Panther vs T-34: Ukraine 1943 (Duel)
by Robert Forczyk
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Book Summary Information
Author: Robert ForczykBrand: Osprey Publishing Limited
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2007-10-23
ISBN: 1846031494
Number of pages: 80
Publisher: Osprey Publishing
Book Reviews of Panther vs T-34: Ukraine 1943 (Duel)
Book Review: Duel in the Steppes
Summary: 5 Stars
"Panther vs T-34: Ukraine 1943 (Duel)", by Robert Forczyk, is a book in the Osprey Duel format that compares the German Panther tank to the Soviet T-34 tank in 1943. The duel format is typically 80 pages long, and presents an analysis of the factors ... human, mechanical, and tactical ... of the two weapons systems being compared, describes how the weapons were developed and utilized, and includes drawings, photographs, and illustrations. Mr Forczyk does an outstanding job of setting the stage and presenting relevant data, anecdotes, and analysis of the tanks within a limited page count. I own a few books on the Panther tank and on Soviet tank development, and he summarizes in just a few pages what the other books took chapters to do, and provides interesting and well developed analysis and conclusions.
Mr Forczyk states that the T-34 was the superior tank in 1943, basically because it was an outstanding design that had been refined over the course of several years and available in great quantities, while the Panther, particularly in 1943, was rushed into production and had several key weaknesses, the most serious of which was its extreme mechanical unreliability. I have no argument with the author's conclusions; given the situation Germany faced in 1943, there probably was no correct answer available to the Germans that would have enabled them to "win" the duel.
As a long-winded aside to the above, the author criticizes the Germans for expending scare resources for an expensive and unproven tank like the Panther. The Panzer IV, by mid-late 1942, was upgraded and refined to the point that it was a rough match for the T-34. However, it was rapidly nearing the end of its capability to be further improved. With regards to armored forces, then, the Germans had only a few choices. They could either greatly increase the number of Panzer IV's and tank destroyers based on existing platforms, or they could attempt to produce smaller numbers of more technologically advanced tanks and tank destroyers, and try to win through having a superior weapon system. The Americans took the former approach with its Sherman tank ... although the much better Pershing was waiting in the wings, it was decided that the Sherman was "good enough" to get the job done, and rather than disrupt existing production lines, the Pershing was delayed. If the Germans had managed to somehow double the number of Panzer IV's produced in the early months of 1943 rather than producing Panthers, it is still doubtful that this would have allowed the Germans to hold on much longer in the Ukraine, and would have left them much worse off with regards to armored battles in 1944 when more effective Soviet tanks began arriving in quantity. But neither was producing the initially unreliable Panther an effective answer either ... history bears this out.
To have any hope of finishing the war with a stalemate ... the best the outcome Germans could hope for by 1943 ... they would have had to first stop the Russians, and it is unlikely that any combination of weapons that they had the industrial capacity to produce in 1943 could have done this. Producing more Panzer IV's in 1943 rather than the Panther would probably have been more effective in the short run, albeit at the cost of putting even more stress on the German's fuel situation (abysmal) and hurting their efforts for 1944 and beyond. The bottom line is that the Americans and Soviets, through virtue of their superior production capabilities, could live with a tank arguably inferior to the Panther on an individual basis, and still win through attrition, if need be.
I highly recommend this book.
Summary of Panther vs T-34: Ukraine 1943 (Duel)
Robert A. Forczyk provides a riveting and intense description of the design and development of these two deadly opponents, the Panther and the T-34, analyzing their strengths and weaknesses and describing their tactics, weaponry and training. Moreover he gives an insight into the lives of the tank crews themselves, who were caught up in the largest land conflict of World War II, in some of the most important engagements in the history of warfare.Innovative digital artwork and first-person perspectives place the reader in the midst of a duel between the titans of the Soviet and German armed forces in a ruthless and relentless death match that would determine the war on the Eastern Front and, indeed, the fate of Nazi Germany.
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