No one at the Krupp plant in 1936 could have imagined that this massive vehicle, equipped with a short-barreled infantry support gun and considered auxiliary, would be so widely used. With a final total of 9,000 units, it became the most mass-produced tank ever produced in Germany , the production volumes of which, despite the shortage of materials, grew to the very last days World War II in Europe.

Wehrmacht workhorse

Despite the fact that combat vehicles appeared that were more modern than the German T-4 tank - "Tiger", "Panther" and "Royal Tiger", it not only constituted most weapons of the Wehrmacht, but was also part of many elite SS divisions. The recipe for success was probably the large hull and turret, ease of maintenance, reliability and robust chassis, which allowed for an expanded array of weapons compared to the Panzer III. From the Model A to the F1, early versions using a short 75 mm barrel were gradually replaced by the "long" ones, F2 to H, with a very effective high-velocity gun inherited from the Pak 40, which could cope with the Soviet KV-1 and T -34. In the end, the T-4 (photo presented in the article) completely surpassed the Panzer III both in numbers and in its capabilities.

Krupp prototype design

It was originally assumed that the German T-4 tank, specifications which were determined in 1934 by the Waffenamt, will serve as an “accompanying vehicle"to hide his true role, prohibited by the terms of the Treaty of Versailles.

Heinz Guderian took part in the development of the concept. This new model was supposed to become an infantry support tank and be placed in the rearguard. It was planned that at the battalion level there should be one such vehicle for every three Panzer IIIs. Unlike the T-3, which was equipped with a variant of the standard 37 mm Pak 36 gun with good anti-tank performance, the short barrel of the Panzer IV howitzer could be used against all types of fortifications, blockhouses, pillboxes, anti-tank guns and artillery positions.

Initially, the weight limit for a combat vehicle was 24 tons. MAN, Krupp and Rheinmetall-Borsig created three prototypes, and Krupp received the main contract. The suspension was initially completely new, with six alternating wheels. Later the Army required the installation of rod springs, which provided better vertical deflection. Compared to the previous system, this made the ride smoother, but the need for a new tank stopped further development. Krupp returned to a more traditional system with four twin-wheel bogies and leaf springs for easier servicing. A crew of five was planned - three were in the turret (commander, loader and gunner), and the driver and radio operator were in the hull. Combat compartment was relatively spacious, with improved sound insulation in the rear engine compartment. The inside of the German T-4 tank (photos in the material illustrate this) was equipped with an onboard communication system and radio.

Although not very noticeable, the Panzer IV's hull is asymmetrical, with the turret offset 6.5 cm to the left and the engine 15 cm to the right. This was done in order to directly connect the turret ring to the transmission for faster rotation. As a result, the ammunition boxes were located on the right.

The prototype, developed and built in 1936 at the Krupp AG plant in Magdeburg, was designated Versuchskraftfahrzeug 622 by the Army Weapons Office. However, in the new pre-war nomenclature it quickly became known as the Pz.Kpfw.IV (Sd.Kfz. 161).

The tank had a Maybach HL108TR gasoline engine with a power of 250 hp. s., and a SGR 75 gearbox with five forward and one reverse gears. The maximum speed tested on a flat surface was 31 km/h.

75 mm gun - low-velocity Kampfwagenkanone (KwK) 37 L/24. This weapon was intended for firing at concrete fortifications. However, some anti-tank capability was provided by the Panzergranate armor-piercing projectile, whose speed reached 440 m/s. It could penetrate a 43 mm sheet of steel at a distance of 700 m. Two MG-34 machine guns completed the armament, one coaxial and the other at the front of the vehicle.

In the first batch of Type A tanks, the thickness of the hull armor did not exceed 15 mm and the turret armor did not exceed 20 mm. Although it was hardened steel, such protection could only withstand light firearms, light artillery and grenade launcher fragments.

Early "short" preliminary episodes

The German T-4 A tank was a kind of preliminary series of 35 units produced in 1936. The next was the Ausf. B with a modified commander's canopy, a new Maybach HL 120TR engine developing 300 hp. pp., as well as a new transmission SSG75.

Despite the extra weight, top speed has increased to 39 km/h and protection has been enhanced. The thickness of the armor reached 30 mm in the front inclined part of the hull and 15 mm in other places. In addition, the machine gun was protected by a new hatch.

After the production of 42 vehicles, production switched to the German T-4 C tank. The thickness of the armor on the turret increased to 30 mm. Total weight amounted to 18.15 tons. After delivery of 40 units in 1938, the tank was improved by installing a new Maybach HL 120TRM engine for the next hundred vehicles. It is quite logical that modification D followed. The Dora can be distinguished by the machine gun newly installed on the hull and the embrasure placed outside. The thickness of the side armor increased to 20 mm. A total of 243 vehicles of this model were manufactured, the last of which was at the beginning of 1940. Modification D was the last pre-production one, after which the command decided to increase the scale of production.

Standardization

The German T-4 E tank was the first large-scale series to be produced during the war. Although many studies and reports point to the lack of penetration of the Panzer III's 37mm gun, replacing it was not possible. Looking for a solution to conduct testing on one prototype Panzer IV Ausf. D, a modification of the Pak 38 medium-velocity 50 mm cannon was installed. The initial order for 80 units was canceled after the end of the French campaign. In tank battles, in particular against the British Matilda and the French B1 bis, it finally became clear that the thickness of the armor was insufficient and the penetrating power of the gun was weak. In Ausf. E retained the short-barreled KwK 37L/24 gun, but the thickness of the front armor was increased to 50 mm, with 30 mm steel plate overlays as a temporary measure. By April 1941, when this modification was replaced by Ausf. F, its production reached 280 units.

The last "short" model

Another modification significantly changed the German T-4 tank. The characteristics of the early F model, renamed F1 when the next one was introduced, changed due to the replacement of the front cover plate with a 50 mm plate and an increase in the thickness of the side parts of the hull and turret to 30 mm. The total weight of the tank increased to over 22 tons, which forced other changes such as increasing the width of the tracks from 380 to 400 mm to reduce ground pressure, with a corresponding change in the two idler and drive wheels. The F1 was produced in 464 units before its replacement in March 1942.

The first "long"

Even with the armor-piercing Panzergranate round, the Panzer IV's low-velocity gun was no match for heavily armored tanks. In the context of the upcoming campaign in the USSR, a decision had to be made on a major upgrade of the T-3 tank. The now available Pak 38L/60 gun, the effectiveness of which has been confirmed, was intended for installation in the Panzer IV turret. In November 1941, the prototype was completed and production was scheduled. But during the first battles with the Soviet KV-1 and T-34, production of the 50 mm gun, also used in the Panzer III, was discontinued in favor of a new, more powerful model from Rheinmetall based on the 75 mm Pak 40L/46 gun. This led to the development of the KwK 40L/43, a relatively long caliber equipped to reduce recoil. The initial velocity of the Panzergranade 39 projectile exceeded 990 m/s. It could penetrate 77 mm armor at a distance of up to 1850 m. After the creation of the first prototype in February 1942, mass production of the F2 began. By July, 175 units had been produced. In June, the German T-4 F2 tank was renamed T-4 G, but for the Waffenamt both types were designated as Sd.Kfz.161/1. In some documents the model is called F2/G.

Transitional model

The German T-4 G tank was an improved version of the F2 with changes to save metal through the use of progressive frontal armor, thicker at the base. The frontal glacis was reinforced with a new 30mm plate, increasing the thickness to a total of 80mm. This was enough to successfully counter the Soviet 76 mm gun and 76.2 mm anti-tank gun. At first they decided to bring only half of production to this standard, but in January 1943 Adolf Hitler personally ordered a complete transition. However, the weight of the car increased to 23.6 tons, revealing limited opportunities chassis and transmissions.

The German T-4 tank has undergone significant changes inside. Turret inspection slits have been eliminated, engine ventilation and ignition at low temperatures improved, additional holders for spare wheels and brackets for track links on the glacis were installed. They also served as temporary protection. The headlights were updated, the armored dome was strengthened and modified.

Later versions in the spring of 1943 added side armor on the hull and turret, as well as smoke grenade launchers. But most importantly, a new, more powerful KwK 40L/48 gun has appeared. After the production of 1,275 standard and 412 improved tanks, production shifted towards the Ausf.H model.

Main version

The German T-4 N tank (photo below) was equipped with a new long-barreled KwK 40L/48 gun. Further changes concerned ease of production - the side inspection slots were removed, and spare parts common to the Panzer III were used. In total, until the next modification of Ausf. J in June 1944, 3774 vehicles were assembled.

In December 1942, Krupp received an order for a tank with fully sloped armor, which due to the additional weight required the development of a new chassis, transmission and possibly engine. However, production began with an updated version of the Ausf.G. The German T-4 tank received a new ZF Zahnradfabrik SSG-76 gearbox, a new set of radio stations (FU2 and 5, and internal communication). The thickness of the frontal armor increased to 80 mm without overlay plates. The weight of the H reached 25 tons in combat gear, and the maximum speed was reduced to 38 km/h, and in real combat conditions to 25 km/h, and much less over rough terrain. By the end of 1943, the German T-4 N tank began to be coated with Zimmerit paste, the air filters were updated, and an anti-aircraft machine for the MG 34 was installed on the turret.

Latest simplified model

The last tank, the German T-4 J, was assembled at the Nibelungwerke in St. Valentin, Austria, as Vomag and Krupp now had other missions, and was subject to simplifications aimed at greater mass production and which rarely found support among the crews. For example, the electric drive of the turret was removed, aiming was done manually, which made it possible to increase the volume of the fuel tank by 200 liters, increasing the operating range to 300 km. Other modifications included the removal of the turret's viewing window, loopholes and anti-aircraft gun in favor of mounting a smoke grenade launcher. "Zimmerit" was no longer used, as were the Schürzen anti-cumulative "skirts", replaced by cheaper mesh panels. The engine radiator housing has also been simplified. The drive has lost one return roller. Two mufflers with flame arresters appeared, as well as a mount for a 2-ton crane. In addition, the SSG 77 transmission from the Panzer III was used, although it was clearly overloaded. Despite these sacrifices, due to constant Allied bombing, deliveries were in jeopardy, and in total only 2,970 tanks were built out of a planned 5,000 by the end of March 1945.

Modifications

German tank T-4: tactical and technical characteristics

Parameter
Height, m
Width, m
Body/forehead armor, mm
Turret body/front, mm
Machine guns
Shot/Pat.
Max. speed, km/h
Max. distance, km
Prev. ditch, m
Prev. walls, m
Prev. ford, m

I must say that big number The Panzer IV tanks that survived the Second World War were not lost or scrapped, but were used for their intended purpose in countries such as Bulgaria and Syria. Some of them were equipped with the new Soviet heavy machine gun. They took part in the battles for the Golan Heights during the 1965 war and in 1967. Today, German T-4 tanks are part of museum displays and private collections around the world, and dozens of them are still in working order.

