Royal Scots Dragoon Guards
German Towed/motorized anti-Tank weps
37mm Anti-Tank Gun |
Pak 40, 75mm Anti-Tank Gun |
Pak38, 50mm Anti-Tank Gun |
Pak 97/38, 75mm Anti-Tank Gun |
88mm PAK 43 |
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37mm Anti-Tank Gun (PAK 35/36)
The first anti-tank gun developed by the Germans after
the treaty of Versailles was the 37 mm PAK (Panzerabwehrkanone) 35/36 in 1933.
First used during the Spanish Civil War by the Condor Legion it stayed in
production until 1941..
It was in France in 1940 that
its shortcomings were discovered and came as a big shock, especially to the
Totenkopf Division who retreated with much haste when it was discovered that
their shells merely bounced off the heavily armored Matildas of the British
Expeditionary Force. Urgent demands for a replacement were placed.
It was a small, light gun
which weighed only 432kg (952.5lbs) and included a 4mm splinter shield and light
two wheeled carriage. It could penetrate only 48mm of Armour and that was at a
distance of 500m. The gunner who was situated on the left side could traverse
the gun 60 degrees left and right, could elevate it to 25 degrees and depress it
to 8 degrees. The loader was situated on the right side, next to the breech
block. Its rate of fire was 15 rounds per minute. It was virtually useless
against the T-34 unless a lucky flank or track hit was achieved. It was
christened "The Door Knocker" by the troops who used it.
IiIt''s
life was extended by the development of a hollow charge, fin stabilized round
designated Steilgrenate 41 which could penetrate 180mm of Armour plate. It was
fired by means of a blank cartridge much like a rifle grenade. It was also
fitted to the Hanomag 251/10 half-track belonging to the platoon leader of a
grenadier company.
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Pak38, 50mm Anti-Tank Gun
| The 5-cm gun, developed by
Rheinmetall-Borsig in the wake of the failure of the PAK 35/36 it was
rushed into service and was given to the troops in 1940. Much superior
to the PAK 35/36 it was also fitted to some Panzer III tanks. It had a barrel 3,187 mm (10.6 ft.) in length with semi-automatic horizontally sliding breechblock. The gun had a split trail with tubular spars. The carriage was equipped with rubber tired wheels and torsion bar suspension and a double splinter shield. It was effective against the T-34 and other Soviet tanks being able to penetrate 78mm of Armour at 500 yards. Although production was halted in 1943, the weapon was used until 1945. |
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Pak 40, 75mm Anti-tank Gun
| The 7.5-cm (75-mm) Model 40
antitank gun ("Hünengrab"), also developed by Rheinmetall,
was given to troops in 1942. It was basically a scaled up PAK 38. With
23,303 such guns produced between 1942 and 1945, it was the most
numerous weapon of its type. As with all German anti-tank guns it could
fire HE rounds and was used as a field gun in divisional artillery in
large units. The barrel was 3,450 mm (11.5 ft.) in length and had a
semi-automatic horizontally sliding breech block. Like the 5-cm gun, it
had a split trail and a double artillery shield. Its maximum Armour-piercing
capability was 91 mm (3.6 in.) of steel at 500 meters (550 yd.) and 80
mm (3.2 in.) at 1,000 meters (1,100 yd.). With improved ammunition,
these numbers could be increased to 108 or 87 mm (4.3 or 3.5 in.)
respectively. With hollow-charge projectiles, 90 mm (3.6 in.) of Armour
could be penetrated at any combat distance to a maximum of 1,800 meters
(1,980 yd.). It's weight (1,425kg) was a drawback as it was difficult to manhandle through mud, snow or rough terrain which was prevalent in Russia |
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Pak 97/38, 75mm Anti-Tank Gun
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88mm PAK 43
| The 88mm Flak was an extremely
accurate anti-aircraft gun which was first used in 1936 by the Condor
Legion in Spain. It was Rommel's Afrika Korps who first pioneered the
use of the 88mm as anti-gun against British Armour in the North African
Desert and so successful were the results that it became the most potent
anti-tank gun of the war. Soviet and Allied tank crews dreaded and
feared the 88mm as it could penetrate the Armour of any tank in service
during W.W.II. It was fitted to the MkIV Panzer chassis which became
known as the Hummell SP gun. It was also fitted in a modified form
complete with a muzzle brake to the Tiger I and II. It could fire HE, AP
and white phosphorus rounds which were particularly effective in
"blinding" enemy tank crews. The 8.8-cm (88-mm) PAK 43 ("Neuntöter") was developed by Krupp; it was introduced to the troops in large numbers in 1944. The carriage rested on a cruciform platform, but was lower than that of the similar 8.8-cm Model 18 antiaircraft gun. The barrel was 6,280 mm (20.9 ft.) in length with a drop breech mechanism. Depending on the type of ammunition used, the gun's maximum penetration capability was 274 mm (11 in.) of Armour at 500 meters (550 yd.) and 241 mm (9.6 in.) at 1,000 meters (1,100 yd.). Its maximum range was 17,500 meters (19,250 yd.). |
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