World War 2 In Review No. 66: German Fighting Vehicles

By Merriam Press

Merriam Press World War 2 In Review Series. The following articles on German AFVs and fighting vehicles of World War II are in this issue: (1) Panzerkampfwagen I and Variants; (2) SdKfz 265 Panzerbefehlswagen; (3) Kleines Kettenkraftrad Sd. Kfz. 2 Light Half-track Gun Tractor; (4) VK 1602 Leopard; (5) VK 3001 (P); (6) Wirbelwind; (7) Wespe; (8) Raupenschlepper Ost; (9) Sturmtiger. 243 B&W/color photos/illustrations.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Oct 5, 2019
• ISBN: 9780359962167

Book preview

World War 2 In Review No. 66: German Fighting Vehicles

World War 2 In Review No. 66: German Fighting Vehicles

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Hoosick Falls, New York

2019

First eBook Edition

Copyright © 2019 by Merriam Press

Additional material copyright of named contributors.

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

The views expressed are solely those of the authors.

ISBN 978-0-359-96216-7

This work was designed, produced, and published in the United States of America by the Merriam Press, 489 South Street, Hoosick Falls NY 12090.

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Mission Statement

World War 2 In Review presents articles and pictorials on topics covering many aspects of World War II, with coverage from the 1930s through the end of the war. In addition to new articles and pictorials on topics not previously covered, future volumes may include additional material on the subjects covered in this volume. The volumes in this series will comprise a single source for innumerable articles and tens of thousands of images of interest to anyone interested in the history and study of World War 2. While no doubt some of these images and other materials could be found online, countless hours could be spent searching thousands of web sites to find at least some of this material.

The Images

These photos are seventy-plus years old, were taken under less than ideal conditions, and some were taken by individuals who were neither professional photographers nor using professional equipment. Thus, the quality of the original image may be less than perfect. While Merriam Press tries to obtain the best quality images possible, the quality of the images in this publication will no doubt vary greatly.

World War 2 In Review utilizes the editor’s collection of tens of thousands of photographs and other illustrative material acquired since 1968. Hundreds of sources over the years have been searched for material on every subject.

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Merriam Press welcomes any contributions of photographs from the 1930s through the end of World War II for future volumes in this series. Because of the low price of this publication, no payment can be made for their use, but whenever possible, credit will be given.

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Welcome to No. 66 of the World War 2 In Review Series

The following articles are in this issue of World War 2 In Review:

(1) Panzerkampfwagen I and Variants

(2) SdKfz 265 Panzerbefehlswagen

(3) Kleines Kettenkraftrad Sd. Kfz. 2 Light Half-track Gun Tractor

(4) VK 1602 Leopard

(5) VK 3001 (P)

(6) Wirbelwind

(7) Wespe

(8) Raupenschlepper Ost

(9) Sturmtiger

with 243 B&W and color photographs, maps and illustrations.

Panzerkampfwagen I and Variants

by Eric Grove

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This work seeks to distil and bring together the best available information on the lightest of the German World War II tank models, the PzKpfw. I. Although the least spectacular of German tanks, this type, along with the PzKpfw. II, formed the larger part of the German armored force’s strength when it scored its most crushing victories, in Poland in 1939 and in France and the Low Countries in 1940. Given the plethora of books on German armor it is surprising how badly documented is the story of the PzKpfw. I. A study of the sources, both original and secondary, seemed to raise as many problems as it settled. The excellent Encyclopedia of German Tanks of World War II by Chamberlain, Doyle and Jentz, was helpful on several points but I do not entirely agree with its authors in all cases and it does not solve all puzzles. In the following I have tried to offer the most detailed exposition of the development and service of the PzKpfw. I.

As with all authors I must acknowledge my debts to various people who have given vital assistance: to Walter J. Spielberger who kindly answered various questions and whose monumental book Die Panzerkampfwagen I und II und Ihre Abarten provided a vital foundation and guide; to Colonels Horden and Hill of the RAC Tank Museum at Bovington for their unstinting help with research and photographs; to Martin Hart of the Modern Languages Department, BRNC, Dartmouth, for his help with German translation; to George Bradford, Axel Duckert, Richard Bennett and others for help with research.

In 1931 Major General Lutz was appointed Inspector of Motor Transport in the German Army with Guderian as his dynamic Chief of Staff. This marked the beginning of serious planning for the creation of a German armored force and a light tank that could be quickly produced in some numbers seemed the first priority in order to train personnel of the projected panzer divisions. A specification for a 5-ton tank was drawn up in 1932 and issued to four manufacturers: MAN, Rheinmetall-Borsig, Daimler-Benz and Krupp.

The last named firm had already developed a vehicle designated LKA in answer to an earlier Heereswaffenamt (Army Weapons Office) requirement for a Kleintraktor (literally, small tractor), the cover name for the smallest of the Reichswehr’s secret tank projects. Design work was begun in the autumn of 1931 with two engineers, Hagelloch and Woelfert, in charge of the project. The designers were able to use experience gained by the German associated Landswerk Company in Sweden and the first prototype was ready in July 1932. The little two-man tank was given the cover name Landwirtschaftlicher Schlepper (Agricultural Tractor), usually abbreviated to LaS. It had a rear mounted Krupp air-cooled gasoline engine which drove through the front sprockets and there were four large coil sprung roadwheels each side with a slightly smaller track idler trailing at ground level. There were two track return rollers. A small turret, set to the right of the tank, mounted two MG 13 machine guns.

The LaS provided a readymade model for the