Average Panzer tank IV

Medium Panzer IV

“We froze when we saw ugly, monstrous cars of bright yellow tiger color appearing from the gardens of Sitno. They slowly rolled towards us, flashing with tongues of shots.
“I’ve never seen anything like this before,” says Nikitin.
The Germans are moving in a line. I peer at the nearest left-flank tank, which has rushed far ahead. Its outline reminds me of something. But what?
- "Rheinmetall"! - I shouted, remembering the photograph of a German heavy tank that I saw in the school album, and quickly blurted out: - Heavy, seventy-five, direct shot eight hundred, armor forty...”
Thus, in his book “Notes of a Soviet Officer,” tanker G. Penezhko recalls his first meeting with the German Panzer IV tank in the June days of 1941.
However, under this name this combat was almost unknown to the soldiers and commanders of the Red Army. And even now, half a century after the end of the Great Patriotic War, the combination of the German words “Panzer Fir” causes bewilderment among many readers of the Armored Collection. Both then and now, this tank is better known under the “Russified” name T-IV, which is not used anywhere outside our country.
Panzer IV is the only German tank that was in mass production throughout World War II and became the most popular tank of the Wehrmacht. Its popularity among German tankers was comparable to the popularity of the T-34 among ours and the Sherman among the Americans. Well-designed and extremely reliable in operation, this combat vehicle was, in the full sense of the word, the “workhorse” of the Panzerwaffe.
HISTORY OF CREATION
Already in the early 30s, a doctrine for the construction of tank forces was developed in Germany, and views on the tactical use of various types tanks. And if light vehicles (Pz.l and Pz.ll) were considered primarily as combat training vehicles, then their heavier “brothers” - Pz.lll and Pz.lV - as full-fledged combat vehicles. At the same time, the Pz.lll was supposed to serve as a medium tank, and the Pz.lV as a support tank.
The latter's project was developed within the framework of the requirements for an 18-ton class vehicle intended for tank battalion commanders. Hence its original name Bataillonsfuh-rerwagen - BW. In its design, it was very close to the ZW tank - the future Pz.lll, but, having almost the same tanks, the BW was distinguished by a wider hull and a larger turret ring diameter, which initially laid down a certain reserve for its modernization. New tank it was supposed to be armed with a large-caliber gun and two machine guns. The layout was classic - single-turret, with a front-mounted transmission, traditional for German tank building. The booked volume ensured the normal operation of the crew of 5 people and the placement of equipment.
The BW was designed by Rheinmetall-Borsig AG in Düsseldorf and Friedrich Krupp AG in Essen. However, Daimler-Benz and MAN also presented their projects. It is interesting to note that all variants, with the exception of Rheinmetall's, had a chassis with a staggered arrangement of large-diameter road wheels, developed by engineer E. Kniepkamp. The only prototype built in metal - VK 2001 (Rh) - was equipped with a chassis almost entirely borrowed from the heavy multi-turret tank Nb.Fz., several samples of which were manufactured in 1934 - 1935. This chassis design was preferred. The order for the production of the 7.5-cm Geschutz-Panzerwagen (Vs.Kfz.618) tank - “an armored vehicle with a 75-mm cannon (experimental model 618)” - was received by Krupp in 1935. In April 1936, the name was changed to Panzerkampfwagen IV (abbreviated as Pz.Kpfw.lV, often referred to as Panzer IV, and very briefly - Pz.lV). According to the end-to-end designation system for Wehrmacht vehicles, the tank had the index Sd.Kfz.161.
Several zero-series vehicles were manufactured in the workshops of the Krupp plant in Essen, but already in October 1937, production was transferred to the Krupp-Gruson AG plant in Magdeburg, where production of modification A combat vehicles began.
Pz.IV Ausf.A
The armor protection of the Ausf.A hull ranged from 15 (sides and rear) to 20 (forehead) mm. The frontal armor of the turret reached 30, the sides - 20, and the rear - 10 mm. The tank's combat weight was 17.3 tons. Armament was a 75-mm KwK 37 cannon with a barrel length of 24 calibers (L/24); it contained 120 shots. Two MG 34 machine guns of 7.92 mm caliber (one coaxial with a cannon, the other course-mounted) had an ammunition capacity of 3,000 rounds. The tank was equipped with a 12-cylinder V-shaped carburetor liquid-cooled Maybach HL 108TR engine with a power of 250 hp. at 3000 rpm and a five-speed manual transmission type Zahnradfabrik ZF SFG75. The engine was located asymmetrically, closer to the starboard side of the hull. The chassis consisted of eight twin small-diameter road wheels, interlocked in pairs into four bogies, suspended on quarter-elliptical leaf springs, four support rollers, and a drive wheel. front location and a guide wheel with a caterpillar tensioning mechanism. Subsequently, with numerous modernizations of the Pz.IV, its chassis did not undergo any serious design changes.
Characteristics modification A vehicles have a cylindrical commander's cupola with six viewing slots and a front-facing machine gun in a ball mount in a broken frontal hull. The tank's turret was shifted to the left of its longitudinal axis by 51.7 mm, which was explained by the internal layout of the turret rotation mechanism, which included a two-stroke gasoline engine, a generator and an electric motor.
By March 1938, 35 tanks of modification A had left the factory floors. This was practically an installation batch.
Pz.IV Ausf.B
Cars of modification B were somewhat different from the previous ones. The broken frontal plate of the hull was replaced with a straight one, the frontal machine gun was eliminated (in its place a radio operator's observation point appeared, and to the right of it there was a loophole for firing from personal weapons), a new commander's cupola and a periscope observation device were introduced, the armor design of almost all observation devices was changed, instead The double-leaf covers of the driver's and radio operator's landing hatches were replaced with single-leaf ones. Ausf.B were equipped with a Maybach HL120TR engine with 300 hp. at 3000 rpm and a six-speed ZF SSG76 gearbox. reduced to 80 shots and 2700 rounds. The armor protection practically remained the same, only the thickness of the frontal armor of the hull and turret was increased to 30 mm.
From April to September 1938, 45 Pz.IV Ausf.B were produced.
Pz.IV Ausf.C
From September 1938 to August 1939, tanks of the C series were produced - 140 units (according to other sources, 134 tanks and six for engineering troops). From the 40th car of the series (serial number - 80341) they began to install the Maybach HL120TRM engine - later it was used on all subsequent modifications. Other improvements include a special bumper under the gun barrel to bend the antenna when turning the turret and an armored casing for the coaxial machine gun. Two Ausf.C vehicles were converted into bridge tanks.
Pz.IV Ausf.D
From October 1939 to May 1940, 229 modification D vehicles were produced, which again featured a broken front hull plate and a front-mounted machine gun with additional rectangular armor. The design of the mantlet for the coaxial installation of a cannon and a machine gun has changed. The thickness of the side armor of the hull and turret increased to 20 mm. In 1940 - 1941, the frontal armor of the hull was reinforced with 20 mm sheets. Ausf.D tanks of late production had additional ventilation holes in the engine compartment (Option Tr. - tropen - tropical). In April 1940, 10 D-series vehicles were converted into bridge laying machines.
In 1941, one Ausf.D tank was experimentally armed with a 50-mm KwK 39 cannon with a barrel length of 60 calibers. It was planned to rearm all vehicles of this modification in this way, but in the winter of 1942, preference was given to the F2 variant with a 75-mm long-barreled gun. In 1942-1943, a number of Pz.IV Ausf.D tanks received such guns during a major overhaul. In February 1942, two tanks were converted into self-propelled guns armed with 105 mm K18 howitzers.
Pz.IV Ausf.E
The main difference between the Ausf.E modification and its predecessors was the significant increase in armor thickness. The frontal armor of the hull was increased to 30 mm and, in addition, reinforced with a 30 mm screen. The turret forehead was also increased to 30 mm, and the mantlet to 35...37 mm. The sides of the hull and turret had 20 mm armor, and the rear had 15 mm armor. A new type of commander's cupola with armor reinforced to a thickness of 50...95 mm, a turret, an improved driver's viewing device, a ball mount for the Kugelblende 30 machine gun appeared (the number 30 means that the mount's apple was adapted for mounting in 30 mm armor) , simplified drive and guide wheels, an equipment box mounted on the rear of the turret, and other smaller changes. The design of the turret's rear plate has also undergone changes. The combat weight of the tank reached 21 tons. From September 1940 to April 1941, 223 E-version vehicles left the factory floors.
Pz.IV Ausf.F
Pz.IV Ausf.F appeared as a result of an analysis of the combat use of previous versions of vehicles in Poland and France. The thickness of the armor increased again: the front of the hull and turret - up to 50 mm, the sides - up to 30. The single-leaf doors on the sides of the turret were replaced with double-leaf ones, the frontal plate of the hull again became straight. The machine gun was preserved, but now it was placed in a Kugelblende 50 ball mount. Since the mass of the tank hull increased by 48% compared to the Ausf.E, the vehicle received a new 400 mm track instead of the previously used 360 mm. Additional ventilation holes were made in the roof of the engine compartment and in the transmission hatch covers. The placement and design of the engine mufflers and the turret rotation gas motor have changed.
In addition to Krupp-Gruson, Vomag and Nibelungenwerke were involved in the production of the tank, which lasted from April 1941 to March 1942.
All of the above modifications of the Pz.IV tank were armed with a short-barreled 75-mm cannon with initial speed armor-piercing projectile 385 m/s, which was powerless against both the English Matilda and the Soviet T-34 and KV. After the production of 462 vehicles of the F variant, their production was stopped for one month. During this time, very significant changes were made to the design of the tank: the main one was the installation of a 75-mm KwK 40 cannon with a 43-caliber barrel length and an initial armor-piercing projectile speed of 770 m/s, developed by designers from Krupp and Rheinmetall. Production of these guns began in March 1942. On April 4, the tank with the new gun was shown to Hitler, and after this its production resumed. Vehicles with short guns were designated F1, and those with a new gun - F2. The latter's ammunition consisted of 87 rounds, 32 of which were placed in the turret. The vehicles received a new mask installation and a new TZF 5f sight. The combat weight reached 23.6 tons. Until July 1942, 175 Pz.lV Ausf.F2 were produced, another 25 vehicles were converted from F1.
Pz.IV Ausf.G
The Pz.IV Ausf.G variant (1,687 units produced), production of which began in May 1942 and continued until April 1943, had no fundamental differences from the F modification. The only immediately noticeable new feature was the dual-chamber cannon. In addition, most of the vehicles produced did not have surveillance devices in the front plate of the turret to the right of the gun and on the right side of the turret. However, judging by the photographs, these devices are not present on many machines of the F2 variant. The last 412 Ausf.G tanks received a 75 mm KwK 40 cannon with a barrel length of 48 calibers. Later production vehicles were equipped with 1,450 kg "eastern tracks" - Ostketten, additional 30 mm frontal armor (about 700 tanks received it) and side screens, which made them almost indistinguishable from the next modification - Ausf.H. One of serial tanks was converted into a prototype self-propelled gun Hummel.
Pz.IV Ausf.H
Tanks of modification N received 80-mm frontal armor, the radio station was moved to the rear of the hull, 5-mm side screens appeared on the hull and turret, protecting against cumulative (or, as we called them then, armor-burning) shells, the design of the drive wheels changed. Some tanks had non-rubber support rollers. The Ausf.H was equipped with a Zahnradfabrik ZF SSG77, similar to that used in the Pz.lll tank. An anti-aircraft machine gun MG 34 - Fliegerbeschussgerat41 or 42 was mounted on the commander's cupola. On the latest production vehicles, the rear hull plate became vertical (previously it was located at an angle of 30° to the vertical). The armor protection of the turret roof has increased to 18 mm. Finally, all external surfaces of the tank were coated with zimmerit. This version of the Pz.IV became the most widespread: from April 1943 to May 1944, the factory floors of three manufacturing companies - Krupp-Gruson AG in Magdeburg, Vogtiandische Maschinenfabrik AG (VOMAG) in Plausen and Nibelungenwerke in S. Valentin - left 3960 combat vehicles. At the same time, 121 tanks were converted into self-propelled and assault guns.
According to other sources, 3935 chassis were manufactured, 3774 of which were used to assemble tanks. Based on 30 chassis, 30 StuG IV assault guns and 130 Brummbar self-propelled guns were produced.
Pz.IV Ausf.J
The latest version of the Pz.IV was the Ausf.J. From June 1944 to March 1945, the Nibelungenwerke plant produced 1,758 vehicles of this model. In general, the Ausf.J tanks, similar to the previous version, have undergone changes associated with technological simplifications. For example, the power unit of the electric drive for turning the turret was eliminated and only the manual drive was preserved! The design of the tower hatches was simplified, the driver's on-board observation device was dismantled (in the presence of on-board screens, it became useless), the support rollers, the number of which on later production vehicles was reduced to three, lost rubber bands, and the design of the idler wheel was changed. The tank was equipped with high-capacity fuel tanks, as a result of which the highway range increased to 320 km. Metal mesh has become widely used for side screens. Some tanks had vertical exhaust pipes, similar to those used on the Panther tank.
During the period from 1937 to 1945, attempts were made repeatedly to carry out deep technical modernization of the Pz.IV. Thus, one of the Ausf.G tanks was equipped with a hydraulic transmission in July 1944. From April 1945, they planned to equip the Pz.IV with 12-cylinder Tatra 103 diesel engines.
The most extensive plans were for rearmament and rearmament. In 1943-1944, it was planned to install a “Panther” turret with a 75-mm KwK 42 gun with a barrel length of 70 calibers or a so-called “tight turret” (Schmalturm) with a 75-mm KwK 44/1 gun on tanks of the H modification. They also built a wooden tank with this gun, located in the standard turret of the Pz.IV Ausf.H tank. Krupp has developed a new turret with a 75/55 mm KwK 41 cannon with a 58-caliber conical barrel.
Attempts were made to equip the Pz.IV with missile weapons. A prototype tank was built with a 280 mm rocket launcher instead of a turret. The combat vehicle, equipped with two 75-mm Rucklauflos Kanone 43 recoilless cannons located on the sides of the turret, and a 30-mm MK 103 in place of the standard KwK 40, did not make it out of the wooden model stage.
From March to September 1944, 97 Ausf.H tanks were converted into command tanks - Panzerbefehlswagen IV (Sd.Kfz.267). These vehicles received an additional FuG 7 radio station, which was serviced by a loader.
For parts self-propelled artillery From July 1944 to March 1945, in the workshops of the Nibelungenwerke plant, 90 Ausf.J tanks were converted into forward artillery observer vehicles - Panzerbeobachtungswagen IV. The main weapons on them have been preserved. Additionally, these vehicles were equipped with a FuG 7 radio station, the antenna of which is easily recognized by the characteristic “broom” at the end, and a TSF 1 rangefinder. Instead of the standard one, the tanks received a commander’s cupola from the StuG 40 assault gun.
In 1940, 20 tanks of modifications C and D were converted into Bruckenleger IV bridge layers. The work was carried out in the workshops of the Friedrich Krupp AG factories in Essen and Magirus in Ulm, while the machines of both companies were somewhat different from each other in design. Four bridgelayers each became part of the sapper companies of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th and 10th tank divisions.
In February 1940, two Ausf.C tanks were converted by Magirus into assault bridges (Infanterie Sturm-steg), designed for infantry to overcome various fortification obstacles. In place of the tower, a sliding ladder was installed, structurally similar to a fire assault ladder.
In preparation for the invasion of the British Isles (Operation Sea Lion), 42 Ausf.D tanks were equipped with underwater equipment. Then these vehicles entered the 3rd and 18th tank divisions of the Wehrmacht. Since the crossing of the English Channel did not take place, they received a baptism of fire on the Eastern Front.
In 1939, during testing of the 600mm Karl mortar, the need for an ammunition carrier arose. In October of the same year, one Pz.lV Ausf.D tank was converted on a trial basis for this purpose. Four 600-mm shells were transported in a special box mounted on the roof of the engine compartment, for loading and unloading of which a crane located on the roof of the front part of the hull served. In 1941, 13 Ausf.FI vehicles were converted into ammunition carriers (Munitionsschlepper).
In October-December 1944, 36 Pz.lV tanks were converted into ARVs.
The given production data for Pz.lV, unfortunately, cannot be considered absolutely accurate. Data on the number of cars produced differ in different sources, and sometimes noticeably. So, for example, I.P. Shmelev in his book “Armor of the Third Reich” gives the following figures: Pz.lV with KwK 37 - 1125, and with KwK 40 - 7394. Just look at the table to see the discrepancies. In the first case, insignificant - by 8 units, and in the second, significant - by 169! Moreover, if we sum up the production data by modification, we get the number of 8714 tanks, which again does not coincide with the total of the table, although the error in this case is only 18 vehicles.
Pz.lV was exported in much larger quantities than other German tanks. Judging by German statistics, Germany's allies, as well as Turkey and Spain, received 490 combat vehicles between 1942 and 1944.
The first Pz.lV was received by the most faithful ally of Nazi Germany, Hungary. In May 1942, 22 Ausf.F1 tanks arrived there, and in September, 10 F2 tanks. The largest batch was delivered in the fall of 1944 and spring of 1945; According to various sources, from 42 to 72 vehicles of the H and J modifications. The discrepancy occurred because some sources question the fact that the tanks were delivered in 1945.
In October 1942, the first 11 Pz.lV Ausf.Gs arrived in Romania. Subsequently, in 1943-1944, the Romanians received another 131 tanks of this type. They were used in combat operations both against the Red Army and against the Wehrmacht, after Romania switched to the side of the anti-Hitler coalition.
A batch of 97 Ausf.G and H tanks was sent to Bulgaria between September 1943 and February 1944. From September 1944 they accepted Active participation in battles with German troops, being the main striking force of the only Bulgarian tank brigade. In 1950, the Bulgarian army still had 11 combat vehicles of this type.
In 1943, Croatia received several Ausf.F1 and G tanks; in 1944 14 Ausf.J - Finland, where they were used until the early 60s. At the same time, the standard MG 34 machine guns were removed from the tanks, and Soviet diesel engines were installed instead.

