The TK (also known as the TK-3) tankette was a Polish design produced from 1931 based on the chassis of the BritishCarden Loyd tankette, with an improved hull and more powerful engine, andarmour up to 8 mm (0.31 in) thick (10 mm or 0.39 in on the TKS). In 1939, up-arming of the tankettes withnkm wz. 38 FK 20 mm (0.79 in) autocannons began, but only 24 of these were completed before the outbreak of World War II.
On 6 November 1934 Estonia purchased 6 vehicles fromPoland, with the contract deal worth over 180 000krones. The deal also included one additional tracked-lorry, and a motorcycle was given free as a bonus.[1] After theSoviet Unionoccupied Estonia, these vehicles were put into service with theRed Army.[citation needed]
TK prototype nr. 6007 in its final form with roof hatches open. According to the TK-3 standard (it might be a rebuilt TK-2). Note a horizontal angle ofMG fire and two side observation hatches, present in early series TK-3 only.
575 TK/TKS tankettes formed the bulk of the Polish armoured forces before the outbreak of war. They suffered heavy losses during theinvasion of Poland, often being the only armoured fighting vehicles available. Their small size suited them forreconnaissance and infantry support, but with their light armament of a singlemachine gun they stood no chance in combat against German tanks, except against thePanzer I.
The handful of tankettes armed with 20 mm guns were more effective against enemy tanks; in one instance on 18 September 1939 a 20 mm gunned TKS commanded byPodchorąży[2] (officer cadet)Roman Orlik destroyed two GermanPanzer 35(t) tanks and aPanzer IVausf B tank which was commanded by Victor IV Albrecht von Ratibor.[3][4]
After the conquest of Poland, captured tankettes were used by the German army in various support roles, mostly for training, security duties or as artillery tractors. Many captured tankettes were also used by the Luftwaffe for airfield security and snowplowing.[5] Some were later sold to thepuppet state ofCroatia. In spring 1941, the National Police received 18 TK-3 tankettes, some with the 20mm gun, while in summer 1941 theArmy received 18 TKS, 4 of them being sent to theUstashe Militia.[6]
A smaller Polish force retreated to (then neutral)Hungary from the German and Soviet troops occupying Poland. This mixed formation had 30 tracked vehicles, of which 15–20 were TKS (contemporary sources did not officially distinguish between TK-3 and TKS). These vehicles were used for training in tank driving and machine gun handling drills. By the end of the war, they were worn out due to the lack of spare parts, so there is no trace of them after early 1944. The crew was able to travel to England with the help of the Hungarian government in 1940.[7]
There are only two fully operational TKS tankettes and one TK-3 surviving. All of them were reconstructed from wrecks in the first decade of 21st century, using non-original parts.
1 TKS – One of the TKS tankettes was donated to Poland by the SwedishAxvall Tank Museum and since 2008 it is on exhibition in theMuseum of the Polish Army. The Swedish TKS survived the post-war period in Norway, where it was operated by a local farmer as a tractor.
1 C2P artillery tractor – Was found in Belgium and bought by theNational Military History Center ofAuburn, Indiana, where it was on exhibition until the center closed in 2019. Its whereabouts are currently unknown.
^Mahé, Yann (April 2011). "Le Blindorama : La Croatie, 1941 – 1945".Batailles & Blindés (in French). No. 42. Caraktère. pp. 4–7.ISSN1765-0828.
^Bonhard, Attila; Sárhidai, Gyula; Winkler, László (1992). A Magyar Királyi Honvédség Fegyverzete [Weapons of the Royal Hungarian Defense Forces] (in Hungarian). Budapest: Zrínyi Katonai Kiadó. pp. 104–7.ISBN963-327-182-7.
"Czołg rozpoznawczy TK-S", Militaria i Fakty nr. 31 (6/2005)
Adam Jońca, Rajmund Szubański, Jan Tarczyński, "Wrzesień 1939 - Pojazdy Wojska Polskiego - Barwa i broń"; WKiŁ; Warsaw 1990.ISBN83-206-0847-3
Leszek Komuda, "Przeciwpancerne tankietki" in: "Militaria" Year 1 Nr. 3 and Nr. 4.
Janusz Magnuski, "Czołg rozpoznawczy TKS (TK)"; TBiU-Typy broni i uzbrojenia series nr. 36; Wydawnictwo MON; Warsaw 1975
Janusz Magnuski, "Karaluchy przeciw panzerom"; Pelta; Warsaw 1995
Eesti soomusmasinad : soomusautod ja tankid 1918-1940 / Tiit Noormets, Mati Õun Tallinn : Tammiskilp, 1999 Page 52ISBN9985-60-692-2
Jan Tarczyński, K. Barbarski, A. Jońca, "Pojazdy w Wojsku Polskim - Polish Army Vehicles - 1918-1939"; Ajaks; Pruszków 1995.
Zbigniew Lalak, "Czołg rozpoznawczy TK3 / Reconnaissance tank TK3" in Z. Lalak, T. Basarabowicz, R. Sawicki, M. Skotnicki, P. Żurkowski "Pojazdy II wojny swiatowej (tom 2) / Military Vehicles of WW2, part 2", Warsaw 2004,ISBN83-920361-0-7
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Poland
Estonia
Independent State of Croatia
Nazi Germany
Soviet Union[citation needed]
Kingdom of Romania (possibly)[10]
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