Comparison of early World War II tanks
Encyclopedia
This table compare the tanks in use by the belligerent nations of Europe at the start of the Second World War, employed in the Polish Campaign
(1939), the Fall of France (1940), and Operation Barbarossa
(1941).
Invasion of Poland (1939)
The Invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign or 1939 Defensive War in Poland and the Poland Campaign in Germany, was an invasion of Poland by Germany, the Soviet Union, and a small Slovak contingent that marked the start of World War II in Europe...
(1939), the Fall of France (1940), and Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
(1941).
| A11 Infantry Tank I Matilda | A12 Infantry Tank II Matilda | Panzer I Panzer I The Panzer I was a light tank produced in Germany in the 1930s. The name is short for the German ' , abbreviated . The tank's official German ordnance inventory designation was SdKfz 101 .Design of the Panzer I began in 1932 and mass production in 1934... |
Panzer II Panzer II The Panzer II was the common name for a family of German tanks used in World War II. The official German designation was Panzerkampfwagen II... |
Panzer III Panzer III Panzer III was the common name of a medium tank that was developed in the 1930s by Germany and was used extensively in World War II. The official German designation was Panzerkampfwagen III translating as "armoured battle vehicle". It was intended to fight other armoured fighting vehicles and... |
Panzer IV Panzer IV The Panzerkampfwagen IV , commonly known as the Panzer IV, was a medium tank developed in Nazi Germany in the late 1930s and used extensively during the Second World War. Its ordnance inventory designation was Sd.Kfz... Ausf. A-F1 |
LT vz. 35 (Panzer 35(t) Panzer 35(t) The Panzerkampfwagen 35, commonly shortened to Panzer 35 or abbreviated as Pz.Kpfw. 35, was a Czechoslovak-designed light tank used mainly by Nazi Germany during World War II. The letter stood for tschechisch... ) |
LT vz. 38 (Panzer 38(t) Panzer 38(t) The Panzerkampfwagen 38 was originally a Czech tank of pre-World War II design. After Czechoslovakia was taken over by Germany, it was adopted by the German Army, seeing service in the invasions of Poland and Russia. Production ended in 1942, when its armament was deemed inadequate. In all, over... ) |
7TP 7TP The 7TP was the Polish light tank of the Second World War. A development of the British Vickers 6-ton, it was significantly better armed than its most common opponents, the German Panzer I and Panzer II. A standard tank of the Polish Army during the Polish Defensive War of 1939, its production... |
T-26 T-26 The T-26 tank was a Soviet light infantry tank used during many conflicts of the 1930s as well as during World War II. It was a development of the British Vickers 6-Ton tank and is widely considered one of the most successful tank designs of the 1930s.... |
BT-8 (BT-7M) |
T-34 T-34 The T-34 was a Soviet medium tank produced from 1940 to 1958. Although its armour and armament were surpassed by later tanks of the era, it has been often credited as the most effective, efficient and influential design of World War II... Model 1940 |
KV-1 Model 1940 |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... |
United Kingdom | Nazi Germany Nazi Germany Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by... |
