Panther II tank

Development and production

The early motivation for improving the Panther tank came from the concern of Adolf Hitler and others who believed that it lacked sufficient armour. Hitler had already insisted on an increase in its armour once, early in the design of the original Panther in 1942. Discussions involving Hitler in January 1943 called for further increased armour; initially referred to as Panther 2, it became the Panther II after April 1943.

There would have been the usual tank crew consisting of 5 crew members: the driver, commander, gunner, loader and radio operator.

Following the decision not to go ahead with starting production of it, the concepts and ideas were then utilised for the design of the E-50 Standardpanzer project.

Armour

This upgrade to the Panther tank increased the thickness of the glacis plate to 100 mm (3.9 in), the side hull armour to 60 mm (2.4 in), and the armour on the top hull to 30 mm (1.2 in). Production of the Panther II was slated to begin in September 1943.

Much of the Panther II's design was taken from the Tiger tank. On 10 February 1943, Dr. Wiebecke (chief design engineer for M.A.N.) suggested thoroughly redesigning the Panther II and incorporating Tiger components such as the steering gear, final drives, the suspension system and turret based on Eastern Front experiences. The total weight would have increased to more than 50 tonnes. Another meeting on 17 February 1943 focused on sharing and standardising parts between the Tiger II and the Panther II, such as the transmission, all-steel 80 centimetre diameter road-wheels (only overlapping and not interleaved as the original 'Schachtellaufwerk' road-wheel design used) and running gear.

Drawings from 1943 also showed the addition of a machine gun port for the turret, with a narrow gun mantlet. Additional meetings in February 1943 began to outline the various components, including a suggestion to use the Tiger tank's 8.8 cm KwK 36 gun, or the 8.8 cm KwK 43 L/71 gun from the Tiger II. However, it was ultimately decided to continue use of the production Panther's 7.5 cm KwK 42 L/70 gun. In March 1943, MAN indicated that the first prototype would be completed by August 1943.

Turret

The Panther II was to be fitted with a new turret, the Schmalturm turret. This turret had a stereoscopic rangefinder with lenses on either side of the turret, located in spherical bulges. The turret design maximised protection by minimising the frontal surface.

Engine

A number of engines were under consideration, among them the new Maybach HL 234 fuel-injected engine (900 hp operated by an 8-speed hydraulic transmission) and the BMW 003 aviation turbojet-derived, GT 101 turboshaft powerplant, planned to be of 1,150 shaft horsepower output and weighing only 450 kg (992 lb) without its transmission, only 38% of the weight of the Panther's standard Maybach HL230 V-12 gasoline fueled piston engine. The engine would have given the Panther II an increased 200 hp, which would have made it faster than its predecessor, though it was heavier.

Thus, plans to replace the original Panther design with the Panther II were already underway before the first Panther had even seen combat. But from May to June 1943 a final meeting was held at M.A.N where it was decided that production of the Panther II would cease, and work would focus on the Panther I. It is not clear if there was ever an official cancellation – this may have been because the Panther II upgrade pathway was originally started at Hitler's insistence.

Tank turrets in fortifications

Two Panther II turrets were to be installed in fortifications in Laibach and Görz but were damaged en route on the train and were not installed.

Surviving vehicles

One prototype hull was completed and captured by US forces. It was taken to Aberdeen Proving Ground, and then later moved to the Patton museum.