Here’s a great snap taken during the Battle of Kursk in July, 1943. It’s is a Panzer Mk III, the original German MBT
(‘medium’) with the long-barrelled 5cm gun. By the time of Kursk this model was obsolete and no match for the Russian T-34.
Note the column of smoke rising in the background.
The markings and the tall radio antenna suggest this was a commo tank used for relaying radio messages between HQ and the front.
And what a picture of the crew, frozen in time! I’ve been studying this for a while, and here’s what I’ve deduced:
Left to right:
1) Driver—He’s the one with the greasy coveralls.
2) Radio operator—Typically the crew dogsbody/gofer when not operating radio or bow MG.
3) He’s the Commander—He’s the oldest and most experienced. He’s smiling, but he looks like he’s got the weight
of the world on his shoulders.
4) Gunner—He’s the one stuck way down inside the turret when the shooting starts, and he needs to be a good one if they
are to survive. He and the driver have been with the commander since ‘39 and have seen most of Europe through their
vision blocks.
5) Loader—Responsible for care and feeding of the main gun and the coax mg. Also the radioman’s assistant when the
crap jobs are handed out. These two guys are the youngest-- no doubt replacements for two erstwhile members who
became casualties. Every member of the crew will learn everyone else’s job; ‘promotions’ usually occurred when other
members were killed or wounded.
I located a German historian whose specialty is researching old pics and documents. He would be able to give me a lot more
information about what’s contained in this pic—the unit these men were in and maybe a bit about who they were and what
became of them, but it would cost me more money than I’m prepared to spend in order to find out.