DESIGN DESCRIPTION
The layout of the tank is classic, with a front-mounted transmission.
The control compartment was located in front of the combat vehicle. It housed the main clutch, gearbox, turning gear, control instruments, a forward machine gun (with the exception of modifications B and C), a radio station and workplaces for two crew members - the driver and the gunner-radio operator.
The fighting compartment was located in the middle part of the tank. Here (in the turret) there was a cannon and a machine gun, observation and aiming devices, vertical and horizontal aiming mechanisms and seats for the tank commander, gunner and loader. The ammunition was placed partly in the turret and partly in the hull.
In the engine compartment, at the rear of the tank, there was an engine and all its systems, as well as an auxiliary engine for the turret rotation mechanism.
FRAME The tank was welded from rolled armor plates with surface cementation, generally located at right angles to each other.
In the front part of the roof of the turret box there were manholes for the driver and gunner-radio operator, which were closed with rectangular covers that hinged. Modification A has double-leaf lids, while the others have single-leaf lids. Each cover was provided with a hatch for launching flares(except for options H and J).
In the frontal plate of the hull on the left there was a driver's viewing device, which included a triplex glass block, closed by a massive armored sliding or folding flap Sehklappe 30 or 50 (depending on the thickness of the frontal armor), and a binocular periscope observation device KFF 2 (for Ausf. A - KFF 1). The latter, when there was no need for it, moved to the right, and the driver could observe through the glass block. Modifications B, C, D, H and J did not have a periscope device.
On the sides of the control compartment, to the left of the driver and to the right of the gunner-radio operator, there were triplex viewing devices, covered with hinged armored covers.
There was a partition between the rear of the hull and the fighting compartment. There were two hatches in the roof of the engine compartment, closed with hinged covers. Starting with Ausf.F1, the covers were equipped with blinds. In the reverse bevel of the left side there was an air inlet window to the radiator, and in the reverse bevel of the right side there was an air outflow window from the fans.
TOWER- welded, hexagonal, mounted on a ball bearing on the turret plate of the hull. In its front part, in the mask, there was a cannon, a coaxial machine gun and a sight. To the left and right of the mask there were observation hatches with triplex glass. The hatches were closed with external armored flaps from inside the turret. Starting with modification G, the hatch to the right of the gun was missing.
The tower was driven by an electromechanical turning mechanism with a maximum speed of 14 degrees/s. Full turn tower was carried out in 26 s. The flywheels of the turret's manual drive were located at the gunner's and loader's workstations.
At the rear of the tower roof there was a commander's cupola with five viewing slots with triplex glass. From the outside, the viewing slots were closed with sliding armored flaps, and in the roof of the turret, intended for the entrance and exit of the tank commander, with a double-leaf lid (later - single-leaf). The turret had a dial-hour type device for determining the target location. A second similar device was at the gunner’s disposal and, having received an order, he could quickly turn the turret towards the target. At the driver's seat there was a turret position indicator with two lights (except for Ausf.J tanks), thanks to which he knew what position the gun was in (this is especially important when driving through wooded areas and populated areas).
For boarding and disembarking crew members, there were hatches on the sides of the turret with single-leaf and double-leaf (starting with version F1) covers. Inspection devices were installed in the hatch covers and sides of the tower. The turret's rear plate was equipped with two hatches for firing personal weapons. On some vehicles of modifications H and J, due to the installation of screens, inspection devices and hatches were missing.
WEAPONS. The main armament of tanks of modifications A - F1 is a 7.5 cm KwK 37 cannon of 75 mm caliber from Rheinmetall-Borsig. The length of the gun barrel is 24 caliber (1765.3 mm). Gun weight - 490 kg. Vertical aiming - ranging from - 10° to +20°. The gun had a vertical wedge breech and an electric trigger. Its ammunition included shots with smoke (weight 6.21 kg, initial speed 455 m/s), high-explosive fragmentation (5.73 kg, 450 m/s), armor-piercing (6.8 kg, 385 m/s) and cumulative (4.44 kg, 450...485 m/s) projectiles.
Ausf.F2 tanks and some Ausf.G tanks were armed with a 7.5 cm KwK 40 cannon with a barrel length of 43 calibers (3473 mm), weighing 670 kg. Some Ausf.G tanks and Ausf.H and J vehicles were equipped with a 7.5 cm KwK 40 cannon with a barrel length of 48 calibers (3855 mm) and a weight of 750 kg. Vertical aiming -8°...+20°. The maximum rollback length is 520 mm. During the march, the gun was fixed at an elevation angle of +16°.
A 7.92-mm MG 34 machine gun was paired with the cannon. The forward machine gun was placed in the front plate of the turret box in a ball mount (except for modifications B and C). On the commander's cupola of the later type, an MG 34 anti-aircraft machine gun could be mounted on a special device Fliegerbeschutzgerat 41 or 42.
Pz.lV tanks were initially equipped with a TZF 5b monocular telescopic sight, and starting with Ausf.E-TZF 5f or TZF 5f/1. These scopes had 2.5x magnification. The MG 34 course machine gun was equipped with a 1.8x KZF 2 telescopic sight.
Depending on the modification of the tank, the gun's ammunition ranged from 80 to 122 rounds. For command tanks and forward artillery observer vehicles it was 64 rounds. Machine gun ammunition - 2700...3150 rounds.
ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION. The tank was equipped with Maybach HL 108TR, HL 120TR and HL 120TRM engines, 12-cylinder, V-shaped (cylinder camber - 60°), carburetor, four-stroke, with a power of 250 hp. (HL 108) and 300 e.c. (HL 120) at 3000 rpm. Cylinder diameters are 100 and 105 mm. Piston stroke 115 mm. Compression ratio 6.5. Displacement volume 10,838 cm3 and 11,867 cm3. It should be emphasized that both engines were of a similar design.
Leaded gasoline with an octane rating of at least 74. The capacity of three gas tanks is 420 l (140+110+170). Ausf.J tanks had a fourth tank with a capacity of 189 liters. per 100 km when driving on the highway - 330 liters, off-road - 500 liters. The fuel supply is forced, using two Solex fuel pumps. There are two carburetors, Solex 40 JFF II.
The cooling system is liquid, with one radiator located obliquely on the left side of the engine. There were two fans on the right side of the engine.
On the right side of the engine, a DKW PZW 600 (Ausf.A - E) or ZW 500 (Ausf.E - H) engine for the turret rotation mechanism with a power of 11 hp was installed. and a working volume of 585 cm3. The fuel was a mixture of gasoline and oil, the fuel tank capacity was 18 liters.
The transmission consisted of a cardan drive, a three-disc main dry friction clutch, a gearbox, a planetary rotation mechanism, final drives and brakes.
The five-speed Zahnradfabrik SFG75 (Ausf.A) gearbox and the six-speed SSG76 (Ausf.B - G) and SSG77 (Ausf.H and J) are three-shaft, with coaxial drive and driven shafts, with spring disk synchronizers.
CHASSIS The tank, applied to one side, consisted of eight double rubber-coated road wheels with a diameter of 470 mm, interlocked in pairs into four balancing bogies, suspended on quarter-elliptical leaf springs; four (for part of Ausf.J - three) dual rubber-coated (except for Ausf.J and part of Ausf.H) support rollers.
The front drive wheels had two removable ring gears of 20 teeth each. Pin engagement.
The caterpillars are steel, fine-linked, made of 101 (starting from variant F1 - 99) single-ridge tracks each. The track width is 360 mm (up to option E), and then 400 mm.
ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT was performed using a single-wire circuit. Voltage 12V. Sources: Bosch GTLN 600/12-1500 generator with a power of 0.6 kW (Ausf.A has two Bosch GQL300/12 generators with a power of 300 kW each), four Bosch batteries with a capacity of 105. Consumers: Bosch BPD 4/24 electric starter with a power of 2.9 kW (Ausf.A has two starters), ignition system, tower fan, control instruments, sight illumination, sound and light signaling devices, internal and external lighting equipment, sound, triggers cannons and machine guns.
MEANS OF COMMUNICATION. All Pz.lV tanks were equipped with a Fu 5 radio station, with a range of 6.4 km for telephone and 9.4 km for telegraph.
COMBAT USE
The first three Panzer IV tanks entered service with the Wehrmacht in January 1938. The total order for combat vehicles of this type included 709 units. The plan for 1938 included the delivery of 116 tanks, and the Krupp-Gruson company almost fulfilled it, delivering 113 vehicles to the troops. The first "combat" operations involving the Pz.lV were the Anschluss of Austria and the capture of the Sudetenland of Czechoslovakia in 1938. In March 1939 they walked through the streets of Prague.
On the eve of the invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, the Wehrmacht had 211 Pz.lV tanks of modifications A, B and C. According to the then-current staff in tank division there were supposed to be 24 Pz.lV tanks, 12 vehicles in each regiment. However, only the 1st and 2nd tank regiments of the 1st Panzer Division (1. Panzer Division) were fully staffed. The Tank Training Battalion (Panzer Lehr Abteilung), attached to the 3rd Panzer Division, also had a full staff. The remaining formations included only a few Pz.lVs, which were superior in armament and armor protection to all types of Polish tanks opposing them. However, the 37-mm tank and anti-tank guns of the Poles posed a serious danger to the Germans. For example, during the battle near Glowachuv, Polish 7TPs knocked out two Pz.lVs. In total, during the Polish campaign, the Germans lost 76 tanks of this type, 19 of them irretrievably.
By the beginning of the French campaign - May 10, 1940 - the Panzerwaffe already had 290 Pz.lVs and 20 bridge layers at their base. They were mainly concentrated in divisions operating in the directions of the main attacks. In General Rommel's 7th Panzer Division, for example, there were 36 Pz.lVs. Their equal opponents were the French Somua S35 medium tanks and the British Matilda II. Not without a chance of victory, the French B Ibis and 02 could engage in battle with the Pz.lV. During the battles, the French and British managed to knock out 97 Pz.lV tanks. The irretrievable losses of the Germans amounted to only 30 combat vehicles of this type.
In 1940, the share of Pz.lV tanks in Wehrmacht tank formations increased slightly. On the one hand, due to increased production, and on the other, due to a decrease in the number of tanks in the division to 258 units. However, the majority of them were still light Pz.l and Pz.ll.
During the short-lived operation in the Balkans in the spring of 1941, the Pz.lV, which took part in battles with Yugoslav, Greek and British troops, suffered no losses. It was planned to use the Pz.lV in the operation to capture Crete, but paratroopers were used there.
By the beginning of Operation Barbarossa, out of 3,582 combat-ready German tanks, 439 were Pz.lV. It should be emphasized that according to the then accepted Wehrmacht classification of tanks by gun caliber, these vehicles belonged to the heavy class. On our side, the modern heavy tank was the KB - there were 504 of them in the army. In addition to numbers, the Soviet heavy tank had absolute superiority in combat qualities. The medium T-34 also had an advantage over the German vehicle. They penetrated the armor of the Pz.lV and the 45-mm guns of the T-26 and BT light tanks. The short-barreled German tank gun could only effectively fight the latter. All this immediately affected combat losses: during 1941, 348 Pz.lV were destroyed on the Eastern Front.
The Germans faced a similar situation in North Africa, where the short Pz.lV gun turned out to be powerless in front of the powerfully armored Matildas. The first “fours” were unloaded in Tripoli on March 11, 1941, and there were not many of them at all, which is clearly seen in the example of the 2nd battalion of the 5th tank regiment of the 5th light division. As of April 30, 1941, the battalion included 9 Pz.l, 26 Pz.ll, 36 Pz.lll and only 8 Pz.lV (mainly vehicles of modifications D and E). Together with the 5th Light, the 15th Wehrmacht Panzer Division, which had 24 Pz.lVs, fought in Africa. These tanks achieved their greatest success in the fight against the British cruiser tanks A.9 and A. 10 - mobile but lightly armored. The main means of fighting the Matildas were 88-mm guns, and the main German tank in this theater in 1941 was the Pz.lll. As for the Pz.lV, in November there were only 35 of them left in Africa: 20 in the 15th Tank Division and 15 in the 21st (transformed from the 5th Light).
The Germans themselves then had a low opinion of the fighting qualities of the Pz.lV. Here is what Major General von Mellenthin writes about this in his memoirs (in 1941, with the rank of major, he served on Rommel’s headquarters): “The T-IV tank gained a reputation among the British as a formidable enemy mainly because it was armed with a 75-mm cannon However, this gun had a low muzzle velocity and weak penetration, and although we used the T-IV in tank battles, they were much more useful as a means of fire support for infantry." The Pz.lV began to play a more significant role in all theaters of war only after acquiring the "long arm" - the 75-mm KwK 40 cannon.
The first F2 modification vehicles were delivered to North Africa in the summer of 1942. At the end of July, Rommel's Afrika Korps had only 13 Pz.lV tanks, of which 9 were F2. In English documents of that period they were called Panzer IV Special. On the eve of the offensive, which Rommel planned for the end of August, there were about 450 tanks in the German and Italian units entrusted to him: including 27 Pz.lV Ausf.F2 and 74 Pz.lll with long-barreled 50-mm guns. Only this equipment posed a danger to the American Grant and Sherman tanks, the number of which in the troops of the 8th British Army of General Montgomery on the eve of the battle at El Alamein reached 40%. During this battle, a turning point in all respects for the African campaign, the Germans lost almost all their tanks. They managed to partially compensate for the losses by the winter of 1943, after retreating to Tunisia.
Despite the obvious defeat, the Germans began to reorganize their forces in Africa. On December 9, 1942, the 5th Tank Army was formed in Tunisia, which included the replenished 15th and 21st Tank Divisions, as well as the 10th Tank Division transferred from France, which was armed with Pz.lV Ausf.G tanks. The “tigers” of the 501st heavy tank battalion also arrived here, who, together with the “fours” of the 10th tank, took part in the defeat of American troops at Kasserine on February 14, 1943. However, this was the last successful operation of the Germans on African continent- already on February 23, they were forced to go on the defensive, their forces were quickly melting away. On May 1, 1943, Rommel’s troops had only 58 tanks - 17 of them Pz.lV. On May 12, the German army in North Africa capitulated.
On the Eastern Front, Pz.lV Ausf.F2 also appeared in the summer of 1942 and took part in the attack on Stalingrad and North Caucasus. After production of the Pz.lll "four" ceased in 1943, it gradually became the main German tank in all theaters of combat. However, in connection with the start of production of the Panther, it was planned to stop production of the Pz.lV, however, thanks to the tough position of the Panzerwaffe Inspector General, General G. Guderian, this did not happen. Subsequent events showed that he was right...


