Variety of half-track vehicles - SdKfz 9, SdKfz 250/10, "Maultir", SdKfz-250/20 "Uhu", SdKfz 2 Small "Kettenrad"

German half-tracks, just like German tanks, airplanes and even trucks, were manufactured to very high standards and in many modifications. This imposed production limits on production, especially when you compare German technology with the incredible amount of basic American and Soviet equipment that was fielded on the battlefield or in the air.

The most powerful armored personnel carrier is the SdKfz-251/1, known as the “infantry Stukas” (Stuka zum Fuss). On a steel pipe frame on top of the hull, three 280- or 320-mm missile launchers were placed on each side. Powerful but inaccurate weapons were used at short ranges against stationary or extended targets.
Modification of the SdKfz-251, armed with a 20-mm Flak 38 cannon. Like most military transporters, it had sides that lowered before firing. This armored personnel carrier operated on the Eastern Front as a mobile anti-aircraft infantry support unit.

For comparison, it will be enough to give one example. The tracks of the US Army M3 half-track armored personnel carrier consisted of two steel cables held together by tracks cast from a single piece of vulcanized rubber. They had a range of about 1,500 miles, but were very easy and cheap to replace. The tracks of German half-tracks consisted of individual steel cross plates pinned together into an endless band. Each pin, in turn, was held in place by a pair of pin bearings. German tracks were better designed, stronger and had a longer run, but were labor-intensive to manufacture and easily damaged in combat.

History of creation

During World War II, the German army was the first in the world to adopt armored personnel carriers en masse and used them very effectively, forcing the Allies to develop similar vehicles and then adopt the tactics of their use. The main armored personnel carrier used by the Germans was the half-track Sd Kfz 251, usually called the “Hanomag” (after the name of the manufacturer). It was used to transport infantry (motorized infantry) and heavy weapons (mortars, heavy machine guns, cannons, flamethrowers and rocket launchers); ambulances, staff vehicles and communications vehicles were created on its basis. Armored personnel carriers were in service with the German army throughout the Second World War and were used in all theaters of the war. After the war, a modification of the Sd Kfz 251 - OT 810 was in service with the Czechoslovak army.

The distant ancestor of the Sd Kfz 251 was a Daimler half-track truck. This truck, manufactured by the Germans for Portugal, was equipped with rubber bands that connected the drive wheels to an additional pair of idler wheels. Such a primitive track allowed the vehicle to move confidently on soft ground.

In 1915-1916, the next models of half-track vehicles appeared - “Bremenvagen” and “Marinevagen” I and II. These vehicles were in service with the Sturm-Panzerkraftwagen-Abteilung (assault armored vehicle battalion). In 1917, Benz introduced the Kraftprotze half-track artillery tractor, of which 42 were subsequently produced. In 1919, one such car received armor and was handed over to the police. During the Weimar Republic, work on new half-track vehicle designs continued.

Based on the chassis of a standard 3-ton artillery tractor, it developed a fully armored tracked vehicle armed with a 3.7 cm KwK L/70 cannon of 37 mm caliber located in an armored turret. The auxiliary armament consisted of a 7.92 mm MG 34 machine gun coaxial with the cannon; the same machine gun could be mounted on an anti-aircraft turret on the vehicle's turret.

In July 1934, the first prototype of a half-track artillery tractor was completed, designated HK 600p. The tractor was driven by a Borgward KJ54 engine with a power of 68 kW/92 hp. With. In 1934, the tractor was renamed HL KI 2, and in the spring of 1936 its mass production began. The first vehicles were sent to the 23rd Light Artillery Regiment. A total of 505 of these tractors were produced.

In the second half of the thirties, the first half-track armored personnel carriers appeared. The most famous of them, HI6, was developed by the Hamburg company Hansa-Lloyd. In 1936, the license for this machine was purchased by Hanover. The armored personnel carrier was developed on the basis of the 3-ton half-track artillery tractor mentioned above. The chassis of the armored personnel carrier was manufactured at , the armored hull at Berlin-Oberschöneweide, and final assembly was carried out at other enterprises.

The first vehicles, designated HKL 6p, were produced in 1937, and zero-series armored personnel carriers - in 1938. The name of the armored personnel carrier sounded like this - “mitteler gepanzert Mannschaftstransportwagen” (MTW) - that is, a medium armored personnel carrier. The first production samples of the Sd Kfz 251 arrived in units in the summer of 1939.

Sd Kfz 251 armored personnel carriers were produced in four modifications - Ausf. A, B, C and D, and in 23 specialized variants, differing from each other in weapons and equipment. The variants were designated by numbers, for example Sd Kfz 251/3 or Sd Kfz 251/16. It should be especially noted that a specialized version of the armored personnel carrier could belong to any of the four modifications, for example, the Sd Kfz 251/3 was produced on the basis of the Ausf. A and Ausf. D. Which modification was used to build a specialized version can, in principle, be determined only by the year of manufacture of a particular instance.

The German company Hannoversche Maschinenbau AG (Hanomag) has produced many cars, tractors, and steam locomotives over more than 100 years of its existence, but the word “Hanomag,” which has become a household word, is associated only with the period of World War II and with only two examples of its products. The light armored personnel carrier Sd.Kfz.250 and the medium Sd.Kfz.251 became the calling card of the Wehrmacht, no less popular than the Tiger tank or the Ju 87 dive bomber - in any work of art, a German soldier with rolled up sleeves shoots only from the MP 40 and moves in the conquered territories exclusively on the “hanomag”.

