The Turán tank family
Hungarian 40M Turán I
Hungary tried to develop it's own medium tank in the interwar period, but the Straussler V-4 was a dead end. Hungary's only option was to buy the licence of a foreign developed tank. The Ministry of Defence had two medium tank to chose from at that time; the Swedish Landsverk Lago (pre-production prototype of the Stridsvagn m/42) and the Italian Fiat-Ansaldo M13/40. The decision was drawn more and more towards the Italian medium tank when suddenly a new choice appeared in 1939. In October, 1939 the Czechslovakian Škoda factory's technicality gave a list to the Institute of Military Technology of the Hungarian Army (HTI) containing those vehicles which were allowed by Germany to be sold. The Š-II-b (LT vz. 35) was on the list as well as it's improved prototype the Š-II-c. Hungary already had battle experiences with LT vz. 35 tanks when it occupied Carpatho-Ukraine in 1938 and in the Slovak-Hungarian War in March, 1939. During those events Hungary captured 2 LT vz. 35 tanks and tested them after reparations. Based on the tests the Š-II-c caught the attention of the military experts. A Hungarian delegation was sent to Plzeň in 1940 and decided to buy the licence and the prototype of the vehicle on 26 May, 1940 after a series of tests. The prototype arrived to Hungary in the same year ad further test were started. The engineers decided to replace the original 47mm gun to a Hungarian produced 40mm gun for both economical and military reasons. Military experts stated that the armor penetraton of the 47mm gun was not better than the homemade 40mm's because the later one had a much higher muzzle velocity. The modifications of the tank gun were carried out by the Škoda factory - they used the original Czech gun cradle and placed a Hungarian made barrel in it. The frontal armor was thickenned too, the engineers riveted a 20mm armor plate onto the original 30mm thick frontal armor making it 50mm thick. Only the turret had 50mm thick armor which was cast from one armor plate. An azimuth indicator assembly was inserted which was a first too. Right under the commander's frontal periscope there was a circle shaped dial with an arrow and degree marks. This was in contact with a clock looking instrument in front of the gunner which was placed next to the turret's traverse control. The commander slewed the arrow on his azimuth indicator to the desired position. At the same time an arrow slewed on the gunner's instrument and he started to rotate the turret untill the bottom pointer did not covered the commander's. The construction of the vehicle started really slowly because both the Hungarian factories and Škoda made further modification on the blueprints which made the developing progress really hard to carry out. The vehicle went into service on November 28, 1940 as 40.M Turán (a.k.a. Turán I or Turán 40) but the first vehicle left the factories on July 8, 1941. All in all 40 different modifications were done. This vehicle was sent to further tests and some other problems were found which needed immediate corrections. Because of this the first 4 vehicles got to the troops in June 1942 but those still functioned as training vehicles untill further Turáns arrived. By the time the 40.M Turán got to the battlefields it already became obsolote both in armor and armament.
-However it still had excellent off-road capabilities not to mention that it had a steering-gear which made turning in one place possible as opposed to the Toldi light tanks. The other positive feature of the Turán was that it could fully stop on a 45° climb without sliding back thanks to the restrainable frontal idler and rear driving sprockets. -The 40mm gun was still powerful enough to penetrate the side armor of the Soviet medium tanks or even the frontal armor from close distances, that's why Hungarian Turán tankers often fought with T-34s in close quarters. A total number of 289 40.M Turáns were made which makes this vehicle Hungary's greatest number produced tank.
-For the first time in tthe history of Hungarian tank production 5 smoke grenade launchers were attached to the rear of the vehicle - the bottom of the bins opened by bushing a button inside the fighting compartment and the smoke grenades simply falled to the ground making a 20x40x80m smoke wall.
Armor:
HULL
armour thickness and slope:
middle front: 13mm at 15°
front: 50mm at 72°
lower front: 50mm at 60° and 40°
upper sides: 25mm at 80°
lower sides: 25mm at 90°
rear: 25mm at 90° and 45°
roof: 13mm at 5° and 25mm at 18° (25mm above the ventilation and transmission)
TURRET:
armour thickness and slope: gun mantlet: 25mm
front: 50mm at 80°
sides: 25mm at 80°
rear: 25mm at 90°
roof: 13mm
rotation: ? degrees per second (electic drive)
COMMANDER CUPOLA:
armour thickness and slope:
front: 25mm at 80°
sides: 25mm at 80°
rear: 25mm at 80°
roof: 13mm
Armament:
40 mm 41.M tank gun: main gun of the Hungarian 40.M Turán tank.
The gun was a Hungarian 40 mm L/51 caliber barrel which was fixed on the gun cradle of a Czech 3,7cm ÚV vz. 38. The tank gun fired the same shells as the 40.M AT gun and the 36.M AA autocannon but the 42.M fin-stabilized shell was not used by the Turán I.