The presence of tanks in German tank and motorized divisions on the eve of Operation Citadel
By the summer of 1943, the staff of the German tank division included tank regiment two-battalion composition. In the first battalion, two companies were armed with Pz.lV, and one with Pz.lll. In the second, only one company was armed with Pz.lV. In total, the division had 51 Pz.lV and 66 Pz.lll in combat battalions. However, judging by the available data, the number of combat vehicles in certain tank divisions sometimes differed greatly from the staff.
In the formations listed in the table, which made up 70% of the tank and 30% of the motorized divisions of the Wehrmacht and SS troops, in addition, they were in service with 119 commander and 41 different types. The motorized division "Das Reich" had 25 T-34 tanks, three heavy tank battalions - 90 "tigers" and the "Panther Brigade" - 200 "Panthers". Thus, the "fours" made up almost 60% of all German tanks involved in Operation Citadel. These were mainly combat vehicles of modifications G and H, equipped with armored screens (Schurzen), which changed appearance Pz.lV beyond recognition. Apparently for this reason, as well as because of the long-barreled cannon, they were often called “Tiger Type 4” in Soviet documents.
It is quite obvious that it was not the “tigers” and “panthers,” but the Pz.lV and partly the Pz.lll that made up the majority in the Wehrmacht tank units during Operation Citadel. This statement can be well illustrated by the example of the 48th German Tank Corps. It consisted of the 3rd and 11th tank divisions and the motorized division "Grossdeutschland" (Grobdeutschland). In total, there were 144 Pz.lll, 117 Pz.lV and only 15 “tigers” in the corps. The 48th Tank attacked in the Oboyan direction in the zone of our 6th Guards Army and by the end of July 5th managed to wedge into its defenses. On the night of July 6, the Soviet command decided to strengthen the 6th Guards. And two corps of the 1st Tank Army of General Katukov - the 6th Tank and the 3rd Mechanized. In the next two days, the main blow of the German 48th Tank Corps fell on our 3rd Mechanized Corps. Judging by the memoirs of M.E. Katukov and F.V. von Mellenthin, who was then the chief of staff of the 48th Corps, the fighting was extremely fierce. This is what the German general writes about this.
“On July 7, on the fourth day of Operation Citadel, we finally achieved some success. The Grossdeutschland division managed to break through on both sides of the Syrtsev farm, and the Russians retreated to Gremuchy and the village of Syrtsevo. The retreating masses of the enemy came under German artillery fire and suffered very heavy losses. Our tanks, increasing their attack, began to advance to the north-west, but on the same day they were stopped by heavy fire near Syrtsevo, and then counterattacked by Russian tanks. But on the right flank, it seemed that we were about to win a major victory: a message was received that the grenadier regiment of the Grossdeutschland division had reached settlement Verkhopenye. A battle group was created on the right flank of this division to build on the success achieved.
On July 8, a combat group consisting of a reconnaissance detachment and an assault gun battalion of the "Great Germany" division reached the highway (Belgorod - Oboyan highway - Author's note) and reached a height of 260.8; this group then turned west in order to support the division's tank regiment and motorized rifle regiment, which had bypassed Verkhopenye from the east. However, the village was still held by significant enemy forces, so the motorized rifle regiment attacked it from the south. At an altitude of 243.0 north of the village there were Russian tanks that had excellent visibility and fire, and before this height the attack of tanks and motorized infantry foundered. Russian tanks seemed to be everywhere, delivering continuous attacks on the advanced units of the Grossdeutschland division.
During the day, the combat group operating on the right flank of this division repelled seven Russian tank counterattacks and destroyed twenty-one T-34 tanks. The commander of the 48th Panzer Corps ordered the Grossdeutschland division to advance into westward, in order to provide assistance to the 3rd Panzer Division, on the left flank of which a very difficult situation had arisen. Neither height 243.0 nor the western outskirts of Verkhopenye were taken that day - there was no longer any doubt that the offensive impulse of the German troops had dried up and the offensive had failed."
And here’s what these events look like in the description of M.E. Katukov: “Dawn had barely broken (July 7 - Author’s note) when the enemy again attempted to break through to Oboyan. Main blow he attacked the positions of the 3rd Mechanized and 31st Tank Corps. A.L. Getman (commander of the btk - Author's note) reported that the enemy was not active in his sector. But S.M. Krivoshey (commander of the 3rd MK - Author's note) who called me did not hide his anxiety:
- Something incredible, Comrade Commander! Today the enemy threw up to seven hundred tanks and self-propelled guns onto our site. Two hundred tanks advance against the first and third mechanized brigades alone.
We have never had to deal with such numbers before. It subsequently turned out that on this day the Nazi command sent the entire 48th Panzer Corps and the SS Panzer Division Adolf Hitler against the 3rd Mechanized Corps. Having concentrated such huge forces in a narrow 10-kilometer area, the German command hoped that it would be able to break through our defenses with a powerful tank ram.
Each tank brigade, each unit increased its combat score by Kursk Bulge. Thus, in just the first day of fighting, the 49th Tank Brigade, interacting on the first defensive line with units of the 6th Army, destroyed 65 tanks, including 10 "tigers", 5 armored personnel carriers, 10 guns, 2 self-propelled guns, 6 vehicles and more than 1000 soldiers and officers.
The enemy failed to break through our defenses. It only pushed back the 3rd Mechanized Corps by 5-6 kilometers."
It would be fair to admit that both of the above passages are characterized by a certain bias in the coverage of events. From the memoirs of the Soviet military leader it follows that our 49th Tank Brigade knocked out 10 Tigers in one day, while the Germans had only 15 of them in the 48th Tank Corps! Taking into account the 13 "tigers" of the motorized division "Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler", which was also advancing in the zone of the 3rd Mechanized Corps, we get only 28! If you try to add up all the “tigers” that were “destroyed” on the pages of Katukov’s memoirs dedicated to the Kursk Bulge, you will get much more. However, the point here, apparently, is not only the desire of various units and subunits to add more “tigers” to their combat account, but also the fact that in the heat of battle “tigers of type 4” - medium tanks - were mistaken for real “tigers” Pz.lV.
According to German data, 570 “fours” were lost during July and August 1943. For comparison, during the same time, 73 Tiger units were lost, which indicates both the stability of this or that tank on the battlefield and the intensity of their use. In total, in 1943, losses amounted to 2,402 Pz.lV units, of which only 161 vehicles were repaired and returned to service.
In 1944, the organization of the German tank division underwent significant changes. The first battalion of the tank regiment received Pz.V "Panther" tanks, the second was equipped with Pz.lV. In fact, the Panthers did not enter service with all Wehrmacht tank divisions. In a number of formations, both battalions had only Pz.lV.
This is, say, the situation in the 21st Panzer Division, stationed in France. Soon after receiving a message on the morning of June 6, 1944 about the beginning of the landing of Allied forces in Normandy, the division, which had 127 Pz.lV tanks and 40 assault guns, began moving north, hastening to strike the enemy. This advance was prevented by the capture by the British of the only bridge across the Orne River north of Caen. It was already about 16.30 when German troops prepared for the first major tank counter-attack since the Allied invasion against the British 3rd Division, which had landed in Operation Overlord.
From the bridgehead of the British troops they reported that several enemy tank columns were moving towards their position at once. Having encountered an organized and dense wall of fire, the Germans began to roll back to the west. In the area of ​​Hill 61, they met with a battalion of the 27th British Armored Brigade, which was armed with Sherman Firefly tanks with 17-pounder guns. For the Germans, this meeting turned out to be catastrophic: in a few minutes, 13 combat vehicles were destroyed. Only a small number of tanks and motorized infantry of the 21st Division managed to advance to the strongholds of the 716th German Infantry Division that survived in the Lyon-sur-Mer area. At this moment, the British 6th Airborne Division began landing on 250 gliders in the area of ​​Saint-Aubin near the bridge over the Orne. Justifying itself by the fact that the English landing created a threat of encirclement, the 21st Division retreated to the heights located on the outskirts of Caen. By nightfall, a powerful defensive ring was created around the city, reinforced by 24 88-mm guns. During the day, the 21st Panzer Division lost 70 tanks and its offensive potential was exhausted. The 12th SS Panzer Division "Hitlerjugend", which arrived a little later and was staffed half by Panthers and half by Pz.lV, also failed to influence the situation.
In the summer of 1944, German troops suffered defeat after defeat in both the West and the East. The losses were also corresponding: in just two months - August and September - 1,139 Pz.lV tanks were knocked out. Nevertheless, their number in the troops continued to remain significant.


