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but to hit it and penetrate was a problem
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The Panther was not a super tank. It was not that difficult to hit and destroy as some authors will have you believe. First it was a much larger tank than the Sherman. In other words it was a larger target. While the frontal amour was between 80 and 100mm thick, it could be penetrated by the 17pdr gun as well as the 6pr gun with APDS ammunition at the usual combat ranges (800 to 1000m) found in the Normandy battles. The armour was only 45mm thick on the turret sides and 40mm on the hull sides. (Auf D and A, 50mm upper hull side on the Auf G). This could be penetrated by the Sherman’s 75mm gun at similar ranges. You can also add to this the shot trap formed by the Panthers mantle and the effects of spalling, as indicated by the comments of Herbert Walther.
The first encounter between a Panther and a Sherman occurred in Italy on the 24th of May 1944. A Sherman tank of the British Columbia Dragoons, commanded by Lt. Nigel Taylor, met a Panther near the Melfa River. His gunner Tpr. Cecil Shears fired two quick shots from their 75mm gun at a range of about 1000 yards and the Panther was finished.
In the Panthers first actions in Normandy on the 8th and 9th of June near Bretteville-l’Orgueilleuse and Norry-en Bessin, the Panther came off second best. The 12th SS Pz Regt Lost 12 Panthers destroyed, with another three or four damaged, but could only claim one Sherman destroyed.
In a three day period (20 July -22 July) Sherman tanks commanded by Maj. S.V. Radley-Walters destroyed 22 Panthers along the Verrieres Ridge. This is confirmed in the records of 1st SS Panzer Division “Leibstandarte” which had 46 Combat ready Panthers on the 17th of July. This dropped to 24 Combat Ready Panthers on the 22nd of July.
The Panther was at its best when it was in a defensive hull down position where it could pick off allied tanks at longer ranges. However, the Germans had an obsession with counter-attacks. They persistently sent their Panthers out onto the attack where combat occurred at shorter ranges, resulting in high losses.