Another mass of special purpose vehicles became commander’s tank Panzerbefehlswagen Panther (SdKfz 267 and 268). Already in 1943 there were command vehicle based on the standard tank Ausf D, equipped with additional radios. There are two options: SdKfz 267 with radio Fu Fu 5 and 7 – to communicate in the link, “company – a battalion and SdKfz 268, equipped with radios Fu Fu 5 and 8, and linking in the link ‘regiment – the division.”
Additional radio Fu Fu 7 and 8 were placed in the housing and staffing Fu 5 – on the right side of the tower. The crew consisted of the driver’s “liaison officer”, who was also a machine gunner, commander and two radio operators (one of them in addition served as a gunner, the other – being charged). Ammunition was reduced and accounted for a command vehicle based on the Ausf D and a 64 shot, and based on the Ausf G – 70.
Radio Station Fu 7 provides telephone communications at a distance of 12.8 km, and CW-16 km. Fu Radio Station 8 had communication range of 80 km when operating CW. Both the commander of the tank is easily distinguished from the line of antennas. So, SdKfz 267, for example, had two simple whip antenna and one with a characteristic “mop.” Socket to install them have rubber shock absorbers.
In the commander’s car were refitted 329 linear “Panthers.”
Another special version of “Panther” was Panzerbeobachtungswagen V (SdKfz 172) – the machine advanced artillery observers, developed by Rheinmetall, and Anschutz. This gun at her non-existent, in its place installed a wooden mock-up. Of the weapons in the tower was only a machine gun MG 34. The crew consisted of 4 members: a commander, the artillery observer, radio operator and driver. The tank was equipped with the rangefinder, telescope, and numerous other observation devices, and in this respect was a better car artillery observer, constructed during the Second World War. Presumably produced only one prototype (from other sources did a series of 41 machines).
Such a discrepancy in the figures are not rare – until now unknown even to the exact number of released Panther. They are produced in plants of four companies: MAN, Daimler-Benz, MNH and Henschel – January 11, 1943 to April 23, 1945. During this time it was made 5992 a tank, but it remains unclear whether the firm has transferred Henschel to build a factory Demag chassis 50 “Panthers” and whether they are there and if so, the total number of machines is 6,042 units. By the way, the firm Henschel produced Panthers for a brief period – until September 1943, MNH-up to March, Daimler-Benz-up to April, a MAN-until the end of April 1945, with the share of the latter had more of them all – 2048.
The layout of the tank PzKpfw V “Panther” – a classic version with a traditional German tank building a front transmission.
Branch management is in front of the tank. It houses the main clutch, gearbox, turning mechanism, controls a tank, control devices, machine gun course, part of the ammunition, a radio station and the jobs of two crew members – the driver and radio operator (he is – a machine gunner).
Fighting compartment was located in the middle of the tank. Here were located: in the tower – gun and coaxial machine gun, instruments of observation and targeting, the mechanisms of vertical and horizontal crosstalk and seat the tank commander, gunner and loader. In the case in the niches along the walls and under the rotating tower is Polycom ammunition.
At the bottom of the tank mounted water pump, pump, hydraulic turret and turn the tank and air compressor.
In the engine compartment, located in the aft tank, housed the engine, radiator, fan and fuel tanks. Between the engine and fighting compartment had a metal partition.
The hull of going out of the armor plates that are connected to the spike and double-welded seams.
The upper front hull at an angle of 38 ° to the horizontal plane, the bottom – at an angle of 37 °. Lower side sheets – vertical, the upper angled 48 °, the stern plate – at an angle of 60 °.
In front of the hull top manholes were the driver and radio operator. For entry and exit from the tank lifted the manhole cover up and put aside with a special tilt-up mechanism (the modification of G – back in the loop). Manholes were carried out in the hatch, designed for ease of installation and dismantling of the gearbox and the mechanism of control tank.
In addition, in front of the roof of the body shall be four (a variant of G – two) periscopes (two each for the driver and radio operator) and there was a ventilation hole, covered with armor cap in front of which was mounted rack for fixing the gun barrel in the stowed position .
Rear of the hull was divided into three compartments by internal watertight bulkheads. Two extreme When fording fording could flooded with water. In the central compartment, where the engine does not take water. The ends were closed compartments on top armor bars, four of them were used for air flow, cooling radiators, while the middle two – for its removal.
Nadmotornaya part of the lid with two vents.
At the bottom of the tank hatches were provided to access the torsion bar suspension, a drain cock power systems, cooling and lubrication to the bilge pump and a drain plug transmission housing.
