| Jagdpanzer 38 | |
|---|---|
 Jagdpanzer 38 in museum at Lešany, Czech Republic | |
| Type | Lighttank destroyer |
| Place of origin | Nazi Germany,German-occupied Czechoslovakia |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1944–1945 |
| Used by |
|
| Wars | World War II |
| Production history | |
| Designer | BMM |
| Designed | 1943 |
| Manufacturer | Böhmisch-Mährische Maschinenfabrik (ČKD),Škoda |
| Produced | 4 March 1944 – 11 May 1945 |
| No. built | Approx. 2,827 |
| Variants | SeeVariants |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 15.75 tonnes (34,722 lb) |
| Length | 6.27 m (20 ft 7 in) (4.77 m (15 ft 8 in) excluding gun) |
| Width | 2.63 m (8 ft 8 in) |
| Height | 2.17 m (7 ft 1 in) |
| Crew | 4 |
| Armor | 8-60 mm (0.31-2.36 in) |
Main armament | 1×7.5 cm Pak 39 L/48 41 rounds |
Secondary armament | 1×7.92 mmMG 34 orMG 42 machine gun 1,200 rounds |
| Engine | Praga 6-cylinderpetrol, 7.8 litres 160 PS (158 hp, 118 kW) at 2,800 rpm |
| Power/weight | 10.2 PS (7.5 kW) / tonne |
| Transmission | 5 + 1 Praga-Wilson Typ CV |
| Suspension | leaf spring |
| Ground clearance | 38 cm (1 ft 3 in) |
| Fuel capacity | 320 litres (85 US gal) |
Operational range | Road: 180 km (110 mi) Cross-country: 130 km (81 mi)[1] |
| Maximum speed | 42 km/h (26 mph) |
TheJagdpanzer 38 (Sd.Kfz. 138/2), originally theLeichter Panzerjäger 38(t), known mostly post-war asHetzer, was a German lighttank destroyer of theSecond World War based on a modifiedCzechoslovakPanzer 38(t) chassis.
German armoured forces in World War II created a variety of vehicles by mounting anti-tank guns on the chassis of obsolete tanks. These machines performed better than expected, but were still vulnerable due to their high vehicle profiles and open-topped turrets.Allied bombings took a heavy toll on German production facilities and further increased the need for an easily produced, yet effective light tank destroyer to replace vehicles like theStuG III and Marder series (Marder I,II, andIII). Prototypes of theJagdpanzer 38 were ready by 1944, and mass production began in April of that year. TheJagdpanzer 38 was covered entirely with sloped armour and possessed a compact form and low silhouette, giving it much improved defensive ability over other self-propelled guns. Armament consisted of a7.5 cm Pak 39 L/48 gun and a remote-controlledMG 34. It featured a wide body to accommodate the four-man crew, as well as a strengthened lower hull with enlarged wheels, guide rollers, and tracks.
Jagdpanzer 38s first entered service in July 1944 and would eventually be assigned to a number of units, including infantry,Panzerjäger andVolksgrenadier divisions. TheJagdpanzer 38 equipped thePanzerjägerabteilungen (tank destroyerbattalions) of the infantry divisions, giving them some limited mobile anti-armor capability.BMM andŠkoda continually modified and improved theJagdpanzer 38 during production of the more than 2,800 vehicles built. Owing to the ease of production and high operating rates, theJagdpanzer 38 came to serve as Germany's main tank destroyer in the latter period of the war, making an important contribution on both theEastern andWestern Fronts.
The nameHetzer (German for "chaser") was never an official or suggestive name used for this vehicle. It was the designation for another prototype, theE-10 of theEntwicklung series which was supposed to replace all German tanks with more standardized counterparts, including the Jagdpanzer 38 which was still in development. TheŠkoda factory, for a short period, mistookHetzer as the new name for the Jagdpanzer 38 in its documentation. Thus the first unit equipped with the vehicle applied the incorrect name for a few weeks until matters were clarified. Subsequently, the vehicle was rarely calledHetzer anymore by its units, but the name did not disappear completely anymore; examples of usages e.g. inWehrmacht Reports were found until the end of the war. Most notably, there exists a briefing paper fromHeinz Guderian toHitler saying that the unofficial nameHetzer had spontaneously been coined by the troops. Post-war historians basing themselves on this statement made the name popular in their works.[2]
WhenAlketts factory for production ofSturmgeschütz III was damaged in a bomb raid on Berlin, on 26 November 1943, it become necessary to find alternatives.Boehmisch-Mährische Machinenfabrik was considered but it could not produce the, for that time, heavy chassis of the Sturmgeschütz and it was decided to base a new design on thePanzer 38(t) which they already produced. On 17 December the design drawings for the new vehicle was presented and by 24 January 1944 a wooden mock-up was ready.[3]
