The commander, loader and gunner were in the turret, while the driver and radio operator were in the hull of the vehicle. The last 'production' Panthers were produced at the factory by German staff just after the end of World War II under the supervision of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) using available components. Despite this, the overall design has still been described by some as "overengineered". The large number of Panthers lost by enemy action (81 Panthers up to 10.7.) The demand for this tank was so high that the manufacturing was soon expanded beyond MAN to include Daimler-Benz (Berlin-Marienfelde, former DMG plant), Maschinenfabrik Niedersachsen Hanover (MNH, a subsidiary of Eisenwerk Wülfel/Hanomag) and the Tiger I's original designer, Henschel & Sohn in Kassel. Standard doctrine for purpose-built anti-tank guns of the period universally relied on small, dense solid projectiles propelled to high velocities, optimized for punching through armour. Osprey Publishing. Because of its adopted role as an impromptu heavy tank destroyer, capable of knocking out the heaviest German armoured vehicles — Tiger and Panther tanks, and Elefant tank destroyers — it was nicknamed Zveroboy ("Beast Slayer"). About 25 still had not been recovered by the repair service ... On the evening of 11 July, 38 Panthers were operational, 31 were total write-offs and 131 were in need of repair. Armour protection appeared to be inadequate, while "the motor mounted on the rear appeared to him correct". In July/August 1944, Hungary received at least 5 Panthers (Ausf A or Ausf G) which were used effectively in combat under the command of Hungarian tank ace Ervin Tarczay. Walter J Spielberger 1993, Panther & Its Variants p. 23. Like the Sherman, the Panther struggled in the bocage country of Normandy, and was vulnerable to side and close-in attacks in the built-up areas of cities and small towns. Another report about Panthers During Zitadelle: During the first days our combat forces were drastically reduced due to enemy action as well as losses due to technical problems. The Panther was born out of a project started in 1938 to replace the Panzer III and Panzer IV tanks. Neither the Panzer IV and Tiger have escaped this fate. The Panther has been called the finest German tank of World War II. [29][30] Using slave labour on the production lines greatly reduced costs, but also greatly increased the risk of sabotage. [79], Initial Ausf. The tank is on display in the Deutsches Panzermuseum in Munster. The lack of training exacerbated the Panther's technical weaknesses (poor power train durability and a lack of fuel and spare parts), resulting in many Panthers breaking down which were unable to be salvaged. [132][133][49], Der Generalinspekteur der Panzertruppen ( Inspector General of Armored Troops) acknowledged this in May 1944 "The average lifespan of a Panther can now be roughly equal to that of a Panzer IV with around 1,500 - 2,000 kilometers between two major repair and maintenance processes, but The Panther Ausf F would have had the Schmalturm, with its better ballistic protection, and an extended front hull roof which was slightly thicker. [Notes 3], The tank typically had two MG 34 armoured fighting vehicle variant machine guns featuring an armoured barrel sleeve. [145] The Panther's 75 mm gun could penetrate the IS-2 model 1943's mantlet from 400 m (440 yd), turret from 800 m (870 yd), and driver's front plate from 600 m (660 yd). Dec 7, 2018 Steve MacGregor, Guest Author. [94] By 5 July, when the Battle of Kursk started, there were only 184 operational Panthers. [33], The weight of the production model was increased to 45 tonnes from the original plans for a 35 tonne tank. Panzer definition, (especially in the German army) armored: a panzer unit. [170] Several experimental Schmaltürme (literally: "narrow turrets") were built in 1944 with modified versions of the production Panther's 7.5 cm KwK 42 L/70 standard gun, which were given the designation of KwK 44/1. This was increased to 600 per month in January 1943. Die Panther war ein mittlerer Panzer (45 Tonnen) mit einer Besatzung von fünf Mann, der dem sowjetischen T-34-Panzer entgegenwirken . Thus the turret could be rotated 360 degrees at up to 6º/second in low gear independent of engine rpm (same as on early production versions), or up to 19º/second with the high speed setting and engine at 2000 rpm, and at over 36º/second at the maximum allowable engine speed of 3000 rpm. This resulted in major problems in Panther units during the Battle of Kursk, as tactical training at the unit level, coordination by radio, and driver training were all seriously deficient.