Tower, which had a truncated cone shape – Welded, with a mix of sheets in spike and the slope of the walls at 65 °. In front of the tower in the mask cast semicylindrical shape mounted gun, the coaxial machine gun and sight. The tower is rotated by a hydraulic tilting mechanism 4 kW. The speed of rotation depended on the speed of the engine crankshaft. At 2500 rpm full rotation of the tower was carried out for 17 with right and 18 left. With the engine off the tower is rotated manually. In this case, because of the imbalance of the tower turning it by hand at an angle of more than 5 ° was not possible.
On the roof of the tower mounted commander’s cupola with six (later seven-) vision devices.
Weapons. The main armament of the Panther “- Gun 7,5 cm KwK 42 75 mm caliber, produced at the plant firm Rheinmetall-Borsig in Dusseldorf. Gun barrel had a length of 70 gauge – 5250 mm, with a muzzle brake – 5,535 mm. Weight was 1000 kg, and the entire installation together with the mask – 2650 kg. Limit the length of the rollback – 420 mm. Elevation – ranging from – 8 ° to 18 °.
The gun was supplied with a vertical wedge-type breech semi-automatic kopirnogo type. Semi-automatic was located on the right side of the breech (closing mechanism) and the cradle (follower). The recoil device consisted of a hydraulic brake recoil and air-liquid recuperator. Hoisting machine gun – the sector type.
A shot from a gun carried by a stationary electric trigger, the button is located on the handle of the flywheel hoist.
In the fighting compartment under the seat gunner mounted air compressor to blow the gun barrel after each shot. Air to purge the barrel is sucked out of the box gilzoulavlivatelya.
With the gun was paired 7.92-mm machine gun MG 34. Exchange machine gun located in the frontal hull in tow (Ausf D) or spherical (Ausf A and G) plants. Commander turret modifications A and G were adapted for mounting anti-aircraft machine gun MG 34.
Ausf D tanks were fitted with binocular telescopic sight breaking TZF 12, Ausf A and G – monocular TZF 12a. When you change the vertical angle of the arms was varied and the position of the objective of the sights, ocular same part remained motionless, which provided work with the arms across the entire range of vertical pointing angle without moving the shooting. Scopes were made by Karl Zeiss Jena.
Ammunition gun consisted of 79 shots from Ausf D and A and 82 shots at Ausf G. Shoots were placed in niches turret box, in the department and in the fighting department.
Ammunition of the guns was for models D and A 5100, and for G – 4,800 rounds.
The auxiliary tank was equipped with weapons, “a device Melee” (Nahkampfgerat) – 26 mm caliber mortars, ammunition which included a flue (12 pcs.) Fragment (20 pcs.) Incendiary and fragmentation (24 pcs.) Shells. Mortars located in the right rear of the roof of the tower.
Engine and transmission. The tank “Panther” was mounted 12-cylinder carbureted four-stroke engine Maybach HL 230P30 engine with 700 hp (515 kW) at 3000 rpm (in practice the speed is not greater than 2500). Cylinder diameter 130 mm. Stroke 145 mm. Cylinders arranged V-shaped angle of 60 °. Compression ratio 6,8. Dry weight 1200 kg.
Fuel – unleaded petrol with an octane rating no lower than 74. Capacity of five fuel tanks 730 l. Fuel supply is forced, with four diaphragm pumps Solex. Carburetor – four brand Solex 52FFJIID.
Lubrication system – circulating, under pressure, dry-sump. Oil circulation by three gear pumps, one of which forcing and two suction.
Cooling system – liquid. Radiators or four, joined by two consecutively. Capacity radiator – about 170 liters. On both sides of the engine fan type located Zyklon.
To accelerate the engine during the cold season meant thermosyphon heater, heated with a blowtorch, which is mounted on the outside of the body feeding the sheet.
Transmission consisted of a driveline, trehdiskovogo main dry friction clutch, gear box AK 7-200, Swing firm MAN, final drives and disc brakes type LG 900.
Transmission – three-shaft, with a longitudinal arrangement of shafts, seven-, pyatihodovaya with constant mesh gears and simple (instantaneous) cone synchronizers to enable transmission from 2 nd to 7 th.
Transmission housing centered and rigidly connected to the crank rotation mechanism, forming a single assembly / disassembly unit (with total internal volume and lubrication system) transmission: double-line transfer mechanism, and rotation. The turning mechanism consisted of two planetary gear units. For airborne transmission of power transmitted by short transverse ridges with jagged sleeves at the ends. Centering of the assembly of the tank were reduced in this way to a minimum, but installation and removal mechanism to transfer and rotation of the weld the bow of the tank’s hull presents great difficulties.
Actuators control the tank – combined with gidroservoprivodom witness actions with mechanical feedback.