Of course, the appearance of such a simplified image was facilitated by the recognizable appearance of German armored cars with an elongated low silhouette of chopped shapes and a chassis with characteristic rollers located in a checkerboard pattern, however, the real merits of the “hanomagi”, especially their heavier and at the same time more widespread version of the Sd.Kfz .251 is more than enough.

The Sd.Kfz.251 was developed in 1938 on the basis of the Sd.Kfz.11 half-track artillery tractor and was produced almost throughout the war, from the summer of 1939 to the spring of 1945. In total, more than 15,000 armored personnel carriers were produced, making the Sd.Kfz.251 the most popular German armored vehicle. In the most common infantry version, with a crew of two people, he took on board another squad of soldiers (10 people), the armament was 1-2 MG 34 or MG 42 machine guns in the front and rear parts of the fighting compartment.

The especially reliable design and high cross-country ability of the “hanomag” were in demand in Africa and on the Soviet-German front with their off-road conditions. As a result, it is difficult to even list all the “professions” of the Sd.Kfz.251 - it was a weapons platform for rocket artillery and mortars, an artillery self-propelled gun and an anti-aircraft self-propelled gun, a mobile command post and an ammunition transporter, it carried artillery guns and kitchens, sappers, signalmen, medics, scouts, searchlight operators and many others. In general, the “hanomag” was simply irreplaceable!

After the war, the production that survived in the Czech Republic allowed for more than 15 years to produce “hanomagi” under the Tatra OT-810 brand, which were in service with the Czech army until the mid-80s, and disappeared from storage bases only by the end of the century. As a result, most of the armored cars that have survived at the moment are Czech versions, modified to the standard of their ancestor, but nevertheless giving a good idea of the appearance of the legendary “hanomag”.

Description of design

The troop compartment of the Sd Kfz 251 armored personnel carrier

Armored Corps

The hull of the armored personnel carrier consisted of a frame onto which armor plates of the hull were installed by riveting or welding. The Sd Kfz 251 armored personnel carriers used heterogeneous armor plates - their outer surface was harder than the inner. The frontal, side and rear armor was 14.5 mm thick, and the bottom and roof of the hull were 8 mm thick.

The power compartment housed the engine, fuel tank, front wheel steering, etc. Behind the fire partition there was a control post, where there were seats for the driver and commander of the armored personnel carrier. On the instrument panel in the area of the driver's seat, instruments were installed that monitor engine operating parameters (thermometer, oil pressure sensor, tachometer, fuel gauge), speedometer and control lights. The armored personnel carrier was controlled using the steering wheel and pedals (clutch, gas and brake). To the right of the driver's seat there were two levers; speed switch and handbrake.

The commander of the armored personnel carrier was located on the right side of the control post. On some models, for example Sd Kfz 251/9, the position of the armored personnel carrier commander (at the same time the crew commander) was moved to the rear of the fighting compartment.

Benches for landing soldiers were installed on both walls of the fighting compartment. On armored personnel carriers of the first modifications (Sd Kfz 251 Ausf. AC), the benches were covered with leatherette; later, simple benches were used in the form of a tubular frame with a tarpaulin stretched over it. Wooden seats were also used. On the walls of the fighting compartment there were mounts for landing weapons: Mauser 98k carbines of 7.92 mm caliber and MP 38 and MP 40 submachine guns of 9.0 mm caliber.

For specialized models of the Sd Kfz 251 armored personnel carrier, the fighting compartment was converted to accommodate an additional radio station, gun or night vision device. The ambulance was equipped with racks for installing stretchers. Armored personnel carriers Sd Kfz 251 Ausf. And on the sides of the fighting compartment there were viewing slots covered with armored glass. There were side lights on the front fenders. Spotlights (spotlight) were installed nearby. Position lights were located at the rear of the armored personnel carrier. The antenna was located either near the hull (Sd Kfz 251 Ausf. A) or on the wall of the fighting compartment (other modifications).

Engine and transmission

Maybach HL 42 TURKM engines were installed on Sd Kfz 251 armored personnel carriers. The Maybach HL 42 TURKM carburetor six-cylinder liquid-cooled engine had the following characteristics: cylinder diameter - 90 mm, piston stroke - 110 mm, displacement - 4171 cm3. Engine power - 73.6 kW (100 hp) at 2800 rpm (maximum - 3000 rpm). Specific power (Sd Kfz 251 Ausf. A weighing 9000 kg) - 8.27 kW/t (11.1 hp/t). compression ratio 6.7.

The radiator was located in front of the cylinder block. The radiator neck was brought out. On the upper armor of the power compartment (Sd Kfz 251 Ausf. A and B) there was a ventilation hole covered with mesh. On machines of later modifications this hole was removed. The fuel - leaded gasoline OZ 74 with an octane number of 74 - was placed in a gas tank with a capacity of 160 liters. The fuel tank was located between the engine and the control station, in front of the firewall. Fuel consumption: 40-55 liters per 100 km on the highway and 80-85 liters per 100 km over rough terrain. The muffler was located on board the armored personnel carrier between the wheel and the track.