It is easy to calculate that in November 1944, Pz.lV made up 40% of German tanks on the Eastern Front, 52% on the Western Front and 57% in Italy.
The last major operations of German troops with the participation of Pz.lV were the counter-offensive in the Ardennes in December 1944 and the counter-attack of the 6th SS Panzer Army in the area of ​​Lake Balaton in January-March 1945, which ended in failure. During January 1945 alone, 287 Pz.lVs were knocked out, of which 53 combat vehicles were recovered and returned to service.
German statistics last year The war ends on April 28 and provides summary information on the Pz.lV tank and the Jagdpanzer IV tank destroyer. As of this day, the troops had them: in the East - 254, in the West - 11, in Italy - 119. Moreover, we are talking here only about combat-ready vehicles. As for the tank divisions, the number of “fours” in them varied: in the elite Training Tank Division (Panzer-Lehrdivision), which fought on the Western Front, only 11 Pz.lV remained; The 26th Panzer Division in Northern Italy had 87 vehicles of this type; The 10th SS Panzer Division "Frundsberg" on the Eastern Front remained more or less combat-ready - it had, among other tanks, 30 Pz.lV.
The Fours took part in hostilities until the last days of the war, including street battles in Berlin. On the territory of Czechoslovakia, battles involving tanks of this type continued until May 12, 1945. According to German data, from the beginning of World War II to April 10, 1945, the irretrievable losses of Pz.lV tanks amounted to 7,636 units.
Thus, taking into account the tanks supplied by Germany to other countries and the estimated losses during the last month of the war, which was not included in the statistical reporting, about 400 Pz.lV tanks ended up in the hands of the winners, which is quite likely. Of course, the Red Army and our Western allies had captured these combat vehicles before, actively using them in battles against the Germans.
After the surrender of Germany, a large batch of 165 Pz.lV was transferred to Czechoslovakia. Having passed, they were in service with the Czechoslovak army until the beginning of the 50s. In addition to Czechoslovakia post-war years Pz.lV were used in the armies of Spain, Turkey, France, Finland, Bulgaria and Syria.
The “Quartets” entered the Syrian army in the late 40s from France, which then provided this country with the main military assistance. An important role, apparently, was played by the fact that most of the instructors who trained the Syrian tank crews were former Panzerwaffe officers. It is not possible to provide exact data on the number of Pz.lV tanks in the Syrian army. It is only known that Syria purchased 17 Pz.lV Ausf.H vehicles from Spain in the early 50s, and another batch of tanks of the H and J modifications arrived from Czechoslovakia in 1953.
The Quartet's baptism of fire in the Middle Eastern theater took place in November 1964 during the so-called “water war” that broke out over the Jordan River. Syrian Pz.lV Ausf.H, occupying positions on Golan Heights, fired at Israeli troops.
Then the return fire of the “centurions” did not cause any harm to the Syrians. During the next conflict in August 1965, "" tanks armed with 105 mm cannons fired more accurately. They managed to destroy two Syrian companies of Pz.lV and T-34-85, being out of range of their guns.
The remaining Pz.lVs were captured by the Israelis during the Six Day War of 1967. Ironically, the last serviceable Syrian Pz.lV was shot down by fire from its “ancient enemy” - the Israeli Super Sherman.
Captured Syrian "fours" Ausf.H and J are in several military museums in Israel. In addition, combat vehicles of this type are preserved in almost all major tank museums in the world, including the Museum of Armored Weapons and Equipment in Kubinka near Moscow (Ausf.G). By the way, it is this modification that is most widely represented in museum exhibitions. Of greatest interest are the Pz.lV Ausf.D, Ausf.F2 and the experimental Pz.lV with hydraulic transmission, located in the Aberdeen Proving Ground Museum in the USA. A tank captured by the British in Africa is on display in Bovington (Great Britain). This car apparently became a "victim" big renovation" - its hull is from Ausf.D, turret E or F with screens, long-barreled 75-mm cannon. A well-preserved turret of the modification can be seen in the Military History Museum in Dresden. It was discovered in August 1993 during excavation work at the territory of one of the former training grounds of the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany.
MACHINE ASSESSMENT
Apparently, we should start with a rather unexpected statement that with the creation of the Pz.IV tank in 1937, the Germans determined a promising path for the development of world tank building. This thesis is quite capable of shocking our reader, since we are accustomed to believe that this place in history is reserved for the Soviet T-34 tank. Nothing can be done, you will have to make room and share laurels with the enemy, albeit a defeated one. Well, so that this statement does not look unfounded, we will provide some evidence.
For this purpose, we will try to compare the “four” with the Soviet, British and American tanks that opposed it in different periods of World War II. Let's start with the first period - 1940-1941; At the same time, we will not focus on the then German classification of tanks by gun caliber, which classified the medium Pz.IV as heavy. Since the British did not have a medium tank as such, they would have to consider two vehicles at once: one infantry, the other cruising. In this case, only “pure” declared characteristics are compared, without taking into account the quality of workmanship, operational reliability, level of crew training, etc.
As can be seen from Table 1, in 1940 - 1941 in Europe there were only two full-fledged medium tanks - T-34 and Pz.IV. The British Matilda was superior to the German and Soviet tanks in armor protection to the same extent that the Mk IV was inferior to them. The French S35 was a tank brought to perfection that met the requirements of the First World War. As for the T-34, while inferior to the German vehicle in a number of important positions (separation of functions of crew members, quantity and quality of surveillance devices), it had armor equivalent to the Pz.IV, slightly better mobility and significantly more powerful weapons. This lag of the German vehicle is easily explained - the Pz.IV was conceived and created as an assault tank, designed to fight enemy firing points, but not his tanks. In this regard, the T-34 was more versatile and, as a result, according to its stated characteristics, the best medium tank in the world for 1941. After just six months, the situation changed, as can be judged by the characteristics of tanks from the period 1942 - 1943.
Table 1


table 2


Table 3


Table 2 shows how sharply the combat characteristics Pz.IV after installing a long-barreled gun. Not inferior to enemy tanks in all other respects, the “four” turned out to be capable of hitting Soviet and American tanks out of range of their guns. We are not talking about English cars - for four years of the war the British were marking time. Until the end of 1943, the combat characteristics of the T-34 remained virtually unchanged, with the Pz.IV taking first place among medium tanks. The answer - both Soviet and American - was not long in coming.
Comparing tables 2 and 3, one can see that since 1942 performance characteristics Pz.IV did not change (except for the thickness of the armor) and during two wars they remained unsurpassed by anyone! Only in 1944, having installed a 76-mm long-barreled gun on the Sherman, did the Americans catch up with the Pz.IV, and we, having launched the T-34-85 into production, overtook it. The Germans no longer had the time or opportunity to give a worthy answer.
Analyzing the data from all three tables, we can conclude that the Germans, earlier than others, began to consider the tank as the main and most effective anti-tank weapon, and this is the main trend in post-war tank building.
In general, it can be argued that of all the German tanks of the Second World War, the Pz.IV was the most balanced and versatile. In this car, various characteristics were harmoniously combined and complemented each other. The "Tiger" and "Panther", for example, had a clear bias towards security, which led to their overweight and deterioration dynamic characteristics. The Pz.III, with many other characteristics being equal to the Pz.IV, did not match it in armament and, having no reserves for modernization, left the stage.
The Pz.IV, with a similar Pz.III, but slightly more thoughtful layout, had such reserves to the fullest. This is the only wartime tank with a 75 mm cannon, whose main armament was significantly strengthened without changing the turret. The turret of the T-34-85 and Sherman had to be replaced, and, by and large, these were almost new vehicles. The British went their own way and, like a fashionista, changed not the towers, but the tanks! But “Cromwell,” which appeared in 1944, never reached the “four,” as did “Comet,” released in 1945. Only the post-war Centurion was able to bypass the German tank, created in 1937.
From the above, of course, it does not follow that the Pz.IV was an ideal tank. Let's say it had an insufficient and rather rigid and outdated suspension, which negatively affected its maneuverability. To some extent, the latter was compensated for by the lowest L/B ratio of 1.43 among all medium tanks.
Equipping the Pz.lV (as well as other tanks) with anti-cumulative screens cannot be considered a successful move by German designers. Cumulative ones were rarely used en masse, but the screens increased the dimensions of the vehicle, making it difficult to move in narrow passages, blocked most surveillance devices, and made it difficult for the crew to board and disembark. However, an even more pointless and rather expensive measure was coating the tanks with Zimmerit.
Specific power values ​​for medium tanks


But perhaps the biggest mistake the Germans made was trying to switch to a new type of medium tank - the Panther. As the latter, it did not take place (for more details, see "Armor Collection" No. 2, 1997), joining the "Tiger" in the class of heavy vehicles, but it played a fatal role in the fate of the Pz.lV.
Having concentrated all their efforts on creating new tanks in 1942, the Germans stopped seriously modernizing the old ones. Let's try to imagine what would have happened if not for the Panther? The project of installing a “Panther” turret on the Pz.lV is well known, both standard and “close” (Schmall-turm). The project is quite realistic in size - the clear diameter of the turret ring for the Panther is 1650 mm, for the Pz.lV it is 1600 mm. The tower stood up without expanding the turret box. The situation with the weight characteristics was somewhat worse - due to the long reach of the gun barrel, the center of gravity shifted forward and the load on the front road wheels increased by 1.5 tons. However, it could be compensated for by strengthening their suspension. In addition, it must be taken into account that the KwK 42 cannon was created for the Panther, and not for the Pz.IV. For the "four" it was possible to limit ourselves to a gun with smaller weight and dimensions, with a barrel length of, say, not 70, but 55 or 60 calibers. Even if such a weapon would require replacing the turret, it would still make it possible to get by with a lighter design than the Panther one.
The inevitably increasing (by the way, without such a hypothetical rearmament) weight of the tank required replacing the Engine. For comparison: the dimensions of the HL 120TKRM engine installed on the Pz.IV were 1220x680x830 mm, and the Panther HL 230P30 - 1280x960x1090 mm. The clear dimensions of the engine compartments were almost identical for these two tanks. The Panther's was 480 mm longer, mainly due to the inclination of the rear hull plate. Consequently, equipping the Pz.lV with a higher power engine was not an insurmountable design task.
The results of this, of course, far from complete, list of possible modernization measures would be very sad, since they would nullify the work on creating the T-34-85 for us and the Sherman with a 76-mm cannon for the Americans. In 1943-1945, the industry of the Third Reich produced about 6 thousand “Panthers” and almost 7 thousand Pz.IV. If we take into account that the labor intensity of manufacturing the "Panther" was almost twice as much as that of the Pz.lV, then we can assume that during the same time German factories could produce an additional 10-12 thousand modernized "fours", which would be delivered to the soldiers of the anti-Hitler coalition much more trouble than the Panthers.
Wikipedia Encyclopedia of technology eBook

6-04-2015, 15:06

Good day to all! The ACES.GG team is with you, and today we will talk about the German fifth-tier medium tank Pz.Kpfw. IV Ausf. H. Let's look at its strengths and weaknesses, analyze the performance characteristics, as well as the methods and tactics of using this vehicle in battle.

