Schwerer Panzerspähwagen 6-Rad - German heavy armored car of the 1930s. In accordance with the departmental designation system adopted in Germany for military equipment, it was assigned the index Sd. Kfz.231 (6-Rad). The armored car was created in 1930-1932 on the instructions of the Reichswehr, which needed a heavy armored car that used the chassis of a commercial truck. The 6x4 armored vehicle was mass-produced from 1932 to 1937. Three well-known German companies were engaged in its release at once: Daimler-Benz, Büssing-NAG and Magirus. Each company used in the release of a chassis of its own design, on which a unified armored hull was installed.
In total, 123 heavy armored vehicles of this type were built during serial production, they were produced in linear - Sd. Kfz.231 (6-Rad) and radio versions - Sd. Kfz.232 (6-Rad). In the mid-1930s, the Sd. Kfz. 231 (6-Rad) was the main heavy armored vehicle of the Wehrmacht. At the same time, by the beginning of World War II, more advanced four-axle all-wheel drive armored vehicles Sd. Kfz.231 (8-Rad) began to replace it. Despite this, the existing Sd. Kfz. 232 (6-Rad) took part in the first operations of World War II, but by 1942, due to insufficient maneuverability and obsolescence, they began to be removed from units at the front, while continuing to operate already in rear areas where police units were armed with them.
By the mid-1930s, the German army had adopted a whole line of various reconnaissance armored vehicles. Like all armored vehicles designed to perform special functions, they received the designation "Sonder-kraftfahrzeug" (special vehicle or abbreviated Sd. Kfz). It is worth noting that during this time period, the numbers did not denote a specific combat vehicle, but a whole class of such equipment, so there was some confusion in the army. Cars that had little in common with each other could carry the same number with the designation Sd. Kfz. Our heavy armored vehicle is a good example of this situation. Under the designation Sd. Kfz. 231, two completely different combat vehicles were produced in Germany. The first heavy armored vehicles Sd. Kfz. 231 were produced on the basis of a three-axle chassis, and the subsequent ones on the basis of a four-axle one, they had nothing in common in the construction of the hull. As a result, in order to distinguish one armored vehicle from another, new information was added to their indices: the six-wheeled version received the designation Sd. Kfz. 231 (6-Rad), and the eight-wheeled Sd. Kfz. 231 (8-Rad).
As early as February 14, 1930, a meeting was held at the German Ministry of Arms, at which a decision was made to continue the experiments begun in 1929 with a 1.5-ton three-axle chassis of commercial trucks with a 6x4 wheel arrangement. The purpose of the experiments was to determine the suitability of these vehicles for creating armored vehicles on their basis. The three-axle chassis G-3 from Daimler-Benz, G-31 from Büssing-NAG and M-206 from Magirus were the object of close attention of the German military. All chassis were almost identical, differing only in minor technical details. In fact, the last two models were developments based on the G-3 chassis. They differed in minor modifications, sizes and engines of their own production. For the rest, the military believed that all three chassis would have a very high degree of unification, although in practice it was later found that the nomenclature of spare parts for armored vehicles built on different chassis does not match.
In March 1931, Daimler-Benz presented its new version of the G-3 chassis, originally called the G-4, and from May 1931 - G-Za. The designers eliminated the previously identified shortcomings, in addition to this, the new chassis was distinguished by a reinforced suspension, and the gearbox received a reverse, which allowed the armored car to move in reverse in the same gears as when moving forward.
In 1933, a sample of the armored vehicle of the Büssing-NAG company was completely ready, and the Magirus company joined the competition with a delay, presenting its model on the M-206p chassis only in 1934. The chassis of both prototypes received an additional control post, which allowed them to move in reverse without turning the armored car. In addition, they had two dashboards each, while the Daimler-Benz prototype had only one dashboard, it was installed in the front. At the same time, the M-206r chassis favorably differed from its competitors in that it allowed the armored vehicle to move at the same speed both back and forth, and a special roller installed in front of the rear axle made it easier for the armored car to overcome obstacles.
As a result, three-axle armored vehicles were produced in three different versions. So the total production of armored vehicles on the G-3 type chassis is estimated at 36 cars, and the model of a heavy reconnaissance armored car produced by Magirus AG at the Kiel plant - 75 cars became the most widespread. There is also mention that a number of armored vehicles were assembled by Deutsche Edelstahlwerke from Hanover. Hulls for armored vehicles were manufactured at two enterprises: Deutsche Edelstahlwerke AG (Hanover-Linden) and Deutschen Werke AG (Kiel). Western sources contain information that a total of 123 three-axle armored vehicles Sd. Kfz.231 (linear) and Sd. Kfz.232 (radio) were produced.
