Gepanzerter Mannschaftstransportwagen 'Kätzchen'
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The ''Gepanzerter Mannschaftstransportwagen Kätzchen'' (''Gep. MTW Kätzchen'') (
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
for
kitten A kitten is a Juvenile (organism), juvenile cat. After being born, kittens display primary altriciality and are fully dependent on their mothers for #Establishing immunity, survival. They normally do not open their eyes for seven to ten days. A ...
) was a prototype German
armoured personnel carrier An armoured personnel carrier (APC) is a broad type of armoured military vehicle designed to transport personnel and equipment in combat zones. Since World War I, APCs have become a very common piece of military equipment around the world. Acc ...
of late
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 ...
.


Prototypes

Auto-Union Auto Union AG was an amalgamation of four German automobile manufacturers, founded in 1932 and established in 1936 in Chemnitz, Saxony. It is the immediate predecessor of Audi as it is known today. As well as acting as an umbrella firm for ...
delivered two prototypes during 1944–45. The hull's shape was similar to the hull of the ''Panzerkampfwagen''
Tiger II The Tiger II was a Nazi Germany, German heavy tank of the World War II, Second World War. The final official German designation was ''Panzerkampfwagen'' Tiger ''Ausf''. B, often shortened to Tiger B.Jentz and Doyle 1993, p. 16. The ordnance inve ...
, but much smaller. The vehicle had front wheel drive with five or six overlapping steel road wheels, possibly resembling the never-built E-25 "replacement tank"'s suspension system in appearance. Power was provided by a Maybach HL50 P engine. Auto-Union was ordered to stop work on their design and instead, BMM was given the task of adapting the
Hetzer The 38 (Sd.Kfz. 138/2), originally the 38(t), known mostly post-war as , was a German light tank destroyer of the Second World War based on a modified Czechoslovakian Panzer 38(t) chassis. German armoured forces in World War II created a v ...
tank destroyer chassis for the role. This was referred to as the ''Vollkettenaufklärer 38(t) Kätzchen''.


References


Bibliography

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Further reading

* Rolf Wirtgen (Hrsg.): ''Vom Auto-Union "Kätzchen" zum SP 15 und SP 12.1. Ein Beitrag zur Vor- und Frühgeschichte der Schützenpanzerentwicklungen in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland.'' (German) Bundesamt für Wehrtechnik und Beschaffung,
Wehrtechnische Studiensammlung The Bundeswehr Museum of German Defense Technology also known as ''Wehrtechnisches Museum Koblenz'' and ''Wehrtechnische Studiensammlung Koblenz'' (WTS-Koblenz) is the official Bundeswehr's Defense Technology Study Collection in Koblenz. It is o ...
, 2012. World War II armoured fighting vehicles of Germany Armoured personnel carriers of Germany Armoured personnel carriers of WWII Tracked armoured personnel carriers {{Germany-WWII-stub