Panzer 38(t)
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The Panzer 38(t), also known as the Panzerkampfwagen 38, was a Czech-designed tank that saw service in the Wehrmacht and axis inventories in WWII. It was also the basis for many armored vehicles in German service, due to the reliability of the chassis.
Flames of War[edit]
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Mid War[edit]
Late War[edit]
IRL[edit]
The Panzer 38(t) first started as a desire for the Czechs to have a modern light tank in the 1930s. Thus enters the CKD company, an engineering company. They built a rivet armored vehicle equipped with a 37mm cannon and a ball-mounted MG in the turret. They also threw in a hull-mounted MG for good measure. The Czech military was impressed and ordered them into production. Before they could be delivered in numbers though, the country was invaded by a bunch of fanatical idiots with Karabiners and Panzers.
The Germans took over and found the tank, called the LT vz. 38 in Czech inventories. After trialing the vehicle, they decided it was actually pretty decent. Sure, it wasn't blessed by the power of racism and Hitler, but it got the job done. They modified the vehicle to have some tactical and quality of life improvements, such as adjustable seating and extra space.
The Panzer 38(t) served with distinction through most parts of the war and was widely exported to German allies, including Romania and Hungary. Fun fact: the (t) stands for "Czech" in German, which starts with a t. It was widely removed from German inventory after Operation Barbarossa due to the underperformance of 37mm AT guns against anything in service in the war by that point.
The 38(t) earned a reputation for being reliable, easy to maintain, and was effective as a light combat vehicle. Despite this, Otto Carius had a low view of them, calling them inferior to the German-produced vehicles, and there is some evidence to suggest some metallurgy issues and the fact the tank was riveted together was not a help.
The tank would also go on to serve in the Swedish and Peruvian armies.
| German Forces in Flames of War | |
|---|---|
| Tanks: | Panzer II - Panzer III - Panzer IV - Panther - Tiger - Tiger II - Panzer 38(t) - Captured Tank Platoon (Germany) |
| Transports: | SdKfz 250 - SdKfz 251 - Opel Blitzwagen |
| Infantry: | MG34 Platoon - AT-Rifle Team - Assault Pioneer Platoon - Grenadier Company - Fallshirmjager Company |
| Artillery: | PaK-40 Anti-Tank Gun - Hummel - Panzerwerfer 42 - Wespe - Grille - PaK-43 - 12cm Mortar - 8cm Mortar - 21cm Nebelwerfer 42 - 30cm Nebelwerfer 42 |
| Tank Destroyers and Assault guns: | Marder - StuG III - Jagdpanzer IV - Nashorn - Elefant - Jagdtiger - Brummbar - Hetzer - Sturmpanzer II Bison |
| Armored Cars: | SdKfz. 234/2 'Puma' - Sd.Kfz 222/223 - SdKfz. 231 |
| Aircraft: | JU-87 Stuka - HS-129 - ME-262 Sturmvogel |
| Anti-Aircraft: | Flak 88mm - Flakpanzer IV Wirbelwind & Ostwind |
| Hungarian Forces in Flames of War | |
|---|---|
| Tanks: | Toldi II - Panzer 38(t) - Turan - Panther |
| Infantry: | Hungarian Rifle Platoon - Hungarian Mortar Platoon - 7/M31 MG Platoon |
| Artillery: | Nebelwerfer - Hungarian 105mm - Hungarian 100mm |
| Tank Destroyer: | Zrinyi Assault Gun - Stug III - Hetzer |
| Recon: | Csaba Armored Car |
| Aircraft: | |
| Anti-Aircraft: | Nimrod SPAA |
| Romanian Forces in Flames of War | |
|---|---|
| Tanks: | Renault R-35 - Panzer IV - Panzer 38(t) - Panzer III - R1 Light Tank - R-2 Tank |
| Infantry: | Romanian Rifle Platoon - HMG Platoon - Romanian 81mm and 120mm Mortar Platoons |
| Artillery: | 76K/02 - TAC 47mm Schneider - TAC 43 Resita - 76K/02 |
| Tank Destroyer: | Stug III - TACAM R-2 |
| Recon: | Sd.Kfz 222 - Tatra vz. 30 |
| Aircraft: | |
| Anti-Aircraft: | SdKfz 10/4 Light AA Platoon |