[94]. The Panther tank, officially Panzerkampfwagen V Panther (abbreviated PzKpfw V) with ordnance inventory designation: Sd.Kfz. Hitler had already insisted on an increase in its armour once, early in its design process in 1942. Throughout the rest of the war Germany continued to keep the great majority of Panther forces on the Eastern Front, where the situation progressively worsened for them. It mounted a 152 mm gun-howitzer on the chassis of a KV-1S heavy tank. This compounded the problems with reliability and with the numbers of operational Panthers, as tanks in the field had to be cannibalized for parts.[25]. G models (starting in late November-early December 1943), a ball mount in the glacis plate with a K.Z.F.2 machine gun sight was installed for the hull machine gun. Comparisons with losses from other armored formations have not been made. (Von Panzer umgeleitet) Deutsche Tiger II Panzer. Original source referenced by Wilbeck: Heinz Guderian, Generalinspektur der Panzertruppen. 100 Panthers were in need of repair (56 were damaged by hits and mines and 44 by mechanical breakdown). [109] Conversely, by the time of the Normandy Campaign, British divisional Anti-tank Regiments were well equipped with the excellent 17-pounder gun, and some US-supplied M10 tank destroyers had their 3-inch gun replaced with the 17pdr (giving the 17pdr SP Achilles), making it equally as perilous for Panthers to attack across these same fields. This ratio increased until, by the end of the war, half of the British Shermans were Fireflies. One Panther II chassis was completed and eventually captured by the U.S.; it was displayed at the Patton Museum in Fort Knox until 2010. This doctrine led to a lack of urgency in the U.S. Army to upgrade the armour and firepower of the M4 Sherman tank, which had previously done well against the most common German tanks – Panzer IIIs and Panzer IVs – in Africa and Italy. [32], The process of streamlining the production of German armoured fighting vehicles first began after Speer became a Reichsminister in early 1942, and steadily accelerated through to 1944; the production of the Panther tank coincided with this period of increased manufacturing-efficiency. [165], The production of Panther tanks and other German tanks dropped off sharply after January 1945, and eight of the Panther regiments still on the Western Front were transferred to the Eastern Front in February 1945. [110], Bayerlein still appreciated the Panther's virtues when used in the right conditions, writing "An ideal vehicle for tank battles and infantry support. [136][137], On 28 June 1944, after the initial response to the Allied landings in Normandy, Guderian reported that: the Panzer IV, Panzer V Panther, and Panzer VI Tiger have proven to be successful. The SU-100 quickly proved itself to be able to penetrate around 125 mm (4.9 in) of vertical armour from a range of 2,000 m (1.2 mi) and the sloped 80 mm (3.1 in) front armour of the Panther from 1,500 m (0.93 mi).[155]. 127–129 & Jentz 1997. G: upper Hull side changed to 50 mm (2.0 in) at 60°), This page was last edited on 2 June 2023, at 07:24. [160], U.S. awareness of the inadequacies of their tanks grew only slowly. In March 1944 Guderian reported: "Almost all the bugs have been worked out", although many units continued to report significant mechanical problems, especially with the final drive. G). [167] In March 1943, MAN indicated that the first prototype would be completed by August 1943. For the Rheinmetall PzKpfw NbFz V prototype tank, see. Production of the Panther 2 was slated to begin in September 1943. [19] This time-saving measure compromised the subsequent development of the design. The E series of experimental tanks — E-10, E-25, E-50, E-75, E-100 (the numbers designated their weight class) – was proposed to further streamline production with an even greater sharing of common parts and simplification of design. Walter J Spielberger 1993, Panther & Its Variants p. 244. With a tungsten core, this round could still not penetrate the Panther glacis plate, but could punch through the Panther mantlet at 730 to 910 m (800 to 1,000 yd), instead of the usual 91 m (100 yd) for the normal 76 mm round. An additional 36 rounds were stored inside the hull of the Ausf D and A models – 27 in the forward hull compartment directly underneath the mantlet. The Panther fulfils the core capability of "dominate and destroy". First encounters with enemy tanks revealed that the 122 mm BR-471 shell could punch through the Panther's frontal armour at a range of 600–700 m (660–770 yd). The large number of losses by hits (81 Panthers up to 10 July) attests to the heavy fighting. [115], One of the top German Panther commanders was SS-Oberscharführer Ernst Barkmann of the 2nd SS-Panzer Regiment "Das Reich". On 15 May 1942, Oberst Fichtner informed MAN that Hitler had decided in favour of the MAN Panther and ordered series production. [57], A report by Dr. Puschel of MAN said "The main cause of these failures was fatigue of the compound intermediate gear due to the low-core strength of the material used and the absence of case hardening at the critical sections." After the battle the tank was written off due to lack of spare parts and maintenance problems. US M4 Sherman or Soviet T-34) this allowed for fine laying of the gun without the gunner needing to use his traverse handwheel. 