LT vz. 34

LT vz. 34
Type	Light tank
Place of origin	Czechoslovakia
Service history
In service	1934—44
Used by	Czechoslovakia Slovakia
Wars	Slovak National Uprising
Production history
Designer	ČKD
Designed	1932—34
Manufacturer	ČKD
Unit cost	about 413,330 Czechoslovak koruna
Produced	1934—35
No. built	50 + 1 prototype
Specifications
Weight	7.5 tonnes (7.4 long tons; 8.3 short tons)
Length	4.6 metres (15 ft)
Width	2.1 metres (6.9 ft)
Height	2.22 metres (7.3 ft)
Crew	3
Armor	8–15 millimetres (0.31–0.59 in)
Main armament	37.2 mm (1.46 in) ÚV vz. 34 gun
Secondary armament	2 x 7.92 mm ZB vz. 35 machine guns
Engine	4-cylinder, water-cooled Praga 62.5 horsepower (46.6 kW)
Transmission	4 x 1
Suspension	leaf spring
Fuel capacity	129 litres (34 US gal)
Operational range	160 kilometres (99 mi)
Speed	30 kilometres per hour (19 mph)

The LT vz. 34, formally designated as Lehký Tank vzor 34 ("Light Tank Model 34") was a Czechoslovak-designed light tank used mainly by Slovakia during World War II. Its suspension was based on that of the Carden-Loyd tankette, of which the Czechs had purchased three, plus a manufacturing license, in 1930. Dissatisfied with the prototypes of the Tančík vz. 33 tankette, the Czech Army decided that it would be easier to design a light tank from scratch rather than modify a tankette's chassis to carry a fully rotating armored turret. 50 were built, the last of which was delivered during 1936, of which the Germans captured 23 when they occupied Bohemia-Moravia in March 1939, but they promptly scrapped them. The Slovaks seized the remaining 27 when they declared independence from Czechoslovakia at the same time. In Slovak service it only saw combat during the Slovak National Uprising.

The LT vz. 34 was assembled from a framework of steel "angle iron" beams, to which armor plates were riveted. A 3 mm (0.12 in) firewall separated the engine compartment from the crew. A door allowed access to the engine from the crew compartment. It also had ventilation openings that could be closed. The driver sat on the right side using a 300 by 75 millimetres (11.8 in × 3.0 in) observation port protected by two flaps. The inner flap had an episcope with a 25° field of view. It was connected to the armored outer flap so that opening one closed the other. The outer flap had a 3 mm (0.12 in) slit. To his right was a vision slit 120 by 3 millimetres (4.72 in × 0.12 in) protected by 50 millimetres (2.0 in) of bulletproof glass. The inner flap was padded so that the driver could rest his head on it when driving. The radio operator sat on the left and had his own 120 by 50 millimetres (4.7 in × 2.0 in) vision port with 50 millimetres (2.0 in) of bulletproof glass and an armored shutter. His radios were mounted on the left wall of the hull. The hull machine gun was between the driver and radio operator in a ball mount with 30° of traverse. It could elevate 25° and depress 10°. Most of the machine gun's barrel protruded from the mount and was protected by an armored trough. The mount had a spotting telescope or open sights could be used if the plug at the top of the ball mount was removed. If necessary the driver could lock the mount into position and fire it himself using a Bowden cable.