12-2017 SAMOCHÓD PANCERNY WZ.34 I CZOŁG 7TP

Polish light tank from the beginning of World War II. The 7TP tank, along with the tankettes (e.g. TKS), was the basic element of the Polish armored forces in 1939. 7 TP was designed at Państwowe Zakłady Inżynierii in Ursus, where it was also produced since 1935. The tank is a development of the British Vickers E, the license of which was acquired by Poland in the early 1930s. The first 24 examples of the 7TP were twin-turret vehicles, the next serial ones (built from 1937) already had one turret, and the main armament was the anti-tank gun. 37mm by Bofors. The 7TP tank was a technically advanced design for its time. It was one of the first in the world to have a diesel engine, a reversible periscope, and in some copies also radio stations (RKBc 2N / C) with a range of up to 25 km. During the September campaign, around 130 tanks of this type of all variants were used. The 7TP proved itself on the battlefields of September 1939 as an opponent towering over the German Pz.Kpfw I and II, and at least equal to the Pz.Kpfw III and IV. Technical data: weight 9.4-9.9t, engine power: 110HP, speed: 37km / h, armament (single turret version): 1 Bofors 37mm cannon, 1 machine gun wz. 30 cal. 7.92mm.Ursus wz.34 is a Polish armored car from the interwar period and World War II. The first prototypes of the vehicle were created in 1934, and serial production continued in the period 1934-1938, ending with the production of about 90 vehicles. Ursus wz.34 was powered by an engine in the basic version Citroen B-14 with a power of 14 HP. The vehicle was armed with either a 37mm Puteaux SA1918 cannon or 1 7.92mm Hotchkiss wz.25 machinegun. In the mid-1920s, it was decided to introduce a new armored car into service in the Polish Army, which at the same time would replace the structures used since Poland regained independence. After long talks with domestic and foreign contractors, the armored car wz.28 was put into service, but it turned out to be a highly unsuccessful design. Hence, it was quickly decided on their far-reaching modernization, which led to the creation of a completely new car - precisely Ursus wz.34. Compared to the original, it had a significantly improved top speed, better suspension and a wheeled chassis instead of a half-track. During this modernization, some mechanical elements from the Fiat 621 truck were used. Two versions of the car were made during the modernization and production. The first was designated wz.34-I and used an engine Polish Fiat 108 with 23 HP. The second variant (wz.34-II) was powered by a Polish Fiat 108-III engine with a power of 25 HP, it also had a much more efficient electrical installation. Armored cars Ursus wz.34 were used in the September campaign in the Cavalry Brigades of the Polish army.