German medium tank of the fifth level Pz.Kpfw. IV Ausf. H can be opened using the fourth level medium tank Pz.Kpfw. IV Ausf. D for 12,800 experience, as well as with the help of a light tank of the fourth level Pz.38 nA, but for 15,000 experience. It will cost 373,000 credits at the time of purchase.

Let's look at the performance characteristics of the Pz.Kpfw. IV ausf. H

Pz. IV H has an average strength point at its level of 480. Of course, this is not very much, but if you do not waste them, it is quite enough. The dynamics of the tank are acceptable and do not cause any particular discomfort. The tank reaches its 40 km/h quite well. If we talk about armor, the tank’s armor is not the best, especially in the rear and on the sides. But the tank can easily take a hit, with correct use, from cars of their level and below. The machine also has an acceptable visibility at its level, which is 350 meters.

Pz.Kpfw guns. IV ausf. H

Now let's talk about guns; the tank has three to choose from.

The first is the 7.5 cm Kw.K gun. 40 L/43. It is given to us in the stock configuration of the tank at the time of purchase. This weapon has no special advantages, not counting its rate of fire. But we will have to play with him until we open one of the following weapons.

The second gun is 7.5 cm Kw.K. 40 L/48. This is what can be considered the top tank for this tank, of course, if you are not a fan of high explosives. This weapon has acceptable armor penetration for its level. Not the best, but still good accuracy, as well as a good rate of fire. The average damage per shot is 110 units, which is not too much, but I repeat that for its level this is a completely acceptable indicator.

And the third gun is 10.5 cm Kw.K. L/28. The main advantage of this weapon is its cumulative projectiles. Penetration is 104 mm, which is quite enough to annihilate most of the enemies that the Pz.Kpfw will encounter. IV Ausf. H. Also, don’t forget about landmines, with their help we can destroy lightly armored targets with one shot. Do not forget that this weapon has very poor accuracy, so it is advisable to always aim until the end.

Equipment on Pz.Kpfw. IV ausf. H

Standard for me and standard for many medium tanks

medium-caliber gun rammer, improved ventilation and reinforced aiming drives.

Skills and abilities of the Pz.Kpfw crew. IV ausf. H

Standard and good choice will:

Commander - Sixth Sense, Repair, Brotherhood.
Gunner - Repair, Smooth rotation of the turret Combat Brotherhood.
Driver - Repair, Smooth ride, Combat brotherhood.
Radio operator - Repair, Radio interception, Combat brotherhood.
Loader - Repair, Non-contact ammo rack, Combat brotherhood.

My choice:

Selection of Pz.Kpfw equipment. IV ausf. H

Here is another standard, namely: a small repair kit, a small first aid kit and a hand-held fire extinguisher. I advise you to use premium equipment, which is quite expensive, but can significantly increase the survivability of your vehicle in battle. So feel free to equip your tank with a large repair kit, a large first aid kit and an automatic fire extinguisher. You can also use a chocolate bar instead of an automatic fire extinguisher.

Tactics and style of play of Pz.Kpfw. IV ausf. H

Tactics for playing Pz. IV H depends on what levels of tanks you have to fight with.

Pz.Kpfw. IV ausf. H in the top

On Pz. IV H in the top is best taken at the beginning of the battle good position at medium or long distance, and shoot enemies caught in the light. You can also take part in a rush, if one is planned. The main thing to consider is that there should be allies next to you who can cover you, as well as shelters behind which you can go after the shot to reload. Thanks to the rate of fire of a 7.5 cm gun, you can inflict quite good damage on the enemy, and with a 10.5 cm gun you can destroy lightly armored tanks with one shot. The main thing with all this is to try not to expose yourself to enemy shots

Pz.Kpfw. IV ausf. H vs sixth levels

In battles against sixth levels, you can also act aggressively or passively. With an aggressive play style, you can support the allied rush by shooting at enemies from behind your allies, or simply start highlighting enemy tanks for allied vehicles. And with a passive style, you will need to take a place in the bushes and shoot damage at enemies caught in the light. Most importantly, we will need to avoid vehicles with high average damage per shot, such as the KV-2, KV-85 with a 122 mm gun and the like. After all, if they don’t kill us with one shot, they will cripple us for the rest of the battle.

Pz.Kpfw. IV ausf. H vs. seventh levels

We will have nothing to do against the seventh levels on the front line, so it would be best to act from behind the backs of our allies on the second or third line. This way we will be able to deal damage to enemies without receiving it ourselves, because many level seven tanks will kill us in one or two shots. Well, if you don’t like this kind of gameplay, then you can try to carefully move forward towards fate, which will decide whether you will bend over or just merge. But seriously, on the first line we will need to act extremely carefully, because if something happens we will simply turn into an easy frag. Therefore, this tactic is extremely risky, but if done correctly, it can bear fruit.

Well, most importantly, in any battle you will need to be able to correctly analyze the map, team compositions, and the travel of your allies. Based on the analysis, it is already worth choosing tactics and the direction in which you will act. Also, do not forget to look at the minimap, so that if something happens, you can promptly move to one direction or another where our help will be needed.

Bottom line

Pz. IV H is a typical representative of medium tanks at its level, which are quite well balanced and provide a lot of pleasant impressions when playing them. The tank has quite good potential, thanks to which it will be possible to influence the outcome of the battle. Also Pz. IV H, like many fifth-level machines, is capable of farming credits quite well and bringing its owner a lot of pleasure from playing on it.

Medium tank Pz Kpfw IV
and its modifications

The most popular tank of the III Reich. Produced from October 1937 until the end of the war. A total of 8,519 tanks were produced Pz Kpfw IV Ausf A, B, C, D, E, F1, F2, G, H, J, of which - 1100 with a short-barreled 7.5cm KwK37 L/24 gun, 7,419 tanks with a long-barreled 7.5cm KwK40 L/43 or L/48 gun).

Pz IV Ausf A Pz IV Ausf B Pz IV Ausf C

Pz IV Ausf D Pz IV Ausf E

Pz IV Ausf F1 Pz IV Ausf F2

Pz IV Ausf G Pz IV Ausf H

Pz IV Ausf J

Crew - 5 people.
Engine - Maybach HL 120TR or TRM (Ausf A - HL 108TR).

The Maybach HL 120TR 12-cylinder carburetor engine (3000 rpm) had a power of 300 hp. With. and allowed the tank to reach a maximum speed on the highway of up to 40 - 42 km/h.

All Pz Kpfw IV tanks had a 75 mm caliber tank gun (7.5 cm in German terminology). In the series from modification A to F1, short-barreled 7.5cm KwK37 L/24 guns with an initial armor-piercing projectile speed of 385 m/s were installed, which were powerless against armor Soviet tanks T-34 and KV, as well as against most British and American tanks. Since March 1942, the last vehicles of modification F (175 vehicles designated F2), as well as all tanks of modifications G, H and J, began to be armed with long-barreled 7.5cm KwK40 L/43 or L/48 guns. (The KwK 40 L/48 gun was installed on parts of the G series vehicles, and then on modifications H and J.) Pz Kpfw IV tanks, armed with KwK40 guns with an initial armor-piercing projectile speed of 770 m/s, gained some fire superiority over the T-34 time (2nd half of 1942 - 1943)

Tanks Pz Kpfw IV were also armed with two MG 34 machine guns. In modifications B and C there was no radio operator's machine gun; instead there is a viewing slot and a pistol embrasure.

All tanks have FuG 5 radios.

Medium support tank Pz Kpfw IV Ausf A(Sd Kfz 161)

35 tanks were produced from October 1937 to March 1938 by Krupp-Guzon.

Combat weight - 18.4 tons. Length - 5.6 m. Width - 2.9 m. Height - 2.65 m.
Armor 15 mm.
Engine - Maybach HL 108TR. Speed ​​- 31 km/h. Power reserve - 150 km.

Combat use: they fought in Poland, Norway, France; were withdrawn from service in the spring of 1941.

Medium support tank Pz Kpfw IV Ausf B, Ausf C(Sd Kfz 161)

42 Pz Kpfw IV Ausf B tanks were produced (from April to September 1938) and 134 Pz Kpfw IV Ausf C tanks (from September 1938 to August 1939).

Pz Kpfw IV Ausf B

Pz Kpfw IV Ausf C

A different engine and a new 6-speed gearbox were installed. The speed increased to 40 km/h. The thickness of the frontal armor has been increased to 30 mm. A new commander's cupola has been installed. In the Ausf C modification, the motor installation was changed and the turret rotating ring was improved.

Combat weight - 18.8 tons (Ausf B) and 19 tons (Ausf C). Length - 5.92 m. Width - 2.83 m. Height - 2.68 m.
Armor: front of the hull and turret - 30 mm, side and rear - 15 mm.

In modifications B and C there was no radio operator's machine gun; instead there is a viewing slot and a pistol embrasure.

Combat use: Pz Kpfw IV Ausf B and Ausf C tanks fought in Poland, France, the Balkans and on the Eastern Front. Pz Kpfw IV Ausf C remained in service until 1943. Pz Kpfw IV Ausf B gradually fell out of service by the end of 1944.

Medium support tank Pz Kpfw IV Ausf D(Sd Kfz 161)

229 tanks were produced from October 1939 to May 1941.

The main difference of the Ausf D modification was the increase in the thickness of the armor on the sides and stern to 20 mm.

Combat weight - 20 tons. Length - 5.92 m. Width - 2.84 m. Height - 2.68 m.
Armor: hull and turret front - 30 mm, side and rear - 20 mm.
Speed ​​- 40 km/h. Power reserve - 200 km.

Combat use: fought in France, the Balkans, North Africa and on the Eastern Front until early 1944.

Medium support tank Pz Kpfw IV Ausf E(Sd Kfz 161)

223 tanks were produced from September 1940 to April 1941.

On Ausf E increased the thickness of the frontal armor of the hull to 50 mm; A new type of commander's cupola appeared. Armor linings were used on the forehead of the superstructure (30 mm) and on the sides of the hull and superstructure (20 mm).

Combat weight - 21 tons. Length - 5.92 m. Width - 2.84 m. Height - 2.68 m.
Armor: hull front - 50 mm, superstructure and turret front - 30 mm, side and rear - 20 mm.

Combat use: Pz Kpfw IV Ausf E tanks took part in battles in the Balkans, North Africa and on the Eastern Front.

Medium support tank Pz Kpfw IV Ausf F1(Sd Kfz 161)

462 tanks were produced from April 1941 to March 1942, of which 25 were converted into Ausf F2.

On Pz Kpfw IV Ausf F's armor was again increased: the front of the hull and turret was up to 50 mm, the sides of the turret and hull were up to 30 mm. The single-leaf doors on the sides of the turret were replaced with double-leaf ones, and the track width increased from 360 to 400 mm. Tanks of modifications Pz Kpfw IV Ausf F, G, H were produced at the factories of three companies: Krupp-Gruson, Fomag and Nibelungenwerke.

Combat weight - 22.3 tons. Length - 5.92 m. Width - 2.84 m. Height - 2.68 m.

Speed ​​- 42 km/h. Power reserve - 200 km.

Combat use: Pz Kpfw IV Ausf F1 tanks fought on all sectors of the Eastern Front in 1941-44 and participated in . Entered service in and.

