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The Panther I Ausf F was the final version of the Panther medium tank to be developed, featured a new type of turret, and was on the verge of entering production at the end of the Second World War.
The most important change planned for the Ausf F was the use of a narrow turret (“Schmalturm” turret), designed by Daimler-Benz. This offered three main improvements over the standard Panther turret. Its narrow front made it a smaller target for enemy fire. The new “saukopf” mantlet eliminated the “shell trap” of the old design, which could deflect incoming shells down onto the Panther’s weak roof armour. Finally the new design allowed for a big increase in armour thickness without increasing the weight of the turret. The new turret was to carry a slight variant on the standard Panther gun – the 7.5cm KwK44/1 L/70, a coaxial MG42 machine gun, a stereoscopic rangefinder and a close combat defence weapon.
The Ausf F was designed to be easily converted into a command tank in the field. Each one was to have two antenna sockets and the mounts for all of the required radios. The chassis of the tank saw fewer major changes. The roof armour was made thicker, and the hull machine gun changed from the MG34 to the MG44. Steel rimmed “silent bloc” or resilient road wheels were to become standard equipment, mostly because of a shortage of materials.
The two halves of the Ausf F were never matched up. The narrow turret was tested on the chassis of an Ausf G, while the Ausf F chassis was matched up with the Ausf G turret in small numbers in April 1945, and the resulting hybrid tanks used during the fighting in Berlin.
Stats
Number produced: none
Length: 8.86m
Hull Width: 3.44m
Height: 2.92m
Crew: 5
Weight: 45 tons
Engine: Maybach HL230P30
Max Speed: 55 km/hr
Max Range: 200km
Main Gun: One 7.5cm KwK44/1 L/70
Secondary Armament: One 7.92mm MG42 and one 7.92mm MG44
Armour
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Front |
Side |
Rear |
Top/ Bottom |
Turret |
120mm |
60mm |
60mm |
40mm |
Superstructure |
80mm |
50mm |
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25mm |
Hull – lower |
60mm |
40mm |
40mm |
30mm |
Gun mantlet |
120mm |
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Panther Medium Tank, 1942-45, Stephen A. Hart, Osprey New Vanguard 67. This look at what was probably the best German tank of the Second World War concentrates on the technical development of the Panther. The text is divided into chapters on each of the major versions of the Panther, looking at their development, production, deployment and combat career. As a result the text flows well, and each new development is placed properly in its context. [see more]
