Flak tank I.
The Flakpanzer I was a German self-propelled anti - aircraft gun on the frame of the Panzerkampfwagen IA .
Development history
The Flakpz. I was created during the French campaign when it was discovered that the motorized flak was insufficiently armored. As a result, the Heereswaffenamt decided in 1940 to mount smaller anti-aircraft guns on armored racks. Since only a few of these chassis were available at the time, that of the Panzerkampfwagen I was used, as it was available in contrast to other models. The chassis was converted at the Stoewer company in Stettin .
A total of 24 such vehicles were built, with parts of the front structure and the entire engine cover being removed during the conversion in order to gain a larger step surface. In order to achieve a favorable center of gravity for the flak, the front armor of the superstructure was moved forward by about 18 cm. The side flaps were made of simple sheet metal and therefore did not offer any real protection, but could be folded down to enlarge the stand area. In order to create more space, the radio was also expanded; the communication was now made with a show of hands . The tanks were equipped with the 2 cm Flak 38 , and the tank crews also had close combat weapons such as carbines . To make it easier for the driver to get in, the anti-aircraft gun was moved slightly to the right. The ammunition was mainly stowed under the driver's seat in the interior of the vehicle and behind the loader, but it is unknown how much ammunition was actually carried. Since the space in the vehicle was very limited, a trailer coupling for the special trailer 51 was also attached to the vehicle . Additional ammunition and replacement tubes for the flak were transported in the trailer.
Mission history
The only unit that was equipped with the Flakpanzer I was the Fla.-Btl. (Mot) 614 . It was set up in Altwarp in 1941 and moved to Romania in the Jassy area in the same year . When the attack on the Soviet Union began, the battalion was deployed with Army Group South. There the vehicles were able to score some kills. But they were mainly used in ground combat against ground targets and suffered high losses because the crews were defenseless against enemy fire. The individual companies were assigned to other units for these operations, which means that there are very few records of the operations today. The entire battalion went down in Stalingrad in 1943 , with most vehicles possibly given up or simply destroyed beforehand for various reasons.
Technical specifications
| Flak tank I : | |
| Parameter | Data |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Alkett , Daimler-Benz , Stoewer |
| Weight | about 5.5 t (estimated) |
| length | 4.38 m |
| width | 2.06 m |
| height | with flak 2.08 m |
| Chain width | 28 cm |
| Armament | 2 cm Flak 38 and carbines for fighting infantry |
| Ammunition supply | unknown |
| Armor | up to 13 mm |
| crew | 2 men, in air combat up to 8 men |
| engine | Krupp boxer engine, 57 hp |
| speed | Max. 40 km / h |
| Range | Road 180, terrain 130 km |
literature
- Chris Chant: Artillery of World War II. MBI Publishing Company, St. Paul MN 2001, ISBN 0-7603-1172-2 .
- George Forty: A photo history of tanks in two world wars. Blandford Press, Poole 1984, ISBN 0-7137-1216-3 .