Medium tank Pz Kpfw IV Ausf F2(Sd Kfz 161/1)

Produced from March to July 1942, 175 tanks and 25 vehicles converted from Pz Kpfw IV Ausf F1.

Starting with this model, all subsequent ones were equipped with a long-barreled 7.5cm KwK 40 L/43 (48) gun. The gun's ammunition load was increased from 80 to 87 rounds.

Combat weight - 23 tons. Length - 5.92 m. Width - 2.84 m. Height - 2.68 m.
Armor: hull front, superstructure and turret - 50 mm, side - 30 mm, rear - 20 mm.
Speed ​​- 40 km/h. Power reserve - 200 km.

They entered service with new tank regiments and motorized divisions, as well as to make up for losses. In the summer of 1942, Pz Kpfw IV Ausf F2 tanks could withstand the Soviet T-34 and KV, equaling the latter in firepower, and surpassing British and American tanks of that period.

Medium tank Pz Kpfw IV Ausf G(Sd Kfz 161/2)

1,687 vehicles were produced from May 1942 to July 1943.

A new gun muzzle brake has been introduced. Smoke grenade launchers were installed on the sides of the tower. The number of viewing slots in the tower has been reduced. About 700 Pz Kpfw IV Ausf G tanks received additional 30 mm frontal armor. On the latest vehicles, armor screens made of thin steel (5 mm) were installed along the sides of the hull and around the turret. Tanks of modifications Pz Kpfw IV Ausf F, G, H were produced at the factories of three companies: Krupp-Gruson, Fomag and Nibelungenwerke.

Combat weight - 23.5 tons. Length - 6.62 m. Width - 2.88 m. Height - 2.68 m.
Armor: hull front, superstructure and turret - 50 mm, side - 30 mm, rear - 20 mm.
Speed ​​- 40 km/h. Power reserve - 210 km.

Medium tank Pz Kpfw IV Ausf N(Sd Kfz 161/2)

3,774 vehicles were produced from April 1943 to July 1944.

The Ausf H modification series - the most widespread - received 80 mm frontal hull armor (the thickness of the turret armor remained the same - 50 mm); armor protection of the turret roof increased from 10 to 15 mm. An external air filter was installed. The radio antenna was moved to the rear of the hull. A mount for an anti-aircraft machine gun is mounted on the commander's cupola. 5-mm side screens were installed on the hull and turret, protecting against cumulative shells. Some tanks had non-rubber-coated (steel) support rollers. Tanks of the Ausf H modification were produced at the factories of three companies: Nibelungenwerke, Krupp-Gruson (Magdeburg) and Fomag in Plauen. A total of 3,774 Pz Kpfw IV Ausf H and another 121 chassis for self-propelled and assault guns were produced.

Combat weight - 25 tons. Length - 7.02 m. Width - 2.88 m. Height - 2.68 m.

Speed ​​– 38 km/h. Power reserve - 210 km.

Medium tank Pz Kpfw IV Ausf J(Sd Kfz 161/2)

1,758 vehicles were produced from June 1944 to March 1945 at the Nibelungenwerke plant.

The electrical horizontal aiming system of the turret has been replaced by a dual mechanical manual aiming system. An additional fuel tank was installed in the vacant space. The power reserve has been increased to 320 km. For close combat, a mortar was installed in the roof of the tower, firing fragmentation or smoke grenades to defeat enemy soldiers who had climbed onto the tank. The viewing slots and pistol embrasures in the side doors and rear of the turret have been removed.

Combat weight - 25 tons. Length - 7.02 m. Width - 2.88 m. Height - 2.68 m.
Armor: front of the hull and superstructure - 80 mm, front of the turret - 50 mm, side - 30 mm, rear - 20 mm.
Speed ​​– 38 km/h. Power reserve - 320 km.

Combat use of medium tanks Pz Kpfw IV

Before the invasion of France, the troops had 280 Pz Kpfw IV Ausf A, B, C, D tanks.

Before the beginning Operation Barbarossa Germany had 3,582 combat-ready tanks. The 17 tank divisions deployed against the Soviet Union included 438 Pz IV Ausf B, C, D, E, F tanks. Soviet KV and T-34 tanks had an advantage over the German Pz Kpfw IV. Shells from KV and T-34 tanks penetrated the armor of the Pz Kpfw IV at considerable distances. The armor of the Pz Kpfw IV was also penetrated by 45 mm Soviet anti-tank guns and 45 mm guns of the T-26 and BT light tanks. And the short-barreled German tank gun could only effectively deal with light tanks. Therefore, during 1941, 348 Pz Kpfw IVs were destroyed on the Eastern Front.

Tank Pz Kpfw IV Ausf F1 of the 5th Panzer Division in November 1941 near Moscow

In June 1942 years there were 208 tanks on the Eastern Front Pz Kpfw IV Ausf B, C, D, E, F1 and about 170 Pz Kpfw IV Ausf F2 and Ausf G tanks with a long-barreled gun.

In 1942 tank battalion Pz Kpfw IV should have consisted of four tank companies 22 Pz Kpfw IV each plus eight tanks in the regiment's headquarters company.

Tank Pz Kpfw IV Ausf C and panzergrenadiers

Spring 1943

The German army entered World War II with a rather strange situation in the tank weapons system. The Pz.Kpfw.III medium tank, which was created as the main tank, actually turned out to be the smallest in the Wehrmacht at that time. As for the other medium tank, the Pz.Kpfw.IV, it was designed as a support vehicle, but at the same time there were almost four times more such vehicles in the army than the Pz.Kpfw.III. German industry was able to equalize the number of tanks of these two types in the army only at the very end of 1939. By this time the series had already gone into production a new version support tank - Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.D, and in a sense it was a return to the original concept.

Return of the machine gun

The spring of 1938 turned out to be decisive for future fate Pz.Kpfw.IV. The fact is that the 6th Department of the Armament Directorate is seriously thinking about removing the brainchild of the Krupp concern from the production program. Instead of the Pz.Kpfw.IV, it was planned to create a support tank based on the Pz.Kpfw.III, thus unifying both medium tanks in their main components and assemblies.

On the one hand, the idea was sound. However, it should be taken into account that the Pz.Kpfw.III at that time was far from experiencing better times. But the production of the Pz.Kpfw.IV was not without problems, but it still went on, and Krupp designers got into the weight category specified by the customers the first time.

Thus, when Erich Wolfert, Krupp's leading engineer, sharply criticized the idea of ​​combining two tanks on one platform on May 2, 1938, victory was on his side. The 6th Department of the Armament Directorate was forced to give in, because Wolfert had not only an industrial giant behind him, but also common sense.

The lesson, however, did not work out well, and the 6th Department of the Armament Directorate continued to struggle with the idea of ​​a single chassis for two types of tanks throughout the war. This impulse, one of the initiators of which was Heinrich Ernst Kniepkamp, ​​with enviable consistency turned into a rake race, and each time the proper conclusions were not drawn from what had happened earlier.

Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.D in its original configuration. In metal the car looked a little different

Meanwhile, the requirements for a support tank continued to grow. At the beginning of January 1938, discussions began on the characteristics of the fourth modification of the tank, designated 4.Serie/B.W.

One of the first items on the agenda was the return of the machine gun to its place. Someone at the top finally realized that you couldn't even shoot much from the pistol port, let alone hit anything. It was decided to use the Kugelblende 30 installation, developed for the Z.W.38 (future Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf.E). It had much better protection than the PzIV Ausf.A ball mount. In connection with the return of the course machine gun, the front plate of the turret box again received a characteristic step.

A diagram clearly demonstrating the internal structure of the tank

On March 10, 1938, a meeting was held in Berlin, where employees of the Krupp concern and the 6th Department of the Armament Directorate discussed the possibility of strengthening the armor of the tank. The thickness of the side armor of the hull, turret box and turret, amounting to 14.5 mm, was considered insufficient. It was necessary to increase it to 20 mm so that at long distances the tank would not be hit by fire from 20 mm automatic cannons. In addition, the military asked to increase the thickness of the bottom from 8 to 10 mm.

The response to the new demands came on April 12. According to engineers' calculations, increasing the thickness of the armor increased the tank's combat weight by 1256 kg, to almost 20 tons. This led to changes in individual elements of the body. The hatches in the area of ​​the support rollers received a different shape, and the air intakes of the engine compartment were changed. At the end of April, tracks with larger teeth were developed, and the number of suspension travel stops was increased to five per side (one each for the three front bogies and two for the rear).

Serial Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.D, spring 1940

Certain changes were also made to the design of the tower. First of all, the armor of the gun system was redesigned. The fact is that the previously used design turned out to be very vulnerable to enemy fire. A bullet or shell fragment falling into the gap between the armor elements could easily jam the gun in a vertical plane. At the end of May 1938, development began new protection for the gun. The new system armor was located on the outside of the tower and did its job much better. The thickness of the armor was increased to 35 mm.

In addition, the viewing devices on the side hatches and sides of the turret were replaced.

Hitch large quantity spare tracks were very common

When, on July 4, 1938, a contract was finally signed with the Krupp concern for the production of tanks of the 4.Serie/B.W. modification, the vehicle was quite transformed. According to the contract, the factories of Grusonwerk, one of the divisions of Krupp, were to produce 200 tanks of this series. In October the contract was extended. The SS troops ordered 48 tanks, which were designated 5.Serie/B.W.. In fact, they were no different from 4.Serie/B.W. By the way, in the end, these vehicles never made it to the SS unit, since it was decided to order the StuG III assault self-propelled guns instead.

Tanks of the 4th and 5th series were designated Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.D. The vehicles were assigned serial numbers in the range 80501–80748.

Based on the experience of the first two campaigns

Serial production of the Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.D began in October 1939. Unlike the Pz.Kpfw.III, the production of which was forced by manufacturers, there were no special breakthroughs in the production of support tanks. By the end of 1939, 45 tanks had been assembled; subsequently, volumes averaged 20–25 vehicles per month. In total, by May 1, 1940, 129 vehicles of this modification were manufactured.

Torn turrets were a fairly common occurrence for PzIV Ausf.D. France, May 1940

Meanwhile, back in March 1939, it was decided that in the future the Wehrmacht would continue to order these tanks, and the 6th series (6.Serie/B.W.) vehicles would henceforth be designated as Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.E. New contract The contract for the production of 223 tanks of this type was signed in July 1939. In general, this tank was supposed to repeat its predecessor, but already in May some changes began to appear.

To begin with, it was decided to change the driver's viewing device, which had not changed from the Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.B, to the Fahrersehklappe 30. This device was distinguished by the fact that instead of massive parts going up and down, it used a thick “eyelash” 30 mm. It covered the viewing slot covered with glass block much more reliably, and its design turned out to be much simpler.

The rather large ventilation hatch from the roof of the tower also disappeared, and a fan appeared in its place. The hatch for signal flags was moved to the place of the periscope device. The shape of the commander's cupola has also changed.

Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.D produced in April 1940, having shielding of the turret box, and at the same time - additional armor of the front hull plate

The fact that the Ausf.E in its planned form will definitely not go into production, and that the Ausf.D will face certain changes, became clear after the Polish campaign of September 1939. The fact is that Polish troops massively used 37-mm Armata przeciwpancerna 37 mm wz anti-tank guns against German tanks. 36 Bofors. Even though the Polish shells turned out to be not the most best quality, they confidently punched through German vehicles in all projections. Strengthening the frontal part to 30 mm didn’t really help here either.

In the fall of 1939, research began to be carried out to identify the possibility of additionally loading the Pz.Kpfw.IV with another one and a half tons of armor and increasing its combat weight to 21.4 tons. Tests have shown that the tank can easily tolerate such an increase in mass.

On December 18, 1939, the 6th Department of the Armament Directorate adjusted the assignment for 4.Serie/B.W. and 5.Serie/B.W. The last 68 tanks were to receive hulls with frontal plates reinforced to 50 mm. But by the start of the campaign in France, which began on May 10, 1940, the PzIV Ausf.D was still in production with a 30 mm thick front plate.

Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.E from the 20th Panzer Division, summer 1941

The very first battles showed that such slowness was extremely reckless. Of course, 37-mm short-barreled guns, which were placed in a row French tanks, including FCM 36 and Renault R 35, could not penetrate 30 mm thick frontal armor. But they were not at all the main opponents of German tanks. The French were doing well with anti-tank artillery, and for it, armor 30 mm thick was by no means something prohibitive. Even worse for the Germans was that a number of French tanks had 47 mm guns as their main armament.

