battles. Four more replacements were sent in January 1942 so that it mustered seventeen at the beginning of the Battle of Gazala. Despite the shipment of another three vehicles from September–October 1942, the battalion only had eleven by the beginning of the Second Battle of El Alamein. The last two replacements were received by the battalion in November 1942.Template:Sfn
Template:Lang 521, 529, 616, 643 and 670 were equipped with 135 Template:Lang for Operation Barbarossa. They were assigned as given below for the opening stages of the battle:Template:Sfn
| Template:Lang | Corps | Army | Army Group |
|---|---|---|---|
| 521 | XXIV Corps | 2nd Panzer Group | Army Group Center |
| 529 | VII Corps | 4th Army | Army Group Center |
| 616 | 4th Panzer Group | Army Group North | |
| 643 | XXXIX Corps (mot.) | 3rd Panzer Group | Army Group Center |
| 670 | 1st Panzer Group | Army Group South |
By 27 July 1941, Template:Lang 529 had lost four Template:Lang vehicles. On 23 November 1941 it reported that it still had 16 vehicles, although two were not operational.<ref name=J8>Jentz, p. 58</ref> On 5 May 1942, Template:Lang 521 reported that only five of those vehicles still existed. Template:Lang 529 had only two on strength when it was disbanded on 30 June 1942. Template:Lang 616 seems to have been an exception as it reported all three companies were equipped with the Template:Lang, during mid or late 1942.Template:Sfn
Combat assessments
- Template:Lang 643, 25 July 1940
- "The Template:Cvt armor-piercing shells (Template:Lang) were effective against Template:Convert thick armor at ranges up to Template:Convert – sufficient to Template:Convert. Observation was limited; the crew, with the exception of the driver, had to look over the gun shield to observe what is in front of the Template:Lang, resulting in the exposure of body parts to potential dangers; namely shots to the head (also known as Template:Lang in German). In effect, the crew behind the gun shield were blind in urban combat, suppressing fire and individual tanks".Template:Sfn
- Template:Lang 521, July 1941
- "The effective range of the 4.7 cm Pak(t) is Template:Convert with a maximum range of Template:Convert. When attacking an enemy position equipped with anti-tank guns and artillery, namely near Mogilev and Rogachev, its rather tall superstructure presented a target for artillery and anti-tank guns. Thus, the Template:Lang is destroyed before it can get into action. When large shells explode close-by, shrapnel pierced the thin armor. Russian Template:Cvt anti-tank guns already penetrated at Template:Convert range. The 1st Template:Lang lost five out of the ten vehicles (Template:Lang) in such actions, of which only two could be repaired."Template:Sfn
- Template:Lang 605, July 1942
- "The accuracy of this weapon was commented on; as it will usually hit its target with the first shot at ranges up to Template:Convert. However, its penetration qualities were far too low for the necessary combat ranges in the desert of North Africa. The chassis, engine and suspension were constantly in need of care due to the additional weight of the anti-tank gun. In one case, three Mk II (Matilda II infantry tanks) were penetrated at a range of Template:Convert by 4.7 cm tungsten-core armor-piercing shell (Pz.Gr. 40). It usually penetrates Template:Convert of armor. Therefore, a small percentage of these rounds are desired. The 4.7 cm armor-piercing shell (Pz.Gr. 36(t)) will not penetrate a Mk.II at Template:Convert. But the crew will abandon the tank because fragments spall off the armor on the inside."Template:Sfn
See also
- [[Renault R35#Germany|Template:Lang]] – similar German vehicle mounting a 47 mm gun on a Renault R35 chassis
- Semovente da 47/32 – comparable Italian vehicle using a 47 mm gun
- TACAM R-1 – Romanian project comparable in characteristics
Notes
References
External links
- Surviving Panzer I tanks - A PDF file presenting the Panzer I tanks (PzKpfw. I, VK1801, Panzerbefehlswagen, Panzerjäger I tanks) still existing in the world