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Panzerkampfwagen 38(t) on the move near the French Channel coast at Veulette, 1940
The Panzer 38(t) was a Czechoslovakian pre-World War II tank design by the Czechoslovak tank manufacturer ČKD as a replacement for the LT-35 tank they were jointly producing with Škoda Works.
The Pz. 38 had riveted armor and rear mounted gasoline Praga EPA 6-cylinder engine. The riveted armor was not sloped, and varied in thickness from 10 mm to 25 mm in most versions. Later models (Ausf. E on) increased this to 50 mm.
A Panzer 38 (t) being off loaded from a rail transport
The two-man turret was centrally located, and housed the tank's main armament, a 37 mm Skoda A7 gun with 90 rounds stored on board. It was equipped with a 7.92 mm ZB53 (Model 37) machine gun to the right of the main ordnance with a second placed in the bow with as much as 2,550 rounds of ammo carried on board.
The Pz. 38(t) weighed in at 9.5 tonnes with a total length of 4.61 m.
Panzer 38(t)s in action in Russia, 1941
Following the German takeover of Czechoslovakia, the Wehrmacht ordered continued production of the model, as it was considered an excellent tank for the time especially when compared to the Panzer I and Panzer II currently in service as the Panzerwaffe's main battle tanks.
Panzer 38(t), date and location unknown
More than 1,400 were produced for German service until 1942 and even when as a battle tank the Pz. 38 (t) became hopelessly outclassed, turret less versions continued to see service as assault guns, anti-tank guns and anti-aircraft guns. In fact, the Pz. 38 (t) chassis proved so mechanically reliable, a Swedish variant, the Sav m/43, remained in use until 1970.
An impressive longevity record for a pre-WW2 tank.
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