Tankopedia
WW2Tank DestroyerGermany

Marder III (Sd.Kfz. 138/139)

In service 1942 - 1945

The Panzer 38(t) turned into a gun carrier, first with captured Soviet guns, then with the PaK 40.

Built byBMM (formerly CKD), Prague

Photograph pending. No clearly licensed photograph of this vehicle was found.

Development history

The Marder III came in three main forms: the Sd.Kfz. 139 with a rebored Soviet 76.2 mm gun, the Ausf. H with the PaK 40 mounted centrally, and the Ausf. M with the engine moved forward and the gun at the rear - a far better layout that led directly to the Hetzer. Produced in Prague in large numbers, Marder IIIs equipped anti-tank battalions from 1942 onwards and were among the most numerous German self-propelled anti-tank weapons of the war.

Variants

One canonical record, 3 recorded variants.

  1. Sd.Kfz. 139

    1942

    Captured 76.2 mm PaK 36(r), tall central mount

  2. Ausf. H (Sd.Kfz. 138)

    1942

    75 mm PaK 40/3 mounted centrally

  3. Ausf. M (Sd.Kfz. 138)

    1943

    Engine moved forward, gun at rear, lower profile

Notable actions

  • Eastern Front 1942-45
  • North African Campaign
  • Italian Campaign