The breech of the tank gun was still opened by the crew, it was not semi-automatic at the beginning but later in the war it might have re-modelled just like the 40.M anti-tank gun.
Ammo capacity: 101 rounds
Gun depression, elevation: -10°, +30°
Crew: 5
Penetration:
36.M APHEBC-T (850 m/s)
100 m - 55 mm - 60°
500 m - 45 mm - 60°
1000 m - 35 mm - 60°
1500 m - 27 mm - 60°
2000 m - 21 mm - 60°
43.M APBC-T (850 m/s)
100 m - 63 mm - 60°
500 m - 52 mm - 60°
1000 m - 40 mm - 60°
1500 m - 31 mm - 60°
2000 m - 24 mm - 60°
Two 34/40M Gebauer machine guns
100-round belts
3000 rounds in total
Optic of the 40 mm 41.M tank gun and 8mm gauber Turret mg
Optic of the hull mg
41M Turán II
The battle experiences of 1941 made Hungary realize that the 40.M Turán which was still under development and construction would not meet the expectations of modern medium tanks. While the Turán I was still under modifications the General Staff of the Hungarian Army changed the second order of 309 medium tanks to 87 medium and 222 heavy tanks armed with a 75mm gun which was later changed to 55 medium and 254 heavy tanks in 1941. The General Staff also declared that the new heavy tank must be made out from the already produced Turáns without the modifications of the engine and the weight of the new tank must be equal or close to the heavy tank. The prototype of the heavy tank and the new 75mm gun was ordered from the Institute of Military Technology of the Hungarian Army (HTI) in 1941. The problem was that the HTI didn't had any gun designer and production departments so they had to choose from an already existing gun and try to modify it. The engineers chose the 18.M field artillery gun - 8 cm Feldkanone M.18 - which remained in service since WW1. The HTI ordered the modifications of the gun from the Swedish Bofors company which willingly accepted. Both the modifications of the chassis - armor thickening to 50mm by riveting 20mm extra armor plates on the frontal armor and lower glacis, changing the driver's hatch from a single door which opened to the right to a two-piece folding door which opened to the front - and the prototype of the new gun and turret were finished in January 1942, the new turret was finished in February 1942. The new 75mm gun was the first Hungarian tank gun which recieved a horizontal semi-automatic sliding block. During the installation the gun cradle cracked and needed to be fixed which delayed the production of the vehicle even further. On May 6, 1942 all the preparations were done for ground testing, the gun cradle was repaired. The test were successful and the new heavy tank was put into service as the 41.M Turán
Armor: (the hull armor of the turán I and II is the same,only the turret differs)
HULL
armour thickness and slope:
middle front: 13mm at 15°
front: 50mm at 72°
lower front: 50mm at 60° and 40°
upper sides: 25mm at 80°
lower sides: 25mm at 90°
rear: 25mm at 90° and 45°
roof: 13mm at 5° and 25mm at 18° (25mm above the ventilation and transmission)
TURRET:
armour thickness and slope: gun mantlet: 50mm
front: 50mm at 80°
sides: 25mm at 80°
rear: 25mm at 90°
roof: 13mm
rotation: ? degrees per second (electic drive)
COMMANDER CUPOLA:
armour thickness and slope:
front: 25mm at 22°
sides: 25mm at 80°
rear: 25mm at 80°
roof: 13mm
Armament:
75 mm 41.M tank gun:
The main gun of the Hungarian 41.M Turán tank. The tank gun was converted from the 18.M field gun by the Swedish Bofors. The 41.M was the first Hungarian tank gun which had a horizontal semi-automatic sliding block.
75 mm 41M tank cannon
Two 34/40M Gebauer machine guns
41 M. 75mm L/25 tank gun
muzzle velocity: 450 m/s
muzzle energy: 83,15 mt
range: 6300-8400 m
theoretic rate of fire: 12 shots/min
recoil: 450-500 mm
ammo: 52 rounds;
vertical gun depression, elevation: -10°, +30°
Ammo types
42/36.M páncélgránát (APHEBC-T),
42/38.M repeszgránát (HE)
42.M páncélrobbantó gránát (HEAT-T)
42/36.M páncélgránát (APHEBC-T)
100 m /60°/56 mm
500 m /60°/51 mm
1000 m /60°/45 mm
42.M páncélrobbantó gránát (HEAT-T)
regardless of distance HEAT-T: 90mm /in 60°
Two 34/40M Gebauer machine gun
type: 2x 34/40.M Gebauer MG
caliber: 8x56mmR
max ammo: 3000 rounds in 100-round belts
Main Gun Optic:
Hull MG Optic:
43M Turán III
At the beginning of 1943 Hungary already realized that even the new 75mm gun of the Turán II would not be enough against the more modern enemy vehicles and even the armor of the tank was too weak. Because of that the General Staff ordered the modifications of the Turán's chassis and armament in February, 1943. In the same year Hungary was finally able to buy the licence of the German 7.5cm PaK 40 AT gun. The Institute of Military Technology of the Hungarian Army (HTI) and DIMÁVAG factory did the necessary modifications to convert it to a tank gun but because of the lack of materials only 2 tank guns of such were finished in December, 1943. During the gun's production the engineers found out that it wouldn't fit neither in the Turán I's or Turán II's turret so a completly new turret must be made. The mock-up turret made of wood was done on September 13, 1943. In the mean time the prototype's chassis' - a Turán II chassis - armor was thickened with extra armor plates riveted on the original ones. Not only the frontal armor but the sides and rear was thickened too. The Turán III's prototype with an actual turret was finished in February, 1944. Ulike the frontal armor of the superstructure which was thickened by riveting two armor plates together the 75mm thick armor plate of the turret was made of only one. Ground and shooting test were done after it and the prototype was accepted for mass-production. However no more 43.M Turáns (a.k.a. Turán III or Turán 75 long) were constructed because the lack of materials and the fact that after the Occupation of Hungary in March, 1944 Germany not allowed further tank and gun productions only at a spare part manufacturing level. It is not known if the prototype fought in any battles because no datas were found to prove or disprove it. The fate of the Turán III is unknown, it disappeared after the battles.
