Sturmgeschütz III (StuG III)

Germany 1940-1945 (Please be patient! 375 MB download!)

     

The Stug III did not start out as a Tank Destroyer. It was initially armed with a short barreled infantry support gun in order to serve as an assault gun. Its job was to move up with the infantry and help them deal with anything slowing them down. However, as the war dragged on and the Nazis found themselves more and more on the defensive, the Stug III mounted a new gun, a modified version of the PaK 40, and it started to be used more as a Tank Destroyer. It served quite well in this roll and has one of the highest numbers of enemy tanks destroyed. Overall it was a very good design.

Something to note is the plates covering the sides of the tracks. They aren’t very thick, but they serve a very important purpose to the vehicles they equip. It is spaced armor to stop Soviet 14.5mm AT rifle rounds. The plate destabilizes the round which prevents it from penetrating the armor behind.