Autumn Sadness

José Luis Lopez builds a Quarterscale tank hunter.

A relatively small but effective tank hunter, the Jagdpanzer 38(t) (later referred to as ‘Hetzer’) was the perfect example of a sound and well-balanced design. It was based on the modified chassis of the Panzer 38(t), a vehicle of Czech origin that had become an important addition to the Panzerwaffe arsenal during the first years of the Blitzkrieg. This light tank was soon found to be inadequate to deal with the new battleground threats, but it proved itself to be the perfect base on which to develop a tank hunter vehicle (amongst others). In order to reduce production costs (as compared with the Jagdpanther and Jagdtiger designs), the new vehicle was built on a widened and lengthened 38(t) chassis, with modified suspension, larger road-wheels, a more powerful engine, and (due to increased weight and sloped armour) wider tracks. The main armament was the 75mm PaK L/88, at the time capable of dealing with most Allied tanks at close range. Assigned to infantry divisions, it was very useful in the ambush role. However, a combination of thin side-armour and limited traverse to the main gun gave the Hetzer a distinct disadvantage. Its remotely controlled machine gun was very popular with the crews, though re-loading the weapon required the crew member to expose himself to enemy fire.

The Jagdpanzer 38(t) entered service with the Heeres Panzerjäger-Abteilung 731 in July 1944. This unit was deployed to Army Group North on the Eastern Front. Later versions of the vehicle saw action in Italy, France, the Ardennes, and various fronts until Germany’s defeat in 1945.

Due to the large number produced (over 2,800 in total), the Jagdpanzer 38 is arguably the most abundant World War 2 German tank destroyer remaining today (though many of these are actually post-war Swiss G-13 variants). In addition to numerous museum examples, several are in private collections around the world.