All armored vehicles had a unified fully enclosed armored hull. It, like the tower, was made by welding from rolled steel sheets with a thickness of 8 to 14.5 mm. The armor plates were installed at large angles of inclination, which increased their bullet resistance and provided the crew of the armored car with reliable protection from small arms, mine fragments and shells. The crew of the armored vehicle consisted of four people: the vehicle commander, two driver-mechanics and a gunner.
The layout of the armored car could be called classic. Immediately behind the engine compartment, which was located in the front of the hull and was separated from the manned compartment of the armored car by a fire partition, was the main control post, here was the workplace of the driver. His seat was located at the left side of the car. Above the head of the mechanic was a round armored canopy, which rose up and leaned back. On the right side of the driver of the armored vehicle, a radio operator could sit. Directly above it in the roof there was a large double-leaf rectangular hatch through which it was possible to leave the armored car or, on the contrary, get into it. To observe the terrain, two viewing slots were used in the front armor plate, as well as one each located on the right and left sides of the hull. All of them, with the exception of the radio operator's viewing slot, had armored covers that had to be lowered in a combat situation.
The rear control post of the armored vehicle was located in the center in the aft part of the fighting compartment, it could be used for an urgent withdrawal from positions, as well as in a situation where there was clearly not enough space for turning an almost six-meter combat vehicle. Control of the armored vehicle from the rear steering post became possible if the reverse mechanism was included, which was part of the transmission. If necessary, the place of the driver of the aft control post could be taken by any member of the crew of the armored car. The view from the rear control post was provided by three viewing slots, two of which were located on the sides of the hull, and one in the middle of the rear wall of the aft control post. As well as in front, above the position of the driver of the stern post, there was its own round armored canopy. Crew access to the car was provided by double-leaf hatches, which were located on both sides of the hull of the reconnaissance armored car.
Immediately behind the control compartment was the fighting compartment, on the roof of which a small circular rotation tower was installed. On the right side of the frontal plate of the tower in the movable armor were placed 20-mm automatic cannon KwK 30 L / 55 and 7, 92-mm MG 34 machine gun. In the vertical plane, the armament of the armored car could be aimed at the target in the sector from -12 to +20 degrees … The ammunition carried consisted of 200 rounds for the cannon and 1500 rounds for the MG 34 machine gun. The turret was rotated manually using a mechanical drive.
It was also possible to get into the tower and, accordingly, into the armored car itself through two large double hatches, one of which was located on the roof, and the second on the rear rounded wall of the tower. There were narrow viewing slots in each flap of the rear hatch. In the frontal plate of the tower, directly in front of the commander's seat of the combat vehicle, there was a viewing slot with an armored cover. In addition, in the sides of the tower, the designers provided for rifle embrasures through which the crew of the armored car could shoot back from the enemy from personal weapons. It should be noted that the Sd. Kfz. 231 (6-Rad) did not have radio stations, so communication with other armored vehicles had to be maintained using signal flags.
The chassis of the heavy armored car Sd. Kfz. 231 (6-Rad) matched the 6x4 wheel arrangement, it was connected to the armored hull using a suspension on semi-elliptical leaf springs. A characteristic feature of all six-wheeled armored vehicles of this type was a fairly large distance between the front and rear wheels. The armored car was equipped with hydraulic brakes.
As additional equipment, all armored vehicles were equipped with a set of spare parts and tools, which were transported in special boxes on the wings of the combat vehicle. The trench tool was placed directly on the starboard side of the hull above the long hind wing or directly on it. Inside the armored vehicle there was an ambulance kit, a fire extinguisher, gas masks and other crew property.