171", "Under new command, "Cuckoo", a Panther G in British service", "Das ist der Weltkriegs-Panzer aus dem Keller in Holstein", "Germany: WW2 Panther tank seized from pensioner's cellar", "Second World War tank and anti-aircraft gun found hidden in basement of villa in Germany", "La collection de l'Omaha Overlord Museum prend place", "Germany's Panzerkampfwagen V, Panther, Sd.Kfz. A Wa Prüf 1 report dated 5 October 1944 estimated that when set at a 30-degree angle the T-34-85's upper glacis could be penetrated by the Panther's 7.5 cm KwK 42 from 300 m (330 yd), the mantlet from 1,200 m (1,300 yd) and the turret front from 2,000 m (2,200 yd) while the T-34-85's 85 mm ZiS-S-53 could penetrate the Panther's frontal turret from 500 m (550 yd). Feuerkraft, Gewicht, Schutz und Beweglichkeit sind die Kriterien, die ein Panzer möglichst optimal kombinieren muss. [117], From 1943, Panther turrets were mounted in fixed fortifications known officially as Ringstände (the Allies called them "Tobruks" because they were first encountered during the North African campaign). Its transverse-cylindrical shape meant that it was more likely to deflect shells, but the lower section created a shot trap. Contents: Kingdom of Italy (1942-1943) Heavy Tank - None Built Having been somewhat opportunistic in joining in the war on the side of Germany against her First World War allies, Britain and France, Italy had come into a new long conflict ill-prepared. At least two of them were captured in the early days of the conflict and used in actions against the Germans,[105] including the liberation of the Gęsiówka concentration camp on 5 August, when the soldiers of "Wacek" platoon used the captured Panther (named "Magda") to destroy the bunkers and watchtowers of the camp. They were dug down, with automotive components removed, as pillboxes along the Bulgarian-Turkish border as early as the late 1940s. During the Warsaw Uprising, the Polish Home Army captured and used two Panther tanks. 30, 224. [94], During Zitadelle the Panthers claimed 267 destroyed tanks.[95]. The production version of the T-34's new 85 mm gun had to be aimed at the Panther's turret front and mantlet to penetrate, while the Panther's main gun could penetrate the T-34's glacis from 800 m (870 yd) at 30 degrees. The Panther itself also saw some limited use outside the German military, both before and after 1945. [61] The front hull had 80 mm (3.1 in) of armour angled at 55 degrees from the vertical, welded but also interlocked with the side and bottom plates for strength. [92] By mid-1944, the Panther was at its peak performance and widely regarded as the most formidable tank on the battlefield. They were received by the 2nd Company, 1st Battalion of the 3rd Armoured Regiment. [110] The commander of the Panzer Lehr Division, Gen. Fritz Bayerlein, reported on the difficulties experienced by the Panther tank in the fighting in Normandy: While the PzKpfw IV could still be used to advantage, the PzKpfw V [Panther] proved ill adapted to the terrain. [156] In the planning for the Battle of Normandy, the U.S. Army expected to face a handful of German heavy tanks alongside large numbers of Panzer IVs. Absence of vision slits makes defense against close attack impossible. [89][90] Transmission and final drive breakdowns were the most common and difficult to repair. The Panther was the third most produced German armoured fighting vehicle, after the Sturmgeschütz III assault gun/tank destroyer at 9,408 units, and the Panzer IV tank at 8,298 units. D, including a better turret with a new commander's cupola and increased turret traverse speed. Several drawings were made. Kfz. The rest, approximately 25 Panthers, have not yet been registered by the repair and maintenance services. [184], After the war, France was able to recover enough operable vehicles and components to equip the French Army's 503e Régiment de Chars de Combat with a force of 50 Panthers from 1944 to 1947, in the 501st and 503rd Tank Regiments. Eastern Front 1945. Of these: 56 with damage caused by shots and mines and 44 with technical problems. A total of 182 of these were installed in the fortifications of the Atlantic Wall and Siegfried Line (Westwall), 48 in the Gothic Line and Hitler Line, 36 on the Eastern Front, and two for training and experimentation, for a total of 268 installations by March 1945.
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