Nazi Germany | Nazi Germany | Nazi Germany | Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992... , Nazi Germany |
Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992... , Nazi Germany, Sweden Sweden Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund.... |
Poland Poland Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north... |
Soviet Union Soviet Union The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991.... |
Soviet Union | Soviet Union | Soviet Union |
| Entered service | 1938 | 1939 | 1934 | 1936 | 1939 | 1939 | 1937 | 1939 | 1935 | 1931 | 1939 | 1940 | 1940 |
| Related model | Matilda I | Carden Loyd Mk.IV Carden Loyd tankette The Carden Loyd tankettes were a series of British pre-World War II tankettes, the most successful of which was the Mark VI, the only version built in significant numbers... |
Panzer I Panzer I The Panzer I was a light tank produced in Germany in the 1930s. The name is short for the German ' , abbreviated . The tank's official German ordnance inventory designation was SdKfz 101 .Design of the Panzer I began in 1932 and mass production in 1934... |
Vickers E | Vickers E | Vickers E | BT‑2, BT‑5, BT‑7 | KV-2, IS-1 | |||||
| Crew | 2 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Dimensions | |||||||||||||
| Length | 4.9 m | 6.0 m | 4.40 m | 4.80 m | 5.52 m | 5.92 m | 4.9 m | 4.61 m | 4.56 m | 4.88 m | 5.66 m | 5.92 m | 6.75 m |
| Width | 2.3 m | 2.6 m | 2.00 m | 2.20 m | 2.90 m | 2.88 m | 2.1 m | 2.12 m | 2.43 m | 2.41 m | 2.29 m | 3.00 m | 3.32 m |
| Height | 2.0 m | 2.5 m | 1.70 m | 2.00 m | 2.50 m | 2.68 m | 2.35 m | 2.40 m | 2.27 m | 2.08 m | 2.42 m | 2.45 m | 2.71 m |
| Weight | 11 tonnes | 27 tonnes | 6.0 tonnes | 9.5 tonnes | 22.0 tonnes | 25.0 tonnes | 10.5 tonnes | 9.5 tonnes | 9.9 tonnes | 10.3 tonnes | 14.7 tonnes | 26.3 tonnes | 45 tonnes |
| Armour | |||||||||||||
| Turret front side top |
65 mm 65 mm 10 mm |
75 mm 75 mm 20 mm |
13 mm 13 mm 8 mm |
15 mm 15 mm 10 mm |
30 mm 30 mm 12 mm |
40 mm 20 mm 12 mm |
25 mm 15 mm 8 mm |
25 mm 15 mm 10 mm |
15 mm 15 mm 10 mm |
15 mm 15 mm 10 mm |
15 mm 15 mm 15 mm |
45 mm 45 mm 16 mm |
70 mm 70 mm ? mm |
| Hull front side top |
60 mm 60 mm 30 mm |
78 mm 55 mm 20 mm |
13 mm 13 mm 6 mm |
15 mm 15 mm 5 mm |
30 mm 30 mm 16 mm |
40 mm 20 mm 12 mm |
25 mm 16 mm 8 mm |
30 mm 15 mm 8 mm |
17 mm 13 mm 10 mm |
15 mm 15 mm 6 mm |
30 mm 13 mm 10 mm |
45 mm 45 mm 20 mm |
75 mm 75 mm 70 mm |
| Armament | |||||||||||||
| Main | 0.303 or 0.5 MG | QF 2 pdr 40 mm | 2×MG-34 7.92 mm | 20 mm | 37 mm | 7.5 cm KwK 37 L/24 | ÚV vz. 34 37 mm |
37 mm L/47.8 | Bofors wz. 37 37 mm |
Model 32 45 mm |
Model 38 45 mm |
L-11 Model 1939 76.2mm L/30.5 |
76.2mm F-34 (tank gun) F-34 tank gun The 76 mm tank gun M1940 F-34 was a 76.2 mm Soviet tank gun used on the T-34/76 tank. A modified version of the gun, the 76 mm tank gun M1941 ZiS-5 was used on KV-1 tanks during World War II... |
| Secondary | – | 7.92 mm Besa MG | – | 2×MG34 7.92 mm |
2×MG34 7.92 mm |
2×MG34 7.92 mm |
2×MG 37(t) Besa machine gun The Besa Machine Gun was a British version of the Czechoslovak ZB-53 air-cooled, belt-fed machine-gun, which in the Czechoslovak army was marked as the TK vz. 37... 7.92 mm |
2×MG 37(t) Besa machine gun The Besa Machine Gun was a British version of the Czechoslovak ZB-53 air-cooled, belt-fed machine-gun, which in the Czechoslovak army was marked as the TK vz. 37... 7.92 mm |
