Hetzer
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The Jagdpanzer 38(t) (Sd.Kfz. 138/2), sometimes known as Hetzer ("baiter"), was a German tank destroyer of the Second World War based on a modified Czech Panzer 38(t) chassis.
The name "Hetzer" was at the time never used for this vehicle. That name is a post-war mistake conferring the name of a related prototype, the E-10.
Development
The Jagdpanzer 38(t) was intended to be more cost-effective than the much more ambitious Jagdpanther and Jagdtiger designs of the same period. Using a proven chassis, it avoided the mechanical problems of the larger armoured vehicles.
It was better armored than the earlier Panzerjäger Marder and Nashorn with a sloped armour front plate of 60 mm (equivalent to about 180 mm), carried a reasonably powerful gun, was mechanically reliable and small and easily concealed. It was also cheap to build. Its main failings were the cramped working condition of the crew and the gun mounting, which had a more limited traverse to the left.
The Jagdpanzer 38(t) succeeded the Marder III (based on the same chassis) in production from April 1944; about 2584 were built until the end of the war. Its purpose was to equip the Panzerjägerabteilungen of the infantry divisions, giving them some limited mobile anti-armour capability. After the war Czechoslovakia continued to build the type and exported 158 vehicles to Switzerland. Most vehicles in today's collections are of Swiss origin.
Also, by special order of Adolf Hitler in November 1944, a number of Jadgpanzer 38(t)s were refurbished straight from the factory with a Keobe flamethrower and accompanying equipment instead of the normal gun. The flame projector was encased in a metal shield reminiscent of that of a gun barrel, and easily prone to damage. Less than 50 of these vehicles, designated Flammpanzer 38 were completed before the end of the war, but they were used operationally against Allied forces on the Western Front.
Performance
The Jagdpanzer 38(t) fitted into the lighter category of German tank destroyers that began with the Panzerjäger I, continued with the Marder series and ended with the Jagdpanzer 38(t). Its gun (the 75 mm gun fitted was the same as the late Panzer IV marks) could destroy most opponents at reasonable range, and the fully-enclosed armor protection made it a much safer vehicle to crew than the Marder II or Marder III series.
The Jagdpanzer 38(t) is one of the most common late-war German tank destroyers. It was, crucially, available in numbers that made it significant, and was generally mechanically reliable. Also, its small size made it a hard target, and was easy to conceal allowing it to lie in ambush for enemy tanks.
The Jagdpanzer 38(t)'s weaknesses were its very limited gun traverse and poor visibility. The gun traverse was so limited the entire vehicle sometimes needed to be turned to track a fast-moving target. The commander sat far back in the vehicle, with a flat roof to his front and without a cupola. Thus his visibility was limited when the vehicle was even slightly elevated in front, for example, in a classic hull-down position.
 Polish-captured JPz 38(t) on a barricade during the Warsaw Uprising |
 Other Polish barricade with a captured JPz 38(t) built in |
 JPz 38(t) in museum at CFB Borden in Ontario, Canada |
| German armored fighting vehicles of World War II | |
|---|---|
| Tanks | |
| Panzer I | Panzer II | Panzer III | Panzer IV | Panther | Tiger I, II | Panzer 35(t) | Panzer 38(t) | |
| Self-propelled artillery | |
| Wespe | Hummel | Grille | Panzerwerfer | Panzerfeldhaubitze 18M | SIG 33 | Wurfrahmen 40 | |
| Assault guns | |
| StuG III | StuG IV | StuH 42 | Brummbär | Sturmtiger | |
| Tank destroyers | |
| Panzerjäger I | Marder I , II , III | Hetzer | Jagdpanzer IV | Jagdpanther | Nashorn | Jagdtiger | Elefant | |
| Armored half-tracks | Armored cars |
| SdKfz 4 | 250 | 251 | 252 | 253 | Sdkfz 221/22/23 | Sdkfz 231/32/34/63 |
| Self propelled anti-aircraft | |
| Flakpanzer IV: Möbelwagen, Wirbelwind, Ostwind, Kugelblitz | Gepard | |
| Prototypes | |
| Maus | P-1000 Ratte | E- series | Panther II | Waffenträger | Neubaufahrzeug | |
| Proposed designs | |
| P-1500 'Monster' | Panzer VII 'Löwe' | Panzer IX | |
| German armored fighting vehicle production during World War II | |