One of the unpleasant features of the Sd. Kfz.231 (6-Rad) armored vehicles, in addition to the low cross-country ability, was the absence of any radio equipment. Therefore, the idea of releasing radio versions of armored vehicles quickly arose. The idea to equip all produced vehicles with radio stations may have been considered (at least the space in the hull allowed for this), but in the end it was decided to create a separate modification for the unit commanders, which in 1935 received the designation schwere Panzerspahwagen (Fu) Sd. Kfz.232. Modification of a standard linear armored car to this version consisted of the following: the radio station Fu. Spr. Ger. "A" was located in the fighting compartment, and a very large loop antenna was created by the designers to ensure an acceptable communication range. From below, the antenna was attached to the aft armor plates, and from above directly to the tower, on a bracket with free rotation. Thanks to this decision, it was possible to preserve not only the standard armament of the armored car, but also the circular firing sector, however, the total height of the armored car with such an antenna grew to 2870 mm.
The last modification of this heavy three-axle armored car was another "command" version under the designation schwere Panzerfunkwagen Sd. Kfz.263. At the same time, the radio station Fu. Spr. Ger. "A" was not replaced with a new one - only the shape of the loop antenna changed, and instead of the turret, a fixed wheelhouse with one MG 13 or MG 34 machine gun was installed on the combat vehicle. and the wheelhouse of an armored vehicle. The total height of the armored car grew to 2930 mm, and the crew already consisted of 5 people. In total, until 1937, when the production of three-axle armored vehicles was completely stopped, 28 combat vehicles were assembled in Germany, which received the designation Panzerfunkwagen (Sd. Kfz.263) 6-Rad.
The Germans are examining the wrecked Sd. Kfz.231 (6-Rad) armored car from the 20th Panzer Division, photo: waralbum.ru
Despite the fact that, starting in 1937, the Wehrmacht began to receive the first all-wheel drive armored vehicles Sd. Kfz.231 (8-Rad), their three-axle "brothers" continued to serve in the army. The real battle test for these armored vehicles was the invasion of Poland, during this campaign Sd. Kfz 231 (6-Rad) were part of the 1st light division, and also served in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Panzer Divisions of the Wehrmacht. During the battles in Poland, armored vehicles Sd. Kfz 231 (6-Rad) were used mainly for reconnaissance, but even then it became obvious that, having very large dimensions and thin armor, they would not be able to withstand on equal terms not only light enemy tanks, but even modern rifle systems with armor-piercing bullets. At the same time, for the whole of September 1939, the Germans in Poland lost only about 12 armored vehicles, but the fate of the Sd. Kfz.231 (6-Rad) had already been decided.
Gradually, these outdated heavy armored vehicles were replaced in the army with the all-wheel drive Sd. Kfz.231 (8-Rad). At the same time, by the beginning of the invasion of France, the Wehrmacht still had several dozen Sd. Kfz.231 (6-Rad) armored vehicles, which were mainly concentrated in communications units. For example, by May 1940, these three-axle armored vehicles were part of the 5th reconnaissance battalion of the 2nd armored division, as well as the 37th reconnaissance battalion of the 7th armored division.
After the end of the fighting in France, most of the remaining Sd. Kfz.231 (6-Rad) were used only as training armored vehicles, while the "command" modifications continued to serve in the first line units. For example, in the second half of 1941, several three-axle armored vehicles were still in the 4th, 6th and 10th tank divisions. Since these armored vehicles performed specific functions and almost did not enter into direct clashes with the enemy, their career in the army turned out to be the longest. For example, at least one Sd. Kfz.263 (6-Rad) was in the 92nd communications battalion of the 6th Panzer Division, which was located near Sychevka in March 1942.
There is no reliable data on the fate of most of these combat vehicles, but it is known that before the surrender of Germany, none of them was in a combat-ready state. Subsequently, all heavy armored vehicles Sd. Kfz.231 / 232/263 (6-Rad) were scrapped.
The performance characteristics of the Magirus Sd. Kfz.231 (6-Rad):
Overall dimensions: body length - 5.57 m, width - 1.82 m, height - 2.25 m, ground clearance - 240 mm.
Combat weight - up to 6.0 tons.
Reservations - from 5 mm (turret roof) to 14, 5 mm (hull forehead).
The power plant is a liquid-cooled Magirus S88 gasoline engine with a volume of 4.5 liters and a power of 70 hp.
Fuel capacity - 110 liters.
The maximum speed is up to 65 km / h (on the highway).
Cruising range - 250 km (on the highway).
Armament - 20-mm automatic cannon 2 cm KwK 30 L / 55 and 1x7, 92-mm MG 34 machine gun.
Ammunition - 200 rounds for a cannon and 1500 rounds for a machine gun.
Wheel formula - 6x4.
Crew - 4 people.