Ckm wz.30 Ckm wz.30 Ckm wz.30 is a Polish-made clone of the American Browning M1917 heavy machine gun... 7.92 mm |
2×DT machine guns 7.62 mm |
3×DT 7.62 mm |
2×DT 7.62 mm (hull, turret rear) |
4×DT 7.62 mm |
| Ammunition | - 4,000 rounds |
93 AP shot 2,925 rounds |
- 2,250 rounds |
180 shells 2,250 rounds |
120 shells 3,750 rounds |
80 shells 2,800 rounds |
72 shells 1,800 rounds |
72 shells 2,400 rounds |
80 shells 3,960 rounds |
100 shells 2,848 rounds |
146 shells 2,394 rounds |
77 shells 2,898–4,725 rounds |
? shells ? rounds |
| Engine | |||||||||||||
| Fuel | gasoline Gasoline Gasoline , or petrol , is a toxic, translucent, petroleum-derived liquid that is primarily used as a fuel in internal combustion engines. It consists mostly of organic compounds obtained by the fractional distillation of petroleum, enhanced with a variety of additives. Some gasolines also contain... |
diesel | gasoline | gasoline | gasoline | gasoline | gasoline | gasoline | diesel | gasoline | diesel | diesel | diesel |
| Engine | 8-cylinder Ford |
? AEC or Leyland |
6-cylinder Maybach NL38TR |
6-cylinder petrol Maybach HL 140 hp (105 kW) | 12-cylinder Maybach HL 120 TRM 300 PS (296 hp, 220 kW) | 12-cylinder Maybach HL 120 TRM 300 PS (296 hp, 220 kW) | 6-cylinder Škoda T11/0 |
6-cylinder Praga EPA |
6-cylinder Saurer VGLD |
6-cylinder GAZ T-26 |
12-cylinder Diesel model V-2 |
12-cylinder V-2-34 |
12-cylinder V-2 |
| Power Horsepower Horsepower is the name of several units of measurement of power. The most common definitions equal between 735.5 and 750 watts.Horsepower was originally defined to compare the output of steam engines with the power of draft horses in continuous operation. The unit was widely adopted to measure the... |
70 hp 52 kW |
180 hp 134 kW |
100 hp 75 kW |
140 hp 104 kW |
265 hp 197 kW |
296 hp 220 kW |
120 hp 89 kW |
125 hp 93 kW |
110 hp 82 kW |
90 hp 67 kW |
450 hp 340 kW |
500 hp 375 kW |
600 hp 450 kW |
| Fuel consumption | ? | ? | 103–126 litres/100 km | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | 81–100 litres/100 km | ? | ? | ? | ? |
| Mobility | |||||||||||||
| Suspension | sprung bogie Bogie A bogie is a wheeled wagon or trolley. In mechanics terms, a bogie is a chassis or framework carrying wheels, attached to a vehicle. It can be fixed in place, as on a cargo truck, mounted on a swivel, as on a railway carriage/car or locomotive, or sprung as in the suspension of a caterpillar... |
coil spring Coil spring A Coil spring, also known as a helical spring, is a mechanical device, which is typically used to store energy and subsequently release it, to absorb shock, or to maintain a force between contacting surfaces... |
coil spring/ leaf spring Leaf spring Originally called laminated or carriage spring, a leaf spring is a simple form of spring, commonly used for the suspension in wheeled vehicles... |
torsion-bar |
torsion-bar | leaf spring | leaf spring bogie | leaf spring | leaf spring bogie | leaf spring | Christie | Christie | Torsion Bar |
| Speed (road) (terrain) |
13 km/h 9 |
24 km/h 15 |
40 km/h ? |
40 km/h ? |
40 km/h ? |
42 km/h 16 km/h |
34 km/h ? |
42 km/h 15 km/h |
37 km/h ? |
30 km/h ? |
86 km/h ? |
53.5 km/h ? |
35 km/h ? |
| Range (road) (terrain) |
? | ? | 140 km 115 km |
200 km ? |
155 km ? |
320 km 200 km |
190 km 120 km |
250 km 160 km |
160 km 130 km |
225 km 150 km |
700 km 400 km |
300–400 km 230–260 km |
335 km ? |
