PzIII Battle Damage

"SECRET

Appendix "A" to AFV Technical Report No.11 

Dated December '42

The following abbreviations have been used in the section dealing with Pz.Kw.III:

• sa: Spaced armour
• dfp: Driver's front plate
• man: mantlet
• nf: prepared but not fitted

Thus sa(nf)man means that the mantlet was prepared for spaced armour, but it was not actually fitted.

...

Type	Comments
Short gun sadfp only	Tracks and sandbags used for extra protection, lengths of track across the nose plate and on top of turret. One strike (6-pdr or 75 mm) on left edge gun mantlet has caused general break up of armour which shows greater tendency to crack than when attacked previously by 2-pdr. The weld on the recuperator shield has broken completely where shield attached to mantlet. A heavy attack on the RH end of the mantlet has caused complete break up of the mantlet and a large piece of the mantlet had fallen into the tank. The nose plate has been penetrated on the LH end.
Short gun and no spaced armour	Tracks on the turret and nose. 1 M72 75 mm round found broken up having hit nose plate and failed to make any impression.
Short gun sadfp & sa man	2 75 mm penetrations side plate at approx 45 degrees. Tendency for plate to flake. Plate appears to be brittle. 1 75 mm penetration side low beside driver, plate flaked and cracked.
Long gun sadfp & sa(nf)man. No side doors in hull	This was a very new tank with no apparent battle damage.
Long gun sadfp sa(nf)man	A large projectile (?) 88 mm has passed through OS just below side escape door and failed. Plate shows lamination. Projectile has emerged through NS side plat which has flaked badly on outside and cracked. The space between the spaced armour and dfp was filled with track pins.
Long gun No spaced armour	1 6-pdr penetration above driver’s visor. Plate has failed poorly, the hole being square. Several 75 mm penetrations through tail plate.
Long gun No spaced armour	1 75 mm penetration lower nose plate 1 75 mm penetration above driver’s visor
Long gun sadfp & sa(nf)man	Demolished
Long gun sadfp & sa(nf)man	2 penetrations at approximately 35 degrees through driver’s spaced armour, but not through main plate. 1 penetration side turret. 1 penetration side fighting chamber. This tank was “dug in”.
Short gun No spaced armour	Graze on top edge of nose plate. Weld has cracked along centre for entire length.
Long gun sadfp sa man complete	Demolished
Long gun No spaced armour	1 75 mm penetration nose plate 1 75 mm failed to penetrate nose plate
Short gun sadfp sa man	Both tracks missing. No other battle damage.