Tiger Heat: German Panzers on the Eastern Front

PANZRKAMPFWAGEN IV – The PANZRKAMPFWAGEN IV was one of the most important tanks of WWII. The Panzer IV was intended to be used in the infantry support role leaving the Panzer III to deal with enemy armour. Krupp was to manufacture the Panzer IV. With the first rolling off the production line in 1937. The driving force behind the development of the two tank types was Colonel Heinz Guderian. His plan was to concentrate Panzer divisions instead of splitting them up in packages between the field armies. It was a formula that worked with devastating effect. The Panzer IV was armed with a short 75mm low velocity gun. The gun fired HE rounds and was effective against fortifications an infantry. But, it lacked accuracy. In 1941, after the first encounters between Panzer IV and the T-34, the Panzer IV Ausfuhrung F was equipped with a redesigned turret mounting a more powerful 75mm L/43 anti-tank gun. In this guise the Panzer IVF2, later renamed the Panzer IVG. This variant became the workhorse of the German armoured divisions and remained unchanged except for upgrades to its main armament and armour. These upgrades, particularly in guns and sighting systems enable the Panzer IV to hold its own with the Russian T-34 and American Sherman which it encountered for the first time in North Africa in 1942. The Panzer IV remained in production throughout WWII, some of the tanks being supplied to Germany’s satellites. About 40 were converted to amphibious tanks. This was originally for the projected invasion of England and were used in the invasion of the Soviet Union. Others, were fitted with additional radio equipment, were used as command vehicles. The last variant was the Ausfuhrung J, which appeared in March 1944. In all 9000 Panzer IVs were made. Many Panzer IV chassis were converted to specialist roles such as tank destroyers, self-propelled howitzers and recovery vehicles. The Panzer IV continued to be used after 1945, notably by Syria, who purchased a number of these tanks. They were also used to shell Israeli settlements from positions on the Golan Heights during the brief ‘Water War’ conflict in 1965. The surviving Panzer IVs were captured by Israel during the Six-Day war of 1967 and became museum pieces. The Panzer IVF2 was powered by a Maybach HL120 TRM, V-12 300hp petrol engine. It had a top speed of 25mph and a range of 130 miles. It weighed 22 tons.

KV-1 – When the KV-1 first appeared in 1941 the Klime-Voroshilov KV-1 was the most formidable Tank in the world. It was developed in 1938 as a successor to the T-35 taking its name from Klimenti Voroshilov, who was the commissar for Defence. The Tank was evaluated under operational conditions in the war with Finland and ordered into production as the KV-1A with a long barrelled 76mm gun and the KV-2 with a 122mm gun, which made the KV-2 very ponderous to use. The KV-2 had a tall slab-sided turret stood out as a tempting target for enemy gunner’s. The KV-1 was however, a formidable tank that served the Red Army well during the war on the Eastern Front. It biggest drawback was its lack of mobility which was a problem on the vast expanses of the Russian plain. It was at its best forming the spearhead of an armoured attack when it was used as a battering ram to break through enemy defences, creating a gap that could be exploited by T-34s. It was powered by a V2K V-12 550hp diesel engine. A top speed of 21 mph although barley achieved and a range of 93 miles. It weighed 42 tons