Sonderkraftfahrzeug (abbreviated Sd.Kfz., [1] German for "special purpose vehicle") was the ordnance inventory designation used by Nazi Germany before and during World War II for military vehicles; for example Sd.Kfz. 101 for the Panzer I, and Sd.Kfz. 251 for the armored personnel carrier made by Hanomag.
The Reichswehr and its successor, the Wehrmacht began systematically allocating numbers to its vehicles from around 1930, including horse-drawn vehicles, cars and trucks, combat vehicles, and trailers. [2] Sd.Kfz. numbers were assigned to armored, tracked, and half-tracked vehicles. Cars and trucks were allocated Kfz. numbers [3] and trailers were designated with Anh. (Anhänger) and Sd.Anh. numbers. [4]
Allocation of the numbered series was as follows: [5] [2]
Some combat vehicles, often based on existing vehicles in the Sd.Kfz. series and produced in relatively small numbers, weren't allocated a number and were only described with a name. [6]
The Panzer II is the common name used for a family of German tanks used in World War II. The official German designation was Panzerkampfwagen II.
The Panzerkampfwagen IV, commonly known as the Panzer IV, is a German medium tank developed in the late 1930s and used extensively during the Second World War. Its ordnance inventory designation was Sd.Kfz. 161.
The Leichter Panzerspähwagen was a series of light four-wheel drive armoured cars produced by Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1944.
The Sd.Kfz. 251 half-track was a World War II German armored personnel carrier designed by the Hanomag company, based on its earlier, unarmored Sd.Kfz. 11 vehicle. The Sd.Kfz. 251 was designed to transport the Panzergrenadier into battle. Sd.Kfz. 251s were the most widely produced German half-tracks of the war, with at least 15,252 vehicles and variants produced by seven manufacturers. The utility of this vehicle led the German Army to develop the similar looking but shorter and lighter Sd.Kfz. 250 as a supplement.
The Schwerer Panzerspähwagen, is a series of six- and eight-wheeled armoured cars that were used by Germany during the Second World War.
The Sd.Kfz. 250 was a light armoured half-track, very similar in appearance to the larger Hanomag-designed Sd.Kfz. 251, and built by the DEMAG firm, for use by Nazi Germany in World War II. Most variants were open-topped and had a single access door in the rear.
The 15 cm sIG 33 (Sf) auf Panzerkampfwagen 38(t), also known as Grille was a series of self-propelled artillery vehicles used by Nazi Germany during World War II. The Grille series was based on the Czech Panzer 38(t) tank chassis and used a 15 cm sIG 33 infantry gun.
The Schwerer Wehrmachtschlepper was a German World War II half-track vehicle used in various roles between 1943 and 1945. The unarmored models were used as supply vehicles and as tractors to haul artillery. Armored versions mounted anti-aircraft guns or a 10 barrel rocket launcher (Nebelwerfer). Fewer than a thousand were built before the end of the war, but production continued after the war of an improved model in the Tatra plant in Czechoslovakia.
The 2 cm KwK 30 L/55(2 cm Kampfwagenkanone 30 L/55) was a German 2 cm cannon used as the main armament of the German Sd.Kfz.121 Panzerkampfwagen II light tank and various reconnaissance vehicles. It was used during the Spanish Civil War and the Second World War. It was produced by Mauser and Rheinmetall-Borsig from 1935.
The Sd.Kfz. 10 was a German half-track that saw widespread use in World War II. Its main role was as a prime mover for small towed guns, such as the 2 cm Flak 30, the 7.5 cm leIG, or the 3.7 cm Pak 36 anti-tank gun. It could carry eight troops in addition to towing a gun or trailer.
The 7.5 cm KwK 37 L/24(7.5 cm Kampfwagenkanone 37 L/24) was a short-barreled, howitzer-like German 75 mm tank gun used during World War II, primarily as the main armament of the early Panzer IV tank. Slightly modified as StuK 37, it was also mounted in early StuG III assault guns.
The Panzerkampfwagen I was a light tank produced in Germany in the 1930s. The Panzer I was built in several variants and was the basis for a number of variants listed below.
The Sd.Kfz. 234, was a family of armoured cars designed and built in Germany during World War II. The vehicles were lightly armoured, armed with a 20, 50 or 75 mm main gun, and powered by a Tatra V12 diesel engine. The Sd.Kfz. 234 broadly resembles the appearance of Sd.Kfz. 231 .
The Panzerkampfwagen I Ausf. C, also known by its prototype name VK 6.01, was a German light tank from the Second World War. Although the Panzer I Ausf. C was formally designated as a modification of the Panzer I, it was actually a completely new vehicle. This variant has little similarity with earlier Ausf. A and B variants - one of the main distinctions being the use of the Schachtellaufwerk inter-leaved track wheels which was used in many later German tanks during the war.
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