The design of theJagdpanzer 38 was influenced by that of the RomanianMareșal tank destroyer, whose development had started in late 1942, according to contemporary Romanian documents and later works of authors such asSteven Zaloga and Mark Axworthy.[4][5][6] This was acknowledged by two German officials: Alkett engineer Wohlrath and Lieutenant-Colonel Ventz.[7][8] The Germans were pleased by theMareșal and a mixed production of the two tank destroyers was planned, which never took place due to Romania being overrun by Soviet forces.[9] Hilary Doyle and Walter Spielberger do not directly mention a connection between the two vehicles, but write how in December 1943—the time theJagdpanzer 38 was being designed—Hitler is known to have already been aware of theMareșal, which he "extraordinarily liked".[10]
The new Sturmgeschütz was built on thePanzer 38(t)'s widened and lengthened chassis with modified suspension (larger road-wheels from the Praga TNH n.A prototype reconnaissance tank) and up-rated engine. The new engine was a 160 PS Praga AC/2 6-cylinder engine coupled to a Praga-Wilson gearbox (5 forward and 1 reverse gear). The chassis was modified to accommodate a larger gun and thicker armour than the Panzer 38(t) tank. Its combat mass was 16 tonnes (versus 9.8-tonnes for the Pz 38(t)) and it could travel at a maximum speed of 42 km/h. It had a sloped armour front plate of60 mm sloped back at 60 degrees from the vertical — equivalent in protection to about 120 mm (4.7 in) — carried a reasonably powerful 75 mm gun, was mechanically reliable, small and easily concealed. It was also cheap to build.[11]
The Jagdpanzer 38 succeeded the open-topMarder III (based on the same chassis). Starting from April 1944, about 2,584 were built until the end of the war. The olderMarder IIIPanzerjäger series retained the same vertically sided chassis as Panzer 38(t). In theJagdpanzer 38, the lower hull sides slope 15 degrees outward to make a roughly hexagonal shape when viewed from front or rear. This increased the available interior space and enabled a fully enclosedcasemate-style fighting compartment. Because of the fully enclosed armour, it was 5 tonnes heavier than theMarder III. To compensate for the increased weight, track width was increased from 293 mm to 350 mm.[12]
The initial productionJagdpanzer 38 did not sit even with the ground because the gun, transmission and thicker frontal armour weighed the front down. The leaf springs were strengthened from June 1944, which levelled the vehicle. From May–July 1944, accessibility was improved by adding hatches: the commander's smaller hatch opening to the rear, one in the right rear corner for radiator access and one in the left rear corner for fuel tank access. From August 1944, lighter inner and outer mantlets reduced the weight by 200 kg (440 lb). These were more conical than the half cone shaped initial mantlets. Also from August 1944, new rear idler wheels were introduced that had 8, 6, and 4 (not necessarily in that order)lightening holes instead of 12. These simplified the manufacturing process. In September 1944, the front 16 spring leaves were increased in thickness to 9 mm (0.35 in) per leaf (the rear 16 remained 7 mm thick). Also in September, the side Schürzen's front and rear tips were bent inward to prevent them from catching bushes and being torn off. It was discovered that the driver's periscope housing acted as ashot trap, preventing incoming shells from bouncing off the front glacis.[13]
The protruding housing was removed, instead the periscope was inserted into vertical cuts to the front armour from October 1944. Also from October 1944, a flame reducing muffler was introduced, which reduced visibility and backfiring. A head cushion was added to the commander's hatch from October 1944. At the same time, the road wheel rims were riveted instead of bolted. To cope with the heavy front, and the necessity to traverse the vehicle to aim, the gear ratio was lowered from 1:7.33 to 1:8 to reduce the stress on final gears from January 1945. A buttoned-downJagdpanzer 38 was blind to its right side. Since 20 mm (0.79 in) side armour (same as late model Panzer II's side armour) was adequate to protect the crew only from fairly small-calibre guns, it was important to face the threat frontally. Hence, the commander's field of view was planned to be improved by installing a rotating periscope in the Jagdpanzer 38 Starr, just as the Sturmgeschutz III and Elefant had evolved from a single pair of periscopes to all around vision blocks. However, theJagdpanzer 38Starr came too late to see the action in the field.[13]
After the war,Czechoslovakia continued to build the type (versions ST-I and ST-III for training version, about 180 units built) and exported 158 vehicles (version G-13) toSwitzerland. Most vehicles in today's collections are of Swiss origin.
By order ofAdolf Hitler in November 1944, a number ofJagdpanzer 38s were refurbished straight from the factory with a Koebe flamethrower and accompanying equipment instead of the normal gun. The flame projector, encased in a metal shield reminiscent of that of a gun barrel, was very prone to damage. Fewer than 50 of these vehicles, designatedFlammpanzer 38, were completed before the end of the war, but they were used operationally against Allied forces on the Western Front.