The Sd Kfz 251 armored personnel carriers were equipped with one Solex 40 JFF II two-chamber, two-float carburetor. A Fichtel & Sachs Mecano PF 220 K dry double-disc clutch with a hydraulic drive transmitted torque from the engine to the Ganomag O21-32785 U50 gearbox. Planetary gearbox with four forward and one reverse gears. For highway and cross-country driving, the transmissions had different gear ratios. On the highway: I gear - 1:3.47, II gear - 1:1.80, III gear - 1:1.01 and IV gear 1:0.63, and on rough terrain: I - 1:8.63, II - 1:4.47, III - 1 :2.52 and IV - 1:1.58. The rear gear had a gear ratio of 1:9.80. The driver changed gears using two levers located to the right of his seat. The armored personnel carrier was controlled using a steering wheel acting on the front wheels and track drive. An auxiliary air brake with Kletrak pads acted on the front wheels, and the main air brake acted on the drive wheels of the track mechanism.

Chassis

The Sd Kfz 251 armored personnel carrier had a half-track chassis. The front wheels served to control the vehicle, and the tracks provided high maneuverability. The half-track design made it possible to significantly simplify the design of the armored personnel carrier (complex final drives and clutches were not needed) with relatively good cross-country ability of the vehicle.

The wheel part of the chassis consisted of a worm steering mechanism of the Ganomag or ZF Ross 600 type, and was sprung by a transverse feather spring. To drive over rough terrain, wheels measuring 190x18 were used. Low pressure tires such as Continental or Michelin. The front wheel track is 2775 mm.

When turning at an angle of up to 15°, the armored vehicle was controlled like a regular car. During sharper turns, a special mechanism released the inner track and simultaneously transferred part of the power (from 56 to 100%) to the outer track.

The first outer row of road wheels consisted of three rollers, the inner row of three, and the middle row of six road wheels. Under normal conditions, the load fell on the inner and middle row of rollers, the outer row only took the load when overcoming obstacles.

The first road wheel in the right row was shifted 140 mm to the rear of the armored personnel carrier. This was caused by the features of the torsion bar suspension. The last wheel, located at the rear of the car, was a guide wheel. A screw tensioning mechanism was used to tension the track. The track rollers were stamped from a steel sheet 8-12 mm thick, had eight round holes and were rubberized. The drive wheels are cast. Tracks are separate-link, single-ridge, single-pin, equipped with shock-absorbing rubber gaskets (Gummipolster). The track pitch is 140 mm, length is 7700 mm (left track) and 7840 mm (right track). Track width 280 mm. The left caterpillar consisted of 55 links, the right - of 56. The track was 1600 mm. The supporting length of the tracks is 1800 mm. Ground clearance - 320 mm.

New in blogs

The German company Hannoversche Maschinenbau AG, or Hanomag, has created quite a large number of cars, steam locomotives, and tractors over its more than hundred-year history. However, today the word “Ganomag” has become a household word, and most Russians associate it with the period of World War II. Moreover, this association is associated with only two samples of products from this company. We are talking about the light armored personnel carrier SdKfz 250 and the medium SdKfz 251, which turned into a real calling card of the Wehrmacht during the war. They were no less popular than the Ju-87 Stuka dive bomber and the Tiger heavy tank. It is no coincidence that the SdKfz 251 medium armored personnel carrier even received the nickname of the infantry “Stuka”.

In almost any feature film, German soldiers with rolled up sleeves shoot exclusively from submachine guns and move around the conquered territories on the “Hanomag”, so strongly has this image entered into history and human memory. The appearance of such a simplified image, which went on television and in books, was facilitated by the recognizable appearance of German armored personnel carriers with an elongated low silhouette of chopped shapes and a chassis that was distinguished by a staggered arrangement of rollers. And these cars themselves were quite massive. 7,326 light armored personnel carriers SdKfz 250 were produced in all modifications, and medium SdKfz 251 - 15,252.

In terms of the number of armored personnel carriers produced, the SdKfz 251 was second only to the American M3 armored personnel carrier. Moreover, during the war, the SdKfz 251 was not only in service with German units, they were also supplied to Germany’s allies in small quantities. Moreover, the military service for these armored personnel carriers did not end with the end of World War II. In the post-war years, its modernized version called Tatra OT-810 was produced in Czechoslovakia until 1962 in Detva. The armored personnel carrier began to be removed en masse from service with the Czechoslovak army only in the 1980s; the last copies of this vehicle were removed from storage in 1995.

High maneuverability and reliable design made these armored personnel carriers in demand on the Soviet-German front and in Africa, that is, in theaters of combat where there were serious problems with roads. For example, Sd Kfz 250/3 armored personnel carriers were widely used as mobile radio stations and command posts. One of these armored personnel carriers was the favorite command post of the commander of the Afrika Korps, Field Marshal Erwin Rommel. It is difficult to list all the military professions of these two armored personnel carriers: they were a weapons platform for installing anti-tank weapons, rocket artillery, mortars, anti-aircraft guns, they carried sappers, medics, intelligence officers and signalmen and much more. In the German army, Hanomag armored personnel carriers were indispensable during the Second World War.

Armored personnel carrier Sd.Kfz.250, Sonderkraftfahrzeug 250

At the end of the 1930s, the Department of Armored Vehicles of the Armaments Directorate issued technical specifications for the development of a light half-track armored personnel carrier, which was supposed to be an addition to the already mass-produced Sd Kfz 251 armored personnel carrier. As in the case of its predecessor, the light armored personnel carrier was supposed to widely use components and assemblies from the half-track tractor D7p-Zgkw 1 ton (Sd Kfz 10), which was produced by the German company DEMAG in the city of Wetter (Ruhr basin). At the same time, the armored body of the new combat vehicle was developed by Buessing-NAG from Berlin-Oberschenevelde.

