Panzer VII Löwe

Panzerkampfwagen VII *Löwe* (VK 70.01/72.01(K))
Panzerkampfwagen VII Löwe (VK 70.01/72.01(K))
Type	Super-heavy tank
Place of origin	Germany
Service history
Wars	World War II
Production history
Designer	Krupp
Designed	1 November 1941–20 July 1942
Specifications
Mass	70 t (69 long tons; 77 short tons) (specified); 76–90 t (75–89 long tons; 84–99 short tons) (as designed);
Crew	5 (driver, commander, gunner, loader, radio operator)
Armor	Frontal:; 140 mm (5.5 in) (specified); 100–140 mm (3.9–5.5 in) (as designed); Side:; 100 mm (3.9 in) (specified); 80 or 100 mm (3.1 or 3.9 in) (as designed); Turret front: 100 or 140 mm (3.9 or 5.5 in); Turret top: 40 mm (1.6 in); Hull deck: 40 mm;
Main; armament	10.5 cm (4.1 in) L/70 gun or,; 15 cm (5.9 in) L/38 gun or,; 8.8 cm (3.5 in) L/71 gun;
Secondary; armament	1 × coaxial machine gun
Engine	Daimler-Benz DB 602 (proposed); Maybach HL230 (as designed); * 1,000 hp (750 kW) (DB engine); 800 hp (600 kW) (Maybach engine);
Maximum speed	27–35 km/h (17–22 mph)

The Panzerkampfwagen VII Löwe (Lion) was a design for a super-heavy tank created by Krupp for the German government during World War II. The project, initially code-named VK 70.01 (K), never left the drawing board, and was dropped on 5–6 March 1942, in favor of Porsche's heavier Panzer VIII Maus.^[1]^[2]

Variants

The Löwe was designed in two variants, unofficially designated Leichter Löwe (light lion) and Schwerer Löwe (heavy lion), both with a crew of five:^[1]

Leichter Löwe/VK 70.01 (K): It was to weigh 76 t (75 long tons; 84 short tons), with 100 mm (3.9 in) of frontal armor, a rear-mounted turret, a 10.5 cm (4.1 in) L/70 high velocity gun, and a coaxial machine gun, with a top speed of 27 km/h (17 mph). It was later cancelled by Adolf Hitler.^[1]
Schwerer Löwe/VK 72.01(K): It was to weigh 90 t (89 long tons; 99 short tons), with 120 mm (4.7 in) frontal armor, a center-mounted turret, a 10.5 cm L/70 high velocity gun, and a coaxial machine gun, but only managing a top speed of 23 km/h (14 mph). After redesign it had 140 mm (5.5 in) frontal armor, 8.8 cm (3.5 in) L/71 gun, and a top speed increased to 35 km/h (22 mph).^[1]^[2]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Achtung Panzer (1996)
^ ^a ^b B. 2015.

Sources

"Panzerkampfwagen VII Löwe (Lion)". Achtung Panzer. 1996. Archived from the original on 14 August 2014. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
B., David (11 February 2015). "Panzerkampfwagen VII Löwe (VK 70.01) Heavy tank – Paper project (1942)". Retrieved 23 July 2017.

[AP-1] Achtung Panzer (1996)

[FOOTNOTEB.2015-2] B. 2015.

[1]

[2]

Panzer VII Löwe

Variants

See also

Tanks of comparable role, performance and era

References

Sources