The Krupp ''Protze'' (lit. '' limber'', officially ''L 2 H 43'' and ''L 2 H 143'') was a six-wheeled 6×4 German truck and

artillery tractor An artillery tractor, also referred to as a gun tractor, is a specialized heavy-duty form of tractor unit used to tow artillery pieces of varying weights and calibres. It may be wheeled, tracked, or half-tracked. Traction There are two m ...

produced between 1934 and 1941 and heavily used in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. It was powered by a 4-cylinder, 55 hp or, from 1936, 60 hp Krupp M 304 petrol engine. Its main purpose was to tow artillery, especially the 3.7 cm Pak 36 anti-tank gun (designated ''Kfz'' 69), and transport

motorized infantry Motorized infantry is infantry that is transported by trucks or other motor vehicles. It is distinguished from mechanized infantry, which is carried in armoured personnel carriers or infantry fighting vehicles, and from light infantry, which c ...

(designated ''Kfz'' 70). This vehicle was extensively used on the Eastern Front, during the

North African campaign The North African campaign of World War II took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943, fought between the Allies and the Axis Powers. It included campaigns in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts (Western Desert campaign, Desert Wa ...

and in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

. The "Krupp-Protze" was of relatively advanced design. Its fuel consumption was relatively high (24 Litres / 100 km on road) in comparison to the comparable Opel Blitz 1.5 t truck (16.5 liters / 100 km, produced 1938 - 1942). Total production was about 7,000 units.

Variants

A successful design, the Krupp-Protze was converted into several variants: ;Kfz.19 :Telephone truck ;Kfz.21 :

Staff car A staff car is a vehicle used by a senior military military officer, officer, and is part of their country's White fleet (UK military vehicles), white fleet. The term is most often used in relation to the United Kingdom where they were first us ...

;Kfz.68 :Radio mast carrier ;Kfz.69 :Standard configuration for towing the 3.7 cm Pak 36 anti-tank gun. Carried 2 in front with 4 in a pair of forward and rear facing seats. ;Kfz.70 :Standard configuration for personnel carrying. carried 2 in front with 10 seated in the rear on benches. ;Kfz.81 :Ammo carrier conversion for 2 cm FlaK anti-aircraft gun, usually towed ;Kfz.83 :Generator carrier for anti-aircraft

searchlight A searchlight (or spotlight) is an apparatus that combines an extremely luminosity, bright source (traditionally a carbon arc lamp) with a mirrored parabolic reflector to project a powerful beam of light of approximately parallel rays in a part ...

, usually towed ; Sd.Kfz. 247 Ausf. A :Krupp built ten Ausf. A models on the chassis of its six-wheel Krupp Protze truck in 1937. Sometimes anti-tank (37 mm Pak 36) and anti-air (2 cm Flak) guns were mounted directly on the truck bed ( Portée).

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{{Authority control World War II military vehicles of Germany Military trucks of Germany Military vehicles introduced in the 1930s Artillery tractors

Variants

See also

Notes

References

External links