* In international terms the Turán III is considered as medium tank but in Hungary the standard caliber was 40mm so anything bigger than that was categorised as a heavy tank
Crew: 5
Armor:
Shürzen armor of the Turán tanks is 8mm thick, on the Zrínyi tanks its 5mm
HULL
armour thickness and slope:
upper front: 13mm at 15°
front: 75mm at 72°
lower front: 75mm at 60° and 50mm at 40°
upper sides: 35mm at 80°
lower sides: 35mm at 90°
rear: 35mm at 90° and 45°
roof: 13mm at 5° and 35mm at 18° (35mm above the ventilation and transmission)
TURRET:
armour thickness and slope: gun mantlet: 75mm at 80°
front: 75mm at 80°
sides: 35mm at 80°
rear: 55mm at 80°
roof: 13mm and 35mm (35mm is the frontal sloped roof armor plate, slope is 16°)
bottom: 13mm at 20°
rotation: ? degrees per second (electic drive)
COMMANDER CUPOLA:
armour thickness and slope:
front: 60mm at 75° (3 plates)
sides: 35mm at 75° (2-2 plates)
rear: 55mm at 75° (1 plate)
roof: 13mm
SIDE SKIRTS (CHASSIS/TURRET):
dimensions: ?
numbers: 4 per side/5
lashing points: 4 per plate
thickness: 8mm
distance from armor: 580-600mm/250mm
Armament:
75 mm 43.M gun L/43 tank cannon
Ammo capacity: 32
barrel lenght: 4125 mm
two 8 mm 30/40M machine guns(Gebauer MG used 100-round belts )
Ammo types:
43.M páncélgránát (APHEBC-T),
42/38.M repeszgránát (HE),
42.M páncélrobbantó gránát (HEAT-T),
40.M különleges német páncélgránát (APCR-T, German Pz.Gr.40)
Gun depression, elevation: -10° +30°
Ammo:
- 7,5cm 43 M. páncélgránát (APHEBC-T),Hungarian counterpart of the German Pzgr. 39; weight: 6,8 kg/muzzle velocity :770 m/s - 7,5cm 43 M. páncélrobbantógránát (HEAT), Hungarian counterpart of the German Gr. 38 H1/C; 5 kg, muzzle velocity: 770m/s - 7,5cm 40 (40W) M. különleges német páncélgránát (=”special German armour-piercing grenade”) (APCR); 4,1 kg, 970m/s, tungsten core - 7,5cm 43 M. repeszgránát (HE), Hungarian counterpart of the German Gr. 34; 5,74 kg, 770m/s
penetration with APHEBC-T at 60°: 85mm/100m, 80mm/300m, 76mm/500m, 66mm/1000m
penetration with APHEBC-T at 90°: 113mm/100m, 106mm/300m, 101mm/500m, 88mm/1000m
penetration with HEAT at 60° :90mm any distance up to 1200m
penetration with APCR,at 30° from vertical (~143mm/100m,~120mm/500m,~97mm/1000m,~77mm/1500m
* According to archive Hungarian documents the Hungarian 75 mm 43.M L/43 tank gun had the very same armor penetration as the German 7.5 cm KwK 40 L/43. The problem is that the majority of sources differs about the German gun's penetration data, some say more some say less. If we take the archive Hungarian documents into consideration then the Hungarian 75 mm 43.M L/43 tank gun should have the same armor penetration as the German 7.5 cm KwK 40 L/43.
Two 34/40M Gebauer machine gun
type: 2x 34/40.M Gebauer MG
caliber: 8x56mmR
max ammo: 3000 rounds in 100-round belts
Main Gun Optic
Hull machinegun Optic:
