Panzer I
The Panzer I tank was a Nazi Germany light tank that was used during many wars of the 1930s as well as during World War II. The name of the tank is short for Panzerkampfwagen I ("armored fighting vehicle mark I") (abbreviated PzKpfw I).
| Panzerkampfwagen I | |
|---|---|
 A Panzerkampfwagen I Ausf. A being displayed at the Deutsches Panzermuseum Munster in Germany | |
| Type | Light tank |
| Place of origin |  Nazi Germany |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1934–1945 in Nazi Germany |
| Used by | Nazi Germany, Bulgaria, Republic of China, Hungary, Spain |
| Wars | Spanish Civil War Second World War Second Sino-Japanese War |
| Production history | |
| Designed | 1934 |
| Manufacturer | Henschel, MAN, Krupp, Daimler |
| Produced | 1934–1937 |
| No. built | 1493 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 5.4 tonnes (6.0 short tons) |
| Length | 4.02 m (13.2 ft) |
| Width | 2.06 m (6.8 ft) |
| Height | 1.72 m (5.6 ft) |
| Crew | 2 (commander and driver) |
| Armor | 7–13 mm |
Main armament | 2 × 7.92 mm MG13 machine guns |
| Engine | Krupp M 305 four-cylinder air-cooled gasoline engine 60 PS (59 hp, 44 kW) |
| Power/weight | 11.1 PS/t |
| Suspension | leaf quarter-elliptic springs |
Operational range | On-road: 200 km (120 mi) Off-road: 175 km (109 mi) |
| Maximum speed | On-road: 50 km/h (31 mph) Off-road: 37 km/h (23 mph) |
The tank was only intended for use as a training tank to introduce the concept of armoured warfare to the German Army. The tank was used in combat in Spain during the Spanish Civil War,[1] in Poland,[2] France,[3] the Soviet Union and North Africa[4] during the Second World War, and in China during the Second Sino-Japanese War. The tank had thin armor and light armament of two machine guns. It was weak in combat but was a large part of Germany's tank forces. The Panzer I was replaced by the Panzer IV, Panther, and Tiger later on.
Panzer I Media
Krupp M305 4-cyl. aircooled Flat boxer-engine
A Spanish Panzer I Ausf. A on display at the El Goloso Museum of Armored Vehicles in Spain. This particular vehicle has its original drive-sprockets and tracks replaced by those of the US M113 armored personnel carrier (APC).
A former German Pz.Kpfw. I Ausf. F on display at the Belgrade Military Museum in Belgrade, Serbia
A German Panzer I Ausf A on the bank of the Brda River in Poland during the German invasion of the country, 4 September in 1939
A Panzer I Ausf. A in combat during the Nazi German invasion of Norway
A Panzer I Ausf. B on the streets of Calais, France, in May 1940, while rounding up British prisoners-of-war following the defeat of France by Nazi Germany in that same year
A Panzer I fighting in Yugoslavia in 1941
A German Sd.Kfz. 265 kleiner Panzerbefehlswagen armoured command vehicle somewhere in Russia, probably in 1941 or 1942
Replica Panzer I at Tankfest 2023, The Tank Museum, Bovington Camp
German Panzer I Ausf A, Swedish Tank Museum Arsenalen, Strängnäs, Sweden, 2013
References
- ↑ 38 Ausf. A and 3 Panzerbefehlswagen I Ausf. B command vehicles. García, Las Armas de la Guerra Civil Española, p. 308
- ↑ McCarthy, Peter (July 14, 2002). Panzerkrieg: The Rise and Fall Of Hitler's Tank Divisions (Hardcover). Basic Books. p. 51. ISBN 9780786712649.
- ↑ McCarthy, Peter (July 14, 2002). Panzerkrieg: The Rise and Fall Of Hitler's Tank Divisions (Hardcover). Basic Books. p. 72. ISBN 9780786712649.
- ↑ McCarthy, Peter (July 14, 2002). Panzerkrieg: The Rise and Fall Of Hitler's Tank Divisions (Hardcover). Basic Books. p. 99. ISBN 9780786712649.