PzIV losses in France were even higher than in September 1939 in Poland. Of the 279 Pz.Kpfw.IVs available in units on May 10, 1939, 97, that is, more than a third, were irretrievably lost. The battles of May-June 1940 also showed that the 75-mm short-barreled gun was almost powerless against tanks with shell-proof armor.

It became clear that the problem had to be solved, and solved quickly. Back on May 15, the Krupp concern reported that shielding for the hull and turret box had been manufactured and tested. The forehead of the turret box received additional sheets 30 mm thick, due to which their total thickness increased to 60 mm. The sides were reinforced with 20 mm thick screens. Later, in addition to these screens, reinforcement was made for the frontal sheet of the hull, and corners were added at the top and bottom for additional reinforcement.

However, until the end of the French campaign, the troops did not receive a single set of shielding. Deliveries began only on June 25, when they were, in general, not really needed. Since July 1940, tanks began to be equipped with screens as standard. At the same time, the thickness of the frontal plate of the hull, turret and gun mantlet armor increased to 50 mm.

As you can see, not all Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.E received screens

Another serious metamorphosis with the PzIV Ausf.D occurred in August 1940. According to the decision made on June 3 of the same year, the last 68 tanks 4.Serie/B.W. and 5.Serie/B.W. were manufactured with turrets and turret boxes 6.Serie/B.W. The last such vehicles were delivered to the troops in October 1940, after which tanks of the Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.E modification went into production.

Cars in this series received serial numbers 80801–81006. They can be distinguished from the last 68 Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.Ds only if the serial number of the vehicle is known. Additional confusion into what is happening is brought by the fact that not all Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.E, not to mention the Ausf.D, received screens on the frontal part of the turret box.

Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.D with additional Vorpanzer armor, 1942

At the beginning of 1941, some tank units tried to do shielding themselves, but an order came from above to stop this activity. However, another modification was born, also known as the Vorpanzer. It differed in that quite massive screens were attached to the front of the tower. They were installed on tanks of modifications Ausf.D, E and F. Apparently, Vorpanzers were used exclusively by the Greater Germany (Großdeutschland) tank division. It is believed that the division used them only for exercises, but there are also front-line photographs that refute such claims.

For crossings and other purposes

Orders for Pz.Kpfw.IV tanks of the 4th, 5th and 6th series were not fulfilled in full. Some of the total number of PzIV Ausf.Ds ordered went to other purposes. 16 chassis produced in March-April 1940 were used for the production of bridge tanks Brückenleger IV b. These vehicles were included in the engineering battalions assigned to tank divisions. They were used by units that fought during the May-June 1940 campaign in France.

Brückenleger IV b, a series of 16 such vehicles were produced in the spring of 1940

Meanwhile, in the summer of 1940, Krupp produced 16 sets of turret boxes and towers. Later, three bridge tanks with numbers 80685, 80686 and 80687 were converted into regular PzIV Ausf.D. According to a report from May 1941, of the 29 PzIVs produced, 13 were 4.Serie/B.W. Thus, 247 vehicles of the Ausf.D modification still went to the troops as regular tanks. The last, 248th car with serial number 80625 was used as a test chassis.

Brückenleger IV c from the 39th Tank Engineer Battalion, 1941

The situation was slightly different with the PzIV Ausf.E. Instead of the 223 tanks that were originally planned to be built, 206 vehicles were produced in one form or another, of which 200 were as regular tanks. In January 1941, 4 chassis 6.Serie/B.W. was sent to Magirus, where they were used to build the Brückenleger IV c. Like the vehicles of the previous series, they went to the 39th Tank Engineering Battalion, attached to the 3rd Tank Division. In this form they took part in battles on the Eastern Front in the summer of 1941.

This is what Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.E 81005 and 81006 looked like with a new chassis

The fate of the last two tanks of the 6th series, numbers 81005 and 81006, turned out to be even more interesting. On December 14, 1940, the 6th Department of the Armament Directorate gave the green light to the Krupp concern to develop a new chassis. Its main difference was that the diameter of the road wheels increased to 700 mm, and in order for them all to fit, they had to be placed in a checkerboard pattern. The width of the tracks increased to 422 mm. During 1941–42, these vehicles were actively tested, and then tank 81005 ended up at the Wünsdorf training center. Also, at least one tank was converted into an ammunition carrier for the heavy self-propelled mortar Gerät 040 (“Karl”).

Tauchpanzer IV from the 18th Panzer Division

Finally, some of the production tanks were converted into very specific special vehicles. In August-July 1940, 48 Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.D were converted into Tauchpanzer IV, a tank for crossing rivers along the bottom. Mounts for special sealed covers were installed on the tank, and covers were also placed on the air intakes. In addition, a special hose with a float was used, through which air was supplied to the machine. A number of Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.Es produced in January-March 1940 were similarly converted. Similar vehicles were used in June 1941 as part of the 18th Panzer Division.

Blitzkrieg support vehicle

In April 1941, production began of the 7.Serie/B.W., also known as the Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.F. This tank was created taking into account the experience of the campaigns of the first two years of the war. But the main support tank German army it became available only in the fall of 1941. Of the 441 PzIVs that had concentrated on the border with the USSR by June 22, 1941, they were a minority. The basis was the Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.D and Ausf.E.

By that time, the tanks of these modifications had changed somewhat. On February 14, 1941, the first German tanks arrived in Tripoli, and on the 16th the Afrika Korps was formed. In this regard, at the beginning of February, a “tropical” set for the ventilation system was developed.

Since March, tanks have been equipped with a turret box for personal belongings. Because it was originally developed for the Afrika Korps, it was nicknamed the "Rommel Box". It was not installed on all tanks. On many tanks, boxes on the turrets were not installed at all, and instead, an analogue was placed on the side of the hull. And in some units they developed their own “Rommel Box”, which differed in shape from the standard one.

And this was just the beginning of all sorts of alterations that were introduced at the level of tank divisions, and sometimes even at the battalion level. The “body kit” itself, which the Pz.Kpfw.IV received only in 1941, is a topic for a separate large article.

The PzIVs that arrived in Africa found themselves, figuratively speaking, in hothouse conditions. In February 1941, 20 tanks were sent there, 3 of which were lost on the way; another 20 arrived in April. The only one for real dangerous adversary for them there were “Matildas,” which was primarily due to the thick armor of these English tanks. The 2-pounder (40 mm) guns mounted on British vehicles could only penetrate the shielded forehead of a PzIV at point-blank range, and such cases were rare.

Result of the meeting between PzIV and KV-2, summer 1941

Quite different conditions turned out to be on the Eastern Front. During the battles at the end of June 1941, only 15 Pz.Kpfw.IV were irretrievably lost. This is largely due to the fact that their opponents were T-26 and BT, which competed in a completely different weight category. The atmosphere of complete confusion in the first weeks of the Great Patriotic War also contributed. However, already in July, 109 tanks, that is, a quarter of the original number, were scrapped. In August, another 68 vehicles were added to them. In total, in 1941, the Germans lost 348 Pz.Kpfw.IV on the Eastern Front, that is, more than 3/4 of their original number.

The German tank crews could quite rightly blame the 6th Department of the Armament Directorate for such significant losses, which approached the issue of strengthening the armor very frivolously. In fact, the shielding installed on the tanks corresponded to the experience of the September 1939 campaign. At the same time, attention was paid to the fact that the French already had 47-mm tank and anti-tank guns. And this was done completely in vain: even the 47-mm SA 35 tank gun with a 32-caliber barrel, as tests in the USSR showed, easily penetrated the 50 mm armor of German tanks at a distance of 400 meters.

The characteristics of the 47 mm looked even more depressing for the Germans. anti-tank gun Canon de 47 Mle.1937, which had a barrel length of 50 calibers. At a distance of a kilometer, it penetrated armor 57 mm thick. The Germans could quite reasonably assume that the French were not the only ones who had more powerful anti-tank artillery and tank guns than the Poles.

Captured Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.E from the 20th Tank Division, NIIBT Test Site, August 1941

Ultimately, the Wehrmacht had to pay for the miscalculations of the military leadership in assessing the enemy’s weapons with tanks and their crews. While the main opponents of the Pz.Kpfw.IV were the T-26 and BT, everything turned out relatively well for the German tankers. Later, more and more often they had to deal with T-34 and KV-1, armed with 76-mm cannons. In addition, some of the tanks turned out to have only partially thickened armor, which significantly reduced the chances of surviving even under fire from 45-mm tank and anti-tank guns.

They also made a certain contribution heavy tanks KV-2. The hit of his 152-mm shell on a German tank turned it into a pile of scrap metal. However, penetration by other shells did not bring anything good. Cases of ammunition explosions were quite common for Pz.Kpfw.IV. It is worth noting that German tanks were almost powerless against the T-34 and KV-1. Standard armor-piercing shells had almost no effect against new Soviet tanks, and the 7.5 cm Gr.Patr.38 Kw.K cumulative shells, developed and in service back in April 1941. Hitler allowed its use only in February 1942.

The same car in front. Impacts and a broken screen are visible in the area of ​​the driver's viewing device

Already in August 1941, the captured Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.E from the 20th Tank Division was delivered to the training ground of the Research Testing Institute armored vehicles(NIIBT Polygon) to Kubinka. The car was quite badly damaged: there were several hits in the frontal part of the hull, and the shielding in the area of ​​the driver's viewing device was partially knocked down. The Polygon staff compiled a brief description, according to which the combat weight of the tank, designated as “Medium tank T-IV produced in 1939–40,” was estimated at 24 tons, and maximum speed- at 50 km/h. After preliminary calculations, the following conclusions were made:

.“Armor protection tank T-IV can be hit by artillery of all calibers.

The tank turret, inspection hatches, and the ball mount of the radio operator’s machine gun are hit by large-caliber small arms.”

Captured PzIVs have become quite common since the end of 1941. However, the Polygon was not involved in bringing the tank captured in the summer of 1941 back into working condition or trying to get the NIIBT running trophy.

This is largely due to the fact that the Soviet military did not show much interest in the tank. It seems that they considered it as an addition to the Pz.Kpfw.III, despite the fact that combat mass and the engine of the two medium tanks were similar. For approximately the same reasons, the StuG III Ausf.B was not restored to running condition. Studying the performance characteristics of captured Pz.Kpfw.III and Pz.Kpfw.38(t) was considered a more important task, and wasting time on secondary vehicles was considered a pointless exercise.

Unlike StuG III, frontal armor captured Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.E 45-mm projectile was quite tough

In September 1942, tests took place, during which fire from various weapons was fired at the captured tank. First of all, he was fired upon from DShK machine gun. It turned out that the side of the DShK turret cannot be penetrated even from a distance of 50 meters, but at a distance of 100 meters it was possible to penetrate the side and stern of the hull.

Much more interesting were the tests fired from a 45-mm cannon installed in the T-70 tank. At a distance of 50 meters, the frontal hull sheet, 50 mm thick, was pierced. It is worth noting that the same gun did not penetrate the captured StuG III self-propelled gun. The 40 mm thick sides (20+20 mm) were penetrated at a distance of 400 meters.

The final verdict German tank It turned out to be shelling from a 76-mm F-34 cannon installed in a T-34 medium tank. The frontal plate was pierced at a distance of 500 meters (the entrance diameter of the through hole was 90 mm, the exit diameter was 100 mm). The next shot, fired from a distance of 800 meters, split the sheet into two parts. When fired from a distance of 800 meters into the side of the hull, the shell penetrated 40 mm armor on the right side, exploded inside and came out on the left side. When firing a high-explosive shell into the side, the first hit tore off the side turret hatch, the second shell tore off the commander's cupola, and the hit on the side of the engine compartment (20 mm thick) led to the appearance of a hole measuring 130x350 mm. It was decided not to fire from long distances - and so everything was clear.

In addition to the shelling, NII-48 specialists studied the design of the hull and turret.

One of the Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.Ds, rearmed with a 7.5 cm KwK 40 cannon and equipped with side screens

In July 1942, the few Ausf.D and Ausf.E tanks remaining in service were modernized. Instead of a standard gun, they were equipped with a long-barreled 7.5 cm KwK 40 gun. In addition, from May 1943, side screens began to be installed on the hull and turret. By that time, these vehicles had been withdrawn from the first line and transferred to training units, including NSKK (National Socialist Mechanized Corps) institutions.

Such tanks were also available in tank units stationed in France. One of them (Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.D, serial number 80732, released in July 1940) was captured by the British in the summer of 1944. It is now on display at the Bovington Tank Museum.