History

The German army quickly learned the lessons of their brutal early encounters with the Russian T34 and contracts were soon placed with the Daimler-Benz and MAN companies to produce what was debatably to become the greatest tank design of the Second World War.

Early Panthers were designated Type D, with Types A and G entering service as the war progressed. The D could be recognised by the large bulge on the left of the turret for the cupola and had thinner frontal armour of just 60mm compared to the 80mm of the later types.

All did not go well when the early production models were thrown into the maelstrom of the Russian front before they had been fully proven – with over half of the 204 Panthers committed to “Operation Citadel” in 1943 lost to mechanical problems rather than enemy action.

The very early Bergepanther recovery vehicles proved their worth in Kursk, being the only type capable of recovering Tiger and Panther tanks. Production started in July of 1943 and Panther Ausf A and later Ausf G were used, although production was slow and various modifications were made during the production. Early Bergepanther was armed with 20mm KwK 38 L/55 and later on with twin 7.92mm MG34 or MG42s. Bergepanther was operated by the crew made up of commander, driver and mechanic. It was fitted with a 1.5 ton lifting crane and other recovery/repair equipment (eg. large spade, 40 ton winch etc.), some of it especially designed. Overall, only 347 (240 Ausf A and 107 Ausf G) were produced.

The Panther Type G was in production from early 1944 with the early models carrying the original rounded mantlet which was considered a shot trap-due to the deflection of shell hits down into the turret ring. Models produced from mid 1944 had a modified mantlet with a reinforced vertical edge at the base. The Type G had the most significant external changes with the side armour sloped at a lesser angle to allow the hull to be used for the tank hunter variant – the Jagdpanther.