What is VK 30 01 H?
Even though we take this VK 30 01 H as a medium tank, initially it began as a heavy truck. And later with its 1.9 updates, it became a medium tank.
Origin
The beginning of this exclusive tank was marked on the calendar on the 9th of September, 1939. And it originated in Germany. This tank was specifically designed for world war ll.
Manufacturers
The design and the manufacturing were done by the famous company called, Henschel.
Development
The company designed this tank for four full years. They designed it from 1937 to 1941. And it took two years to produce. From 1940 to 1942. So, the whole development process took six entire years. And only two prototypes were developed at the end of 1942, in September. And another two tanks were built in October, of the same year.
Evolution
The engineers of the manufacturing company used the elements from a previous project to build this VK 30.01 H. that project was called the D.W. II project.
What happened after the tank got approval?
After the prototypes completed the trial and show that they are a success, they decided to develop this VK 30.01 H into heavy tank destroyers. Then they built six of these giants and sent them to the Atlantic wall. And these latest six were built by a company called the Krupp.
Built
Let us take a look at the build of the tank, VK 30 01 H.
Weaponry
The weaponry of the VK 30.01 H is quite awesome. Let us take a look at it.
| Ammo capacity | 100 pcs |
| Armor penetration | 43 / 87 / 38 mm |
| Damage per minute | 1 692 HP / min |
| Dispersion at 100 m | 0.55 m |
| Damage | 110 / 110 / 175 HP |
| Rate of fire | 15.38 rounds/min |
| Aiming time | 2.30 s |
So, it is clear that the weaponry of this beast was in good measure.
Spotting
When we take the spotting of the VK 30 01 H it is also located in a good range. If we take the view range, it was about 350 m to 400 m. And when we take the signal range it was about 210 m – 330 m. those are some good ranges.
Crew
The crew of VK 30 01 Has consisted of five members. They were the commander, the gunner, the driver, the radio operator, and the loader. And it is said that their positions in the tank were quite comfortable compared to other war tanks.
Mobility
The tank VK 30 01 H had a pivot. And here is a display showing how was the mobility of the tank.
| Power / Wt Ratio | 9.38 HP /t |
| Speed limit | 40 / 15 km / h |
| Engine power | 300 hp |
| Traverse | 28 deg / s |
Guns
When we are talking about guns, there is a lot to talk about the guns in this VK 30 01 H tank. There were several guns under several ranges. Let us take a look at them.
7,5 cm Kw.K. 37 L/24
When we take this gun, its penetration is 43 / 87 / 38 mm. and the damage is 110 / 110 / 175 hp. The rate of fire is 16.67 rounds/min and the aiming time is 2.3 s. And this gun weighs about 780 kg.
5 cm Kw.K. 39 L/60
This gun’s penetration is 67 / 130 / 25 mm and it can cause damage of 70 / 70/ 90 hp. The rate of fire is 26.09 rounds/min and the aiming time is 2.3 s. And this gun weighs about 700 kg.
Comparison of the guns
Let us take a look at a comparison between the rest of the guns in the tank.
| Gun | Penetration
(mm) |
Rate of fire
(rounds / mins) |
Aiming time
(s) |
Weight
(kg) |
Damage
(HP) |
| 7,5/5,5 cm Waffe 0725 | 157 / 221 / 38 | 12 | 2.5 | 720 | 135 / 135 / 175 |
| 7,5 cm Kw.K. 42 L/70 | 150 / 194 / 38 | 11.54 | 2.5 | 1740 | 135 / 135 / 175 |
| 10,5 cm Kw.K. L/28 | 64 / 104 / 53 | 7.5 | 2.3 | 2100 | 350 / 350 / 410 |
| 7,5 cm Kw.K. 40 L/48 | 110 / 158 / 38 | 15 | 2.3 | 1520 | 110 / 110 / 175 |
| 7,5 cm Kw.K. 40 L/43 | 103 / 139 / 38 | 15 | 2.3 | 1437 | 110 / 110 / 175 |
Engines
There are three engines in VK 30 01 H. They are,
- Maybach HL 116
- Maybach HL 150
- Maybach HL 190
The description of the engines
In this Maybach HL 190, the engine power is 375 hp and it has a 20% of chance of fire on impact. And this weighs 1000 kg. The Maybach HL 150 weighs about 850 kg while its engine power is 400 hp. And this also has a 20% chance of fire on impact. The last but not least engine is the Maybach HL 116. This engine also has a 20% chance of fire on impact while having an engine power of 300 hp. This engine weighs about 750 kg.
Radios
When we are talking about the radios, there are three radios in these tanks. They are FuG 5, FuG 7, and FuG 12. Let us take a look.
| Radio | Signal range | weight |
| FuG 12 | 710 m | 150 kg |
| FuG 5 | 310 m | 50 kg |
| FuG 7 | 415 m | 70 kg |
Health
The health of the tank VK 30 01 H was at a very good measure. If we take the engine health, it had 145 scores. And the track health was 100 while the ammo track health is 160, and the fuel tank health was 150. Somehow the overall health of the tank was 700. That is a decent amount of score.
Performance
This VK 30 01 H is rather a sniper than a front raw fighter. The exclusive turret and the gun depression made this into a sniper. The gun depression of this tank is above average. And the turret is extra thick. If you learned the perfect strategic position to place this beast, it will not fail you.
Comparison
There are few comparable tanks for this tank when we consider the overall performance. The Tiger, VK 30 02 (M), and the Panther.
