German anti-tank gun 7.5 cm Pak 40 (7.5 cm Panzerabwehrkanone 40) from the Second World War. Work on this cannon was carried out in 1939-1941 by Krupp and Rheinmetall. A significant acceleration of research work took place after the start of Operation Barbarossa and the encounter by German armored units of the KW-1 and T-34 tanks. The Pak 40 cannon was introduced into line units from the end of 1941. Thanks to its high parameters, it became the main German anti-tank gun until the end of the war. It was able to engage in firefight with any Soviet and Allied tanks, until the appearance of such vehicles as the IS-2, M26 Pershing and Centurion. In the period 1941-1945, over 29,000 of these weapons were produced (including cannons installed on tank destroyers). Its main drawback was its relatively high weight, which required the use of an artillery tractor for its transport. Due to the wide range of ammunition it could fire, it was often used as a field cannon. Projectile weights ranged from 4.1 kg to 6.8 kg. Technical data: caliber: 75 mm, weight: 1425 kg, initial velocity: 930 m / s (sub-caliber shell), rate of fire: 14 rounds / min. After the war, the Pak 40 gun was used in the armies of, among others, Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Finland, Romania and Hungary.
Sd.Kfz 251 was a German, medium, half-track armored transport from the Second World War. The first prototypes of the vehicle were made in 1935, and serial production continued in 1939-1945, ending with the production of about 14,500 units. The Sd.Kfz 251 was powered by a six-cylinder engine Maybach HL 42 TURKM with 100 hp .
Sd.Kfz 251 was developed as a new, basic half-tracked transporter of the German armed forces. Its design was based on the Sd.Kfz.11 heavy tractor, with several elements changed in the adapted chassis: a new fuel tank was added, the location of the steering wheel, and the exhaust system was redesigned. In the course of serial production, four basic versions of the Sd.Kfz 251 (Ausf. A, B, C and D) were created, however, in terms of details related to the production process (especially the C version) and a slightly different arrangement of elements inside the fuselage. During World War II, more than 20 variants and versions of the Sd.Kfz 251 were created. The chronological first was the Sd.Kfz 251/1, which was the basic version, armed with two MG34 or MG42 machine guns and capable of carrying up to 10 landing troops. In 1941, a version of the Sd.Kfz 251/2 was developed, armed with an 80 mm mortar. There was also a version of the Sd.Kfz 251/3, which was a communication and radio communication vehicle with various sets of radio stations and antennas. In 1942, the Sd.Kfz 251/9 Stummel variant was developed, armed with a 75mm StuK 37 short-barrel gun. More interesting versions were the Sd.Kfz 251/16 with two flamethrowers or the Sd.Kfz 251/20 UHU equipped with an infrared radiation emitter and intended for targeting at night. Cars Sd.Kfz 251 of all versions served primarily in armored divisions and armored grenadiers on virtually all fronts of World War II: from the September campaign (1939), through the campaign in France (1940), fighting in the Balkans and North Africa (1941-1943) after fights on the Eastern (1941-1945) and Western (1944-1945) fronts.