Landsverk L-60

Last updated
Strv L-60
Stridsvagn m40K Hassleholm 31.07.09.JPG
Stridsvagn m/40K at the Hässlehoms Museum, Sweden
Type Light tank
Place of origin Sweden
Service history
In service1935 – 2002
Used bySweden
Kingdom of Hungary
Ireland
Dominican Republic
Wars World War II (see Toldi tanks)
Dominican Civil War
Production history
DesignerOtto Merker
Designed1934
Manufacturer AB Landsverk
VariantsL-60
L-60 Ö
L-60 S
Strv m/38
Strv m/39
Strv m/40L
Strv m/40K
Toldi tanks (Hungarian made tanks based on the L-60)
Specifications (Original Landsverk L-60 specifications)
Mass8.5  t (8.4 long tons; 9.4 short tons) (laden)
Length4.8 m (15 ft 9 in)
Width2.075 m (6 ft 9.7 in)
Height2.05 m (6 ft 9 in)
Crew3

Armor 5–15 mm (0.20–0.59 in)
Main
armament
Madsen 20 mm cannon
Secondary
armament
7.92 mm Madsen machine gun
EngineBussing-Nag V8 cylinder 7.9 litres
150-160 bhp at 2500-2700 rpm
SuspensionTorsion-bar suspension
Operational
range
270 km (170 mi)
Maximum speed 45 km/h (28 mph)

The Landsverk L-60 was a Swedish tank developed in 1934. It was developed by AB Landsverk as a light tank which included several advanced design features such as torsion bar suspension, periscopes rather than view slits and all-welded construction. [1]

Contents

The L-60 was progressively improved with several turrets, engines and guns offered by Landsverk. The L-60 entered the international market in 1935 and was eventually adopted by the Swedish army in 4 main variants: Stridsvagn (Strv) m/38, Stridsvagn m/39,Stridsvagn m/40L and Stridsvagn m/40K. [2]

Variants

Stridsvagn m40K Stridsvagn m40K.JPG
Stridsvagn m40K

Foreign service

Hungarian service

The L-60 was licensed by the Hungarian Weiss Manfréd company for the Hungarian army. It was used as the basis for the Hungarian Toldi tanks which used different guns and were further developed, improved and up-armoured. [10]

Irish Service

The first Irish Landsverk L-60 was delivered in 1935 and joined Ireland's only other tank a Vickers Mk. D in the 2nd Armoured Squadron. The second Landsverk L-60 arrived in 1936. [11] The L-60s were still in use up until the late 1960s. One L-60 is preserved in running order and the other is in the National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks, Dublin.

Dominican service

Twenty were sold to the Dominican Republic army in 1956, having been refurbished and designated L/60L. In the Dominican Civil War in April 1965, these tanks saw use by Constitutionalist troops against invading American forces during “Operation Power Pack”. Three of the Dominican L/60Ls were destroyed: one by a US Army M40 recoilless rifle team of the 82nd Airborne Division, and the other two respectively by a M50 Ontos and an M48 Patton of a US Marine Corps armor detachment of the 6th MEU. This 29 April 1965 battle was one of the very few tank-vs-tank battles to ever happen in the Americas. After “Power Pack” ended, the United States assisted the Dominican Republic in rebuilding its army and twelve of the original twenty L/60Ls were again refurbished and restored to service. These dozen continued in frontline use until 2002. [12] Today one is preserved in excellent, drivable condition as a historical icon by the Dominican Republic army.[ citation needed ]

Stridsvagn m/40 at Beredskapsmuseet outside Helsingborg Strv m 40.JPG
Stridsvagn m/40 at Beredskapsmuseet outside Helsingborg

Planned Romanian acquisition

In spring of 1936, an offer by the General Technical Inspectorate of the Romanian Army was sent to Swedish engineer Herbert Wiessner, for the purchase of Landsverk tanks. The offer was not materialized. [13]

References

  1. "STRV m/38-39".
  2. "L-60 in Swedish service: Strv m/38 – m/40k – From the swedish archives". fromtheswedisharchives.wordpress.com. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  3. 1 2 "Landsverk Stridsvagn L-60". Landsverk. Retrieved 18 May 2012.
  4. Rolf Urrisk, 100 Jahre Panzerwaffe im österreichischen Heer, page 72, Weishaupt Verlag, Gnas 2006
  5. "L-60 in Swedish service: Strv m/38 – m/40k – From the swedish archives". fromtheswedisharchives.wordpress.com. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  6. "L60 tridsvagn M38/39/40 (1936)". tank-afv.com. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  7. "L-60 in Swedish service: Strv m/38 – m/40k – From the swedish archives". fromtheswedisharchives.wordpress.com. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  8. "L-60 in Swedish service: Strv m/38 – m/40k – From the swedish archives". fromtheswedisharchives.wordpress.com. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  9. "L-60 in Swedish service: Strv m/38 – m/40k – From the swedish archives". fromtheswedisharchives.wordpress.com. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  10. "L60 tridsvagn M38/39/40 (1936)". tank-afv.com. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  11. Tracol, Xavier (October 2010). "Le Blindorama : L'Irlande, 1919 - 1938". Batailles & Blindés (in French). No. 39. Caraktère. pp. 4–5. ISSN   1765-0828.
  12. Sebastien Roblin (22 June 2016). "In 1965, U.S. and Dominican Tanks Fought Brief, Violent Skirmishes". War is boring.
  13. Moșneagu et al. 2012, p. 55.

Sources