The body of the Sd Kfz 251 armored personnel carrier was welded from straight rolled armor plates, which were located at rational angles of inclination. There were two main options for making its body - the old version (alt) and the new one (neu). The neu version had a simpler design; it was assembled from fewer parts (9 instead of 19 in the alt version). The Sd Kfz 250/1 was the main version of the armored personnel carrier. All other models were simply created on its basis. The Sd Kfz 250/1 armored personnel carrier could transport half of the grenadier squad (Halbgruppe), 4 people. The crew of the vehicle consisted of two people: a driver and a commander, who at the same time acted as a radio operator.

The body of the Sd Kfz 250 armored personnel carrier consisted of two parts - the power compartment and the fighting compartment. The power compartment was located in the front part of the hull, and the combat compartment was located in the middle and rear parts. In the fighting compartment there was a driver, an armored personnel carrier commander, as well as landing soldiers or additional weapons (for example, a mortar or an anti-tank gun). Also, the necessary radio equipment was installed in the fighting compartment. The hull was made of heterogeneous armor plates with a cemented outer surface. The frontal, side and rear armor of the Sd Kfz 250 hull was up to 14.5 mm, and the thickness of the power compartment roof and bottom was 8 mm.

Behind the power compartment, which housed the engine, fuel tanks and front axle control device, behind the fire partition in the front part of the fighting compartment, seats were equipped for the commander and driver of the armored personnel carrier. The driver used a dashboard that contained a pressure gauge (oil), thermometer (water), speedometer, tachometer, and warning lights. The driver controlled the armored personnel carrier using automobile controls: a steering wheel and three standard pedals (clutch, gas and brake). On the right side of the driver's seat there was a gear shift lever, as well as a hand brake lever. On the right side of the fighting compartment was the seat of the commander of the combat vehicle or the soldier responsible for loading and unloading ammunition (Sd Kfz 252). Along both sides of the fighting compartment of the armored personnel carrier there were benches for landing soldiers. Initially, these were seats covered with leatherette, but later the Germans began to use tubular frames with stretched tarpaulins as benches. Cases of the use of wooden benches have also been noted. On the inside, on the walls of the fighting compartment, there were mounts for the weapons of the landing soldiers: 9-mm pistols, MP 38 (MP 40) machine guns and 7.92-mm Mauser 98k rifles.

On specialized variants of the armored personnel carrier, the fighting compartment was modified accordingly so that it could carry a cannon or an additional radio station. Marker pins and headlights or one headlight were attached to the front fenders of the car. A Notek spotlight was installed on the left wing. There were two position lights in the rear of the Sd Kfz 250, and an antenna was also attached to the rear of the armored personnel carrier. There was also a single-leaf entrance door to the troop compartment; it swung outward to the left side.

The main armament of the standard version of the Sd Kfz 250/1 armored personnel carrier was a 7.92 mm Reinmetall-Borsig MG 34 machine gun, which was located in front of the fighting compartment; this machine gun was protected by an armored shield. The ammunition consisted of 2010 rounds. An additional MG 34 machine gun could be installed in the rear of the vehicle, from which it could fire at air targets. The mass of the armored personnel carrier was 5387 kg, and the height (including the MG 34 machine gun shield) was 1986 mm.

As a power plant, the Sd Kfz 250 armored personnel carrier was equipped with a carburetor six-cylinder overhead valve (one valve per cylinder) liquid-cooled Maybach HL42 TRKM engine. The maximum power of this engine was 100 hp. at 2800 rpm. The maximum permissible engine speed is 3000 rpm. Specific power was 17.24 hp. per ton.

The chassis of the Sd Kfz 250 armored personnel carrier was half-tracked. This means that it moved on wheels (front axle) as well as tracks (rear drive axle). With the help of the front wheels, it was possible to control the armored personnel carrier, and the tracks provided the combat vehicle with movement and increased maneuverability. This chassis design had a number of advantages, since it made it possible to create an armored personnel carrier in cross-country ability comparable to tanks, but featuring a much simpler design (half-track armored personnel carriers did not need side clutches and final drives).

The tracked section of the vehicle's undercarriage (on each side) consisted of five road wheels on a torsion bar suspension, with the last roller also serving as a guide, as well as a drive wheel located in the front part of the tracked section. The combat vehicle used a screw-type track tensioning device. The track rollers were produced by stamping from steel sheets 8-12 mm thick and were distinguished by the presence of eight lightening holes. All Sd Kfz 250 road wheels had a rubber band.

Armored personnel carrier SdKfz 251, Sonderkraftfahrzeug 251

The SdKfz 251 medium half-track armored personnel carrier was developed by Hanomag in 1938 on the basis of the Sd Kfz 11 three-ton artillery tractor. It was mass-produced from June 1939 to March 1945. In the same way as in the case of a light armored personnel carrier, the chassis of the vehicle used tracks with external rubber cushions and needle joints, a front axle with steered wheels and a staggered arrangement of road wheels. The transmission of the armored personnel carrier used an ordinary four-speed gearbox. The SdKfz 251 medium armored personnel carriers were produced in Germany in four different modifications - Ausf. A, B, C and D, as well as in 23 specialized variants, which differed from each other in the weapons and equipment installed on board.

The standard combat vehicle was the Sd.Kfz.251/1, which was put into service in 1940. It was an armored personnel carrier for transporting infantry, which was armed with one or two 7.92 mm Rheinmetall-Borzing MG-34 machine guns (MG-42 at the end of the war) with a total ammunition load of 2010 rounds. The machine gun in the front part of the hull was covered with an armored shield, and located in the rear of the vehicle was mounted on a swivel mount, which made it possible to fire at large elevation angles. This combat vehicle was intended to transport a squad of motorized infantry (10 people). The permanent crew consisted of two people: the vehicle commander and the driver. The combat weight of the Sd.Kfz.251/1 armored personnel carrier reached 9.14 tons.

The body of the armored personnel carrier was welded from armor plates with a thickness of 6 mm (bottom) to 14.5 mm (forehead). A fairly large double hatch was installed in the top sheet of the car's hood, designed to provide access to the engine. There were ventilation hatches on the sides of the hood on the Sd.Kfz.251 Ausf.A version. The left one could be opened by the driver using a special lever directly from the cab. Most often, the medium half-track armored personnel carrier Sd.Kfz.251 was produced in the versions Sd.Kfz.251/1 - infantry transporter, Sd.Kfz.251/4 - artillery tractor, Sd.Kfz.251/6 - headquarters control vehicle. Modifications of the Sd.Kfz were produced in much smaller quantities. 251/3 - communications vehicle and Sd.Kfz 251/10 - anti-tank version, armed with a 37 mm cannon.

The fighting compartment of the armored personnel carrier was open at the top. There was a roof only over the commander's and driver's seats. Entry and exit from the fighting compartment was carried out through a double door located in the rear wall of the hull. In the fighting compartment, as in a light armored personnel carrier, two benches were mounted along the sides. In the front wall of the cabin, two observation holes were equipped for the driver and commander with replaceable viewing blocks. One small viewing port was also installed on the sides of the control compartment. In total, there were three viewing devices on each side, including those of the commander and driver. Inside the fighting compartment there were pyramids for personal weapons of the landing force and racks intended for other military personal property. To protect the landing party members from bad weather, the designers provided for the installation of a canvas awning over the fighting compartment of the vehicle.

The Sd Kfz 251 medium armored personnel carrier was equipped with the same engine as the light one. Its maximum power was 100 hp, which, with an increased combat weight, gave less specific power - 11.1 hp. per ton. The capacity of the vehicle's fuel tanks was 160 liters. The fuel tank was located between the power plant and the control station and was fenced off with a fire partition. The fuel consumption of the armored personnel carrier when driving on the highway was 80-85 liters per 100 km, when driving over rough terrain - 80-85 liters.

The Sd Kfz 251 armored personnel carrier, like its light brother, also had a half-track chassis adjusted for the increased size of the vehicle. When making turns at an angle of up to 15 degrees, the combat vehicle was controlled like an ordinary car. When making sharper turns, a special mechanism released the inner track and simultaneously transferred part of the power (from 56% to 100%) to the outer track. The number of road wheels on a medium armored personnel carrier has increased significantly. The first outer row of road wheels included three rollers, the inner row - three rollers, and the middle row - six road wheels. Under normal conditions, the entire main load was distributed to the middle and inner row of rollers; the outer row of rollers took the load only when the machine overcame obstacles. The first of the road wheels in the right row was shifted to the rear of the combat vehicle by 140 mm. This design decision was associated with the features of the torsion bar suspension. The last support roller, which was located at the rear of the machine, was a guide.

Modifications and vehicles based on Sd Kfz 251

Sd Kfz 251 Ausf D

Sd.Kfz. 251/9 "Stummel"

Sd.Kfz. 251/7 "Pionierpanzerwagen"

Sdkfz 251 with installation of Wurfrahmen 40
Sd. Kfz.251/1

- main production model. Open top welded armored hull. Armament 1 - 2 machine guns, crew 12 (2+10) people. Some of the vehicles were equipped with special containers for launching rockets - Wurfrahmen 40 - of 280 and 320 mm caliber. Three containers were attached to each side. Combat weight 9.14 tons, crew 7 people. Adopted into service in 1940, it was nicknamed the “Infantry Stuka.”

Sd. Kfz.251/2

- mittlerer Schutzenpanzerwagen mit Granatwerfer - self-propelled mortar. Armament: 81-mm sGrWr 34 mortar inside the body (66 rounds of ammunition), 1 MG34 machine gun (2010 rounds of ammunition). Combat weight 8.64 tons, crew 8 people.

Sd. Kfz.251/3

- mittlerer Funkpanzerwagen - communication machine. Depending on the purpose, it was equipped with radio stations FuG 4, FuG 5, FuG 7, FuG 8, FuG 11 and FuG 12 in various combinations. Mast, whip and loop antennas were used.

Sd. Kfz.251/4

- mittlerer Schutzenpanzerwagen fur Munition und Zubehor des lelG 18 - ammunition transporter and artillery tractor for towing light infantry guns lelG 18 75 mm caliber, 105 mm light field howitzers leFH 18/1 and anti-tank guns 37-75 mm caliber. Combat weight 8.75 tons, crew 7 people, armament 1 MG 34 machine gun. Package: 120 rounds per gun.

Sd. Kfz.251/5

- mittlerer Schutzenpanzerwagen fur Pionier - a vehicle for transporting sappers and sapper equipment. Combat weight 8.87 tons, crew 9 people, armament 1 MG 34 machine gun (ammunition 4800 rounds). Some of the vehicles had FuG 8 and FuG 4 radio stations.

Sd. Kfz.251/6

- mittlerer Kommandopanzerwagen - a mobile command post for senior commanders (division, corps, army). Radio stations FuG 11 and FuG Tr, later FuG 19 and FuG 12.

Sd. Kfz.251/7

- mittlerer Pionierpanzerwagen - improved Sd. Kfz.251/5. Assault bridges on the sides of the hull. Some of the vehicles had FuG 5 radios.

Sd. Kfz.251/8

- mittlerer Krankenpanzerwagen - armored ambulance. Capacity: two recumbent and four seated or eight seated wounded.

Sd. Kfz.251/9

- mittlerer Schutzenpanzerwagen mit 7.5 cm KwK 37 - self-propelled gun with a 75-mm short-barreled gun KwK 37 (later K 51). The horizontal pointing angles of the gun are ? 12°. Telescopic sight SfIZF 1. Ammunition 52 rounds. Combat weight 8.53 tons, crew 5 people, additional weapons 1 MG 34 or MG 42 machine gun.

Sd. Kfz.251/10

- mittlerer Schutzenpanzerwagen 3.7 cm Pak - a vehicle for platoon commanders in motorized infantry units. Armament: 37-mm Pak 35/36 anti-tank gun (168 rounds of ammunition) behind a standard shield and an MG 34 machine gun (1,100 rounds of ammunition) or a PzB 39 anti-tank gun of 7.92 mm caliber. Combat weight 8.02 tons, crew 5 people.

Sd. Kfz.251/11

- mittlerer Fernsprechpanzerwagen - machine for laying telephone cables. The cable reel was mounted on the right wing of the armored personnel carrier. Crew: 5 people, armament: 1 MG 34 machine gun.

Sd. Kfz.251/12

- mittlerer Messtrupp und Geraetpanzerwagen - artillery reconnaissance and fire control vehicle. Radio station FuG 8 with loop antenna. Crew 6 people.

Sd. Kfz.251/13

- mittlerer Schallaufnahmepanzerwagen - armored personnel carrier for artillery sound reconnaissance.

Sd. Kfz.251/14

— mittlerer Schallauswertepanzerwagen — development of the previous version. Combat weight 8.5 tons, crew 8 people.

Sd. Kfz.251/15

- mittlerer Lichtauswertepanzerwagen - light-metric reconnaissance vehicle.

Sd. Kfz.251/16

- mittlerer Flammpanzerwagen - self-propelled flamethrower. Armament: two 14 mm flamethrowers and two MG34 machine guns. Flamethrowers were installed on the sides of the armored personnel carrier; the fire mixture stock was 700 liters (for 80 two-second shots). Flame throwing range up to 35 m (depending on wind direction). 347 units produced.

Sd. Kfz.251/17

- mittlerer Schutzenpanzerwagen mit 2 cm Flak 38 - self-propelled anti-aircraft gun. Automatic anti-aircraft gun Flak 38 20 mm caliber behind a standard shield in the middle of the body with folding sides. Ammunition capacity: 600 rounds. Combat weight 8.8 tons, crew 4 - 6 people. 211 units produced.

Sd. Kfz.251/18

- mittlerer Beobachtungspanzerwagen - surveillance and communications vehicle. Radio station FuG 8. Crew of 6 people.

Sd. Kfz.251/19

- mittlerer Fernsprechbetriebspanzerwagen - mobile telephone exchange.

Sd. Kfz.251/20

- mittlerer Schutzenpanzerwagen - Infrarotscheinwerfer - self-propelled infrared searchlight. Since the end of 1944 it has been known as "Owl" (Uhu). Inside the body there is a rotating installation of a spotlight - an illuminator for the night sights of Panther tanks. The infrared devices of the Panther tank operated at a distance of up to 400 m, and the Filin armored personnel carrier could detect and illuminate targets at a distance of up to 1500 m. The commander of the armored personnel carrier with an IR spotlight directed the actions of the Panther platoon (5 tanks) using the FuG 5 radio station Crew: 4 people. 60 units produced.

Sd. Kfz.251/21

- mittlerer Schutzenpanzerwagen Drilling MG 151 - self-propelled anti-aircraft gun. Built-up carriage - Flakdrilling Socklaffete - with three Mauser MG 151/15 15 mm caliber or MG 151/20 20 mm caliber automatic aircraft guns behind a small U-shaped shield in the middle of the body. Ammunition capacity: 3000 rounds. Additional weapons: MG 42 machine gun. Crew of 6 people. 387 units produced.

Sd. Kfz.251/22

- mittlerer Schutzenpanzerwagen mit 7.5 cm Pak 40 - self-propelled artillery mount, 75-mm Pak 40/1 anti-tank gun behind a standard shield in the front of the body. Horizontal guidance angles are 20° to the left and 18° to the right. Ammunition 22 rounds. Crew 4 people. 268 units produced.

Sd. Kfz.251/23

- mittlerer Schutzenpanzerwagen mit 2 cm KwK - reconnaissance armored personnel carrier with a 20-mm automatic cannon and an MG 42 machine gun in a Hangelaffete 38 type turret, the same as the Sd.Kfz.234/1 armored vehicles. Ammunition capacity: 100 rounds and 2010 rounds. Crew 4 people. This modification was the last in the line.

Half-track armored personnel carrier Sd. Kfz.251 "Ganomag"

“The task of the infantry is to immediately use the effect of a tank attack to quickly advance forward and build on success until the terrain is completely captured and cleared of the enemy” - this is a position put forward by the German tank theorist General G. Guderian in 1936 , shows what role the infantry plays when interacting with tanks.

Guderian correctly foresaw that, given the increasing effectiveness of anti-tank weapons, the losses of attacking tanks without infantry cover would be too great. And the capture and retention of terrain by tanks alone is impossible without infantry. German armored personnel carriers of the Second World War were developed on the basis of half-track artillery tractors. A whole family of such tractors, created in the 1930s, provided towing of guns weighing up to 18 tons. The chassis of two of them - the 1-ton Sd.Kfz.10 and the 3-ton Sd.Kfz.11 - were used in the manufacture of Sd armored personnel carriers. Kfz.250 and Sd. Kfz.251 respectively.

The latter, which became the most popular light armored vehicle of the Wehrmacht, was a medium half-track armored personnel carrier intended for transporting a motorized infantry squad. The basic vehicle, a half-track tractor, was developed by AG in Bremen in 1933 and bore the corporate designation HLkl 6. The chassis for the HLkl 6p armored personnel carrier was manufactured by , and, apparently, for this reason, in all Soviet documents during the Great Patriotic War it appears under this name , never used in the Wehrmacht. The armored hulls came from, and assembly was carried out at, Borgward, Hansa-Lloyd-Goliath, Weserhutte, Wumag, Schichau, MNH, Stewer, Deutsche Werke and Evans+Pistor.

PRODUCTION AND MODIFICATIONS

From June 1939 to March 1945, German factories produced 15,252 combat vehicles of 23 modifications in four basic versions. Until September 1943, variants A, B and C were produced (4,650 units), and then until the end of the war - D (10,602 units). The basic versions had no fundamental design differences, but differed in the shape and method of fastening some components and parts of the armored hull.

The modifications, depending on their purpose, differed from each other in the composition of their weapons and additional equipment. The most widespread modification was the Sd.Kfz.251/1 - a linear medium armored personnel carrier (mittlerer Schutzenpanzerwagen), carrying a motorized infantry squad (Panzergrenadiergruppe) of ten people. Some of the vehicles were equipped with special containers for launching rockets - Wurframen 40 - of 280 and 320 mm caliber. In addition, there were various options for command vehicles and mobile command posts, observation and communications vehicles, engineering and ambulance vehicles, artillery tractors, self-propelled artillery and anti-aircraft guns of various calibers, etc. Thus, a whole family of combat vehicles was created to equip motorized infantry units of tank and motorized divisions of the Wehrmacht.

Read: Tank T-90M. No worse than "Almata", but unnecessary for the Ministry of Defense

SD.KFZ.251 IN THE TROOPS

In the spring of 1939, the first (apparently still pre-production) armored personnel carriers Sd.Kfz.251/1 Ausf. And they entered the 1st Panzer Division, stationed in Weimar. They equipped one motorized infantry company in a rifle regiment. Until September 1, 1939, only 68 armored personnel carriers were manufactured. They received a baptism of fire during the Polish campaign.

In May 1940, the Wehrmacht already had 338 armored personnel carriers of various modifications. The largest number of them were in the 1st Rifle Brigade (l.Schutzen Brigade) of the 1st Panzer Division. During the fighting in France, the Germans lost 17 vehicles. Sd.Kfz.251 armored personnel carriers of all modifications were most widely used on the Soviet-German front. The staffing of tank and motorized units was different. Let's say, at the beginning of Operation Barbarossa, the largest number of vehicles of this type were in service with the 1st Panzer Division, where the first battalions of the 1st and 113th Infantry Regiments (Schutzen Regiment) - as the Wehrmacht motorized infantry was officially called until 1943 - had Sd .Kfz.251. The 14th, 16th and 19th tank divisions had no armored personnel carriers at all. This situation remained until the end of the war, both due to the ever-increasing number of tank and motorized formations, and because of the ever-increasing losses.

The “1945 model” tank division was supposed to have 90 armored personnel carriers: 30 Sd.Kfz.251 / 1.24 Sd.Kfz.251 communication vehicles / 3.6 flamethrower Sd.Kfz.251 /6, 12 anti-aircraft Sd.Kfz. 251/21 with built-in automatic Mauser cannons and 18 anti-tank Sd.Kfz.251/22 with 75 mm Pak 40/1 cannons. However, this plan failed to be implemented.

Sd.Kfz.251 armored personnel carriers were used by the Wehrmacht, SS and Luftwaffe troops on all fronts until the end of the war - on March 1, 1945, there were 6,540 of them in the army.

Read: Medium tank Panzerkampfwagen IV - modifications

A small number of these vehicles were received by Germany's allies - Romania and Hungary. Captured Sd.Kfz.251 (often with rearmament) were used by the armies of the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition, including the Red Army.

DESIGN

The German army was the first in the world to adopt the Sd.Kfz.251 half-track armored personnel carriers, better known as the Hanomag.

The armored personnel carrier had an open top armored body, welded from rolled armor plates located at large angles of inclination and bolted to the chassis frame. The thickness of the armor ranged from 8 mm at the sides and stern to 10-15 mm at the front hull plates. Boxes with spare parts and equipment were located on the fender shelves. The chassis had a classic automotive layout with the engine located in front of the driver's cabin, as a result of which the control compartment was located in the middle of the vehicle between the engine and troop compartments. A double door at the rear of the hull was used for landing and disembarking troops. There were no loopholes in the sides, and infantrymen could fire from personal weapons only over the sides. The standard armament of the armored personnel carrier consisted of a 7.92 mm MG34 light machine gun mounted on the roof of the control compartment and covered with an armor shield. If necessary, it could be moved to a swivel mounted on the stern sheet. This swivel could also fire at air targets. The armored personnel carrier was equipped with a 6-cylinder carburetor in-line liquid-cooled Maybach HL42TUKRM engine with a displacement of 4171 cm³ and a power of 100 hp. With. at 2800 rpm, allowing the 8-ton car to accelerate on the highway to a maximum speed of 53 km/h. The engine was started by an electric starter and was duplicated by an inertia starter with manual spin-up, which was recommended for use in the cold season.

A fuel tank with a capacity of 160 liters was located under the floor of the troop compartment in the rear of the hull. The maximum range of the car when driving on the highway reached 300 km.

The main clutch of an armored personnel carrier is a dry, double-disc clutch with a central spring. The gearbox, range and double differential were mounted in one housing. The gearbox is three-way, four-speed with constant mesh gears.

The vehicle was controlled using an automobile-type steering mechanism. Turning at a small angle (up to 6°) was done by turning the front wheels; during sharper turns, in addition, the corresponding track was braked. The armored personnel carrier's suspension was mixed. The wheeled front axle, equipped with pneumatic tires size 190-18, was suspended on a transverse semi-elliptical leaf spring.

Read: Armored car "Typhoon-U"

The tracked mover had an independent torsion bar suspension. The propulsion unit of each side consisted of six double rubber-coated road wheels, arranged in a checkerboard pattern with mutual overlapping of the roller disks, a front drive wheel and a guide wheel with a tension mechanism.

The ridge-geared steel tracks were 280 mm wide and consisted of 55-56 tracks each. The track fingers were mounted on needle bearings and provided them with greater wear resistance, as well as high chassis efficiency and good vehicle dynamics.

TACTICAL AND TECHNICAL CHARACTERISTICS

Combat weight, t:
Crew, people: 2+10
Overall dimensions, mm: length: 5980 width: 2100 height: 1750 ground clearance: 320 wheel track: 1775 track track: 1600
Armament: 2 machine guns MG 34 or MG 42 7.92 mm caliber
Ammunition: 2010 rounds
Armor, mm: hull front: 10…15 sides stern: 8 roof MTO: 6
Engine: Maybach HL42TUKRM, 6-cylinder (carburetor, in-line, liquid cooling; power 100 hp (73.6 kW) at 2800 rpm; displacement 4171 cm³
Transmission: double-disc dry clutch, four-speed gearbox (4+1), range, double differential, hydraulic and pneumatic brakes
Chassis: steered front axle, tire size 190-18, suspension - transverse semi-elliptical leaf spring; the caterpillar mover of each side consisted of six double rubber-coated road wheels, arranged in a checkerboard pattern, a front drive wheel (ridge engagement) and a guide wheel with a tensioning mechanism; individual torsion bar suspension; each caterpillar has 55-56 tracks with a width of 280 mm, track pitch - 140 mm
Maximum speed, km/h: 53
Power reserve, km: 300
Obstacles to be overcome: elevation angle, degrees: 24 ditch width, m:2 ford depth, m: 0.5
Communications: radio station Fu Spr Ger "f"

Combat use

SdKfz 251, captured by Polish troops during the Warsaw Uprising in 1944.
The vehicle found wide use in various parts of the Wehrmacht. Its significance during the Second World War can hardly be overestimated. First of all, it was used as an armored personnel carrier for the rapid movement of infantry (panzergrenadiers) and in this capacity showed itself especially well on the rugged terrain of North Africa and the Eastern Front due to the high maneuverability of the half-track propulsion system. The Sd Kfz 251 was also actively used for towing guns (including heavy ones) and for transporting ammunition. Most vehicles were equipped with MG34 or MG42 machine guns, which made it possible to effectively use them as mobile firing points against enemy personnel and unarmored targets, and modifications with anti-aircraft and field guns were used to destroy low-flying enemy aircraft and tanks.

Bench modeling

The Hanomag armored car is widely represented in bench modeling. Prefabricated plastic replica models in 1:35 scale are produced by Zvezda (Russia), Tamiya (Japan), Dragon (China), Trumpeter (China).

SdKfz-250/20 "Uhu"

Another variant in a seemingly endless series of modifications to the 251 model, it was used to support Panther tanks equipped with infrared night vision devices. The Panther's IR spotlights had a range of only 400 m, and the massive Beobachtungsgrerat 1251 model 251/20 could illuminate targets at a distance of 1,500 m. The Owl commander (Uhu) controlled five Panthers equipped with IR sights in a night operation , which created enormous combat potential. However, out of 600 vehicles ordered in August 1944, no more than 60 were built.

Literature

M. Baryatinsky
. German armored vehicles 1939-1945 (Part II) - M.: Armored collection, issue No. 5, 1997.
N. Kurbatov
. Wehrmacht encyclopedias
C. Kliment
,
D. Greer
. SdKfz 251 in Action - Squadron/Signal Publications, Issue No. 21, 1981. ISBN 0-89747-124-5
B. Culver
,
J. Laurier
. SdKfz 251 Half-track 1939-1945 - Osprey Publishing/New Vanguard, Issue No. 25, 1998. ISBN 1-85532-846-1

Hanomag armored personnel carriers: SdKfz 250 and SdKfz 251