Further variants were aJagdpanzer 38 carrying the150 mm sIG 33/2 Howitzer, of which 30 were produced before the end of the war, and theBergepanzer 38, a light recovery vehicle of which 170 were produced. Plans were made to produce other variants, including an assault gun version of theJagdpanzer 38 carrying a 105 mm StuH 42 main cannon, a version mounting the7.5 cm KwK 42 L/70 gun from the Panther, and an anti-aircraft variant mounted with a Flak turret. The war ended before these proposed models were put into production. Prototypes were also developed for theJagdpanzer 38Starr, this was a simplified version of the Jagdpanzer 38 and also a step towards theE-10. The design removed the recoil absorber from the main7.5 cm Pak 39 gun, instead attaching the gun to the chassis, and using theJagdpanzer 38's bulk and suspension to absorb the recoil. Three prototypes were built as were eleven pre-production vehicles, of which one was fitted with adiesel engine. Hitler ordered the one prototype committed to combat to be destroyed rather than let it be captured on 31 March 1945. The army requested on 29 April that the gun sights and traversing gear from the nine pre-production vehicles at the Milowitz proving ground, which it deemed not combat worthy, be removed and sent back to the factory to allow combat-ready vehicles to be completed.[14]
_Hetzer_in_the_Texas_Military_Forces_Museum.jpg)
The Jagdpanzer 38 fitted into the lighter category of German tank destroyers that began with thePanzerjäger I, continued with the Marder series, and ended with the Jagdpanzer 38. The 75 mm Pak 39 L/48 gun of the Jagdpanzer 38 was a modified version of the 75 mm StuK 40 L/48 used in theStuG III andStuG IV assault guns. With this gun, the Jagdpanzer 38 was able to destroy nearly all Allied or Soviet tank types in service at long ranges (except heavy tanks), and its fully enclosed armour protection made it a safer vehicle to crew than the open-toppedMarder II orMarder III series.
The vehicle could carry two different armour-piercing shells for the Pak 39 gun: the Pzgr. 40 high-velocitytungsten cored round, which fired a 4.1 kg (9.0 lb) projectile at 930 m/s that could penetrate 120 mm of armour at 500 meters and 97 mm at 1,000 meters, striking at a 30-degree angle, but was often in scarce supply; and the Pzgr. 39armour-piercing, capped, ballistic capped shell (APCBC) with explosive filler and a tracer element, launching a heavier 6.8 kg (15 lb) projectile at 750 m/s that could pierce 106 mm (4.2 in) of armour at 500 meters and 95 mm at 1,000 meters. Based on tests using Pzgr. 39 ammunition, with correct range estimation and competent gunnery, a 99% chance of a first-shot hit at 500 m and a 71% chance at 1,000 m was estimated. The vehicle also carried standard high-explosive rounds and the Gr. 38 HL/Chigh-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) round designed with ashaped charge, but this was less effective and accurate against armoured targets than AP rounds.[21]
The Jagdpanzer 38 was one of the most common late-war German tank destroyers. It was available in relatively large numbers and was generally mechanically reliable.[22] Like some other late-war German SPGs, the Jagdpanzer 38 mounted a remote-control machine gun mount that could be fired from within the vehicle. This proved popular with crews, though to reload the gun, a crewmember needed to expose himself to enemy fire.[citation needed]
The vehicle's small size made it easier to conceal than larger vehicles. A self-propelled gun such as this was not intended for a mobile, meeting engagement or the typical Wehrmacht blitzkrieg style of warfare. Instead, a light self-propelled gun like theJagdpanzer 38 excelled when emplaced along pre-determined lines of sight where the enemy was expected to approach and when used in defensive positions to support a prepared ambush. TheJagdpanzer 38 is similar in its dimensions and vertical profile to the minuscule and undergunned Panzer II, a prewar tank. However, by 1944, the majority of tanks were much larger and heavier; aJagdpanzer 38 waiting motionless in an ambush position was a much smaller target to detect and hit than many other armoured fighting vehicles of the time. Its main failings were comparatively thin side armour, limited ammunition storage, poor gun traverse, and a poor internal layout that made operating the vehicle difficult, as well as leaf springs and drive wheels that were prone to failure due to the increased weight.[23] Using theJagdpanzer 38 and similar vehicles according to a defensive doctrine would offset some of the disadvantages of poor side armour and limited gun traverse.[citation needed]
Nazi Germany
Kingdom of Hungary
Kingdom of Romania
Polish Underground State /
Provisional Government of National Unity
Third Czechoslovak Republic /Czechoslovak Socialist Republic
Switzerland
Due to the large number produced, theJagdpanzer 38 is probably the most abundant World War II German tank destroyer remaining today, though many survivors are actually post-war Swiss G-13 and Czech ST-I variants. In addition to the numerous examples in museums, there areJagdpanzer 38s of various conditions in private collections. In 2007, aJagdpanzer 38 was recovered from the Baltic Sea inJurata, Poland. As of 2012, it was being restored inGdańsk.[30]
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| Tanks |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Self-propelled artillery | ||
| Assault guns | ||
| Tank destroyers (Panzerjäger, Jagdpanzer) | ||
| Half-tracks | ||
| Armored cars | ||
| Self-propelled anti-aircraft guns | ||
| Demolition vehicles | ||
| Experimental/prototype vehicles | ||
| Proposed designs | ||
| Designations | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