| power:weight Power-to-weight ratio Power-to-weight ratio is a calculation commonly applied to engines and mobile power sources to enable the comparison of one unit or design to another. Power-to-weight ratio is a measurement of actual performance of any engine or power sources... |
6.3 hp/t | 6.7 hp/t | 16.7 hp/t | 14.8 hp/t | 12.0 hp/t | 12.0 hp/t | 10.9 hp/t | 13.2 hp/t | 11.1 hp/t | 8.7 hp/t | 30.6 hp/t | 19.0 hp/t | 13.0 hp/t |
| Track width | 280 mm | 305 mm | 360 mm | 380 mm | 320 mm | 293 mm | 267 mm | 260 mm | 300 mm | 550 mm | ? | ||
| Ground pressure | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | 96.5 kPa | ? | ? | 59 kPa | 60 kPa | 76.5 kPa | 62.76 kPa | ? |
| Ground clearance | 290 mm | ? | 385 mm | 400 mm | 350 mm | 400 mm | 376 mm | 380 mm | 350 mm | 400 mm | ? | ||
| Vertical obstacle Trench crossing Fording depth |
0.36 m 1.4 m 0.58 m |
0.42 m ? 0.85 m |
0.6 m 2.3 m 0.8 m |
0.6 m 2.5 m 1.0 m |
0.79 m 2.01 m 0.79 m |
0.8 m 1.86 m 0.9 m |
? 1.8 m 1.0 m |
0.7 m 1.8 m 0.8 m |
0.55 m 2 m 1.2 m |
0.8 m 2.5 m 1.3m |
? | ||
| Matilda Mk I Matilda Mk I The Tank, Infantry, Mk I, Matilda I was a British infantry tank of the Second World War. It is not to be confused with the later model Tank, Infantry Mk II , also known as the "Matilda II" which took over the "Matilda" name after the early part of the war when the first Matilda was withdrawn from... |
Matilda Mk II Matilda tank The Infantry Tank Mark II known as the Matilda II was a British infantry tank of the Second World War. It was also identified from its General Staff Specification A12.... |
Panzer I Panzer I The Panzer I was a light tank produced in Germany in the 1930s. The name is short for the German ' , abbreviated . The tank's official German ordnance inventory designation was SdKfz 101 .Design of the Panzer I began in 1932 and mass production in 1934... |
Panzer II Panzer II The Panzer II was the common name for a family of German tanks used in World War II. The official German designation was Panzerkampfwagen II... |
Panzer III Panzer III Panzer III was the common name of a medium tank that was developed in the 1930s by Germany and was used extensively in World War II. The official German designation was Panzerkampfwagen III translating as "armoured battle vehicle". It was intended to fight other armoured fighting vehicles and... |
Panzer IV Panzer IV The Panzerkampfwagen IV , commonly known as the Panzer IV, was a medium tank developed in Nazi Germany in the late 1930s and used extensively during the Second World War. Its ordnance inventory designation was Sd.Kfz... |
LT vz. 35 | LT vz. 38 | 7TP 7TP The 7TP was the Polish light tank of the Second World War. A development of the British Vickers 6-ton, it was significantly better armed than its most common opponents, the German Panzer I and Panzer II. A standard tank of the Polish Army during the Polish Defensive War of 1939, its production... |
T-26 T-26 The T-26 tank was a Soviet light infantry tank used during many conflicts of the 1930s as well as during World War II. It was a development of the British Vickers 6-Ton tank and is widely considered one of the most successful tank designs of the 1930s.... |
BT-8 | T-34 T-34 The T-34 was a Soviet medium tank produced from 1940 to 1958. Although its armour and armament were surpassed by later tanks of the era, it has been often credited as the most effective, efficient and influential design of